Sport Win News: Kristiansen irritated unfair criticism

The story of Egil Kristiansen’s ten years as a woman coach in cross country, is the story of 23 gold, 10 silver and 14 bronze in the World Championships and Olympics. It is the story of how Norway has played a historically sovereign position internationally.

But it is also a story that contains plenty of resistance. In 2009 worked effort to get Kristiansen removed from his job. Marit Bjørgens plight was the epitome of the Norwegian cross-country girls fall.

Now insert sentence. Monday thanked Kristiansen for himself at a press conference at Holmenkollen.

Then he sat down on the couch to talk to NRK about the good moments, but not least also the difficult.

– You say Marit Bjørgens first Olympic gold in the sprint in Vancouver in 2010 is the largest single moment. What do you remember of it?

– It was very special, you remember the story in advance. Meanwhile, I was actually sick, so I was in solitary confinement in the Olympic camp. It was a barracks with no TV or anything at all, so I had sneaked down to the administration office of the Norwegian team to watch TV. I had not really allowed to be there.

– When it became final and I realized that “this goes way,” so it was reasonably wild jubilation in the barracks. So it is the single performance I remember best. We had spent so outrageously long time working hard towards that goal. That it finally succeeded, after so many difficult years, is the largest.

Bjoergen conflict

– There were many discussions about Bjørgens training in the transition from Svein Tore Samdal as national coach for you. How much did you feel that the controversy was involved in influencing her accomplishments years in advance?

– Marit had a crazy belief in what she was doing, and I understand that after the good performance she did in the preceding period. She had faith that it would also bring her a step further, but maybe she should intend that so that “now I’ve tried this for so many years and may not succeed” and twisted a little before, but at the same time I think Marit learned extremely much of that period. And I did too. It is perhaps the period when it went heaviest, is perhaps when I learned the most in my managerial career. And I have taken retrospectively.

– Readiness to throw me out

– How close were you to throw in the towel when the brickbats flew toward you after the World Championships in Liberec in 2009?

– I was never close to throwing in the towel. It may well be many others were ready to evict me, but I was never ready to go out for yourselves. I was determined that “this here I’ll fucking get to,” and show that it is possible to get it on its feet again.

– Did you have the feeling that more did not want you?

– Yes, I had the feeling. I knew it, it was not just a feeling.

– Was that athletes who came to you and said that the time so that you did not continue?

– no, not performers. I did not have the feeling that some athletes would, but there were many others outside.

– Irritated today

– What did that experience with you, process in 2009?

– I think it’s important to have the kind of thing that ballast also when it goes well. Had it only been good all the time, so I think maybe we had not got as much as we have done. You see that there is no guarantee that things will go well.

– Is there any moment that stands out from the heavy time?

– I will not pull out single thing. But being accused of things you absolutely can not have done it I become irritated. It’s almost so I get irritated today.

– And now we talk about the incident after the relay in Liberec, then Adresseavisen wrote that you scolded made in smørebua after the medal slipped?

– for example, yes.

– And that annoys you?

– Yes, being accused of things you absolutely have not been close to do it irritates me. But this I do not intend to rip up.

The great challenge

– You’ve had very many girls on the team who have taken gold medals in international championships, and then you say that the hardest part of the job is to take care of the most damaging at any time. What is the part of the job?

– It’s very difficult when you are in a championship or a World Cup, for you are quickly dragged the press conference and be this and that with athletes who have done well. And you know at once that it is the athletes who have not done so well that you might not get caught you well enough. I think that’s challenging, because you know that there are those who actually need it most.

– I remember it was very especially during the World Cup in Holmenkollen in 2011, the 30-kilometer. For you have two athletes that takes double victory. Therese Johaug takes gold, Marit Bjørgen becomes number two – and I stand lost in turn with TV cameras on me when Therese and Marit enters the goal, and it should really be wild cheers. But then you stand and wait for two athletes who have not performing – Vibeke Skofterud and Kristin Stormer Steira, who has not got out there they are good for. You can not stick in the way and cheering as tusan when they go by. You feel with those who have done the same job, but did not succeed.

eating Problems

– You mentioned Skofterud and Steira – two athletes who have had challenges around eating and weight. How has it been dealing with the issue with several athletes?

– There are difficult issues. It is of the heavier things you’ve worked with. But while there are also things you have with them as ballast, and that you actually learn quite a lot from. I think you learn by far the most of the things that are difficult and you really have to challenge you self on.

– Have you experienced having to intervene and say “you have a problem, we must put your foot down, we must reverse the course, you must take a break “?

– not just that, but it is constantly a dialogue on such things. We talk together, and then one takes hold of it. But it’s not just me who is in such a loop. When there are several professionals. But at the same time you must as a coach pushing on a few things.

– What are you most proud of during the ten years that coach?

– it’s actually what we have managed to achieve. Managing to keep the pressure up, regardless of whether the results are bad or good, to do the damn job one hundred percent anyway. Not being dragged down by a poor outcome, or about to take off for yummy results. To paint on paint anyway.

– Could have been a giant brake

– Bjoergen and Johaug on a training level of generality that almost no other practitioners in Norway has ever been and almost no one else in the world either. Martin Johnsrud Sundby’ve seen in training diaries their to achieve its progress, you feel that you have helped to set a new standard for training in cross country?

– When you mention it is perhaps also a thing I’m a little proud. We have constantly pushed the boundaries and added a new template, set a new standard for how it is possible to train. It is perhaps not primarily my merit, but I have given these offensive athletes a little pandering rein to do it .

– I could have been a huge brake on the development and said that they had to calm down, but they’ve got some free rein. It has proved to be very good, and we see that others have begun to take for and received good results.

– is it difficult for a coach to know which athletes you can give free rein and who you have to hold back?

– it’s not that easy all period, and many of the girls are extremely offensive. Some may find it difficult to rein in, and sometimes it goes in the ditch.

– Are there any exercises you as a coach you have received too little out of the potential?

– I will not take up individual names, but there are many athletes you feel have not gotten out its potential and perhaps could have done things a little differently here and there.

Sport Win News

Monday, April 25, 2016

Kristiansen irritated unfair criticism – NRK