Where Cross-Country future stars meet their idols

Last week, the Equinor International Junior Camp in cross-country skiing was held in Sandnes (NOR). Athletes from 12 different nations came to train together and get advice from Norwegian elite skiing stars.

The Equinor International Junior Camp is organized by the Norwegian Ski Association and is part of the sponsorship program from Equinor. All together, 85 cross-country skiing talents from 12 countries gathered to train and learn from each other, compete and train on rollerskis along with international World Cup stars who participated at the BLINK Festivalen, one of Norways largest summer sport festival.

Getting advice from World Cup athletes

Previously, the gathering had taken place at Sjusjøen - the well known mountain retreat close to Lillehammer, but this year it has been moved to the coast to the city of Sandnes. The group was joined by skiing stars like Helene Marie Fossesholm, Harald Østberg Amundsen and the Weng sisters, who took the roles as mentors for the young talents. During the meeting, the World Cup stars talked about what success means as being one fo the worlds best athletes and what opportunities and challenges await along the way. The athletes shares very valuable insights on training methods and health aspects and managed to catch the attention of the young talents - as many of them are soon looking into taking the next step into their skiing career.

The excitement to be able to ask questions and get one-on-one answeres by top athletes was shared among all - participants and their coaches who joined the camp. It is particularly useful on the way to the dream of becoming the best in the world.

Cheers to competence in development
This year is was the 12th time the gathering had been organised, with the aim to help young talents develop, have fun and experience mastery in the sport they love to do.

Development manager for cross-country skiing in the Norwegian Ski Association, Brit Baldishol, agrees that it is valuable to gather international talents, so that they can get to know each other and share experiences across national borders.
"We always encourage skills development and hope that the athletes benefit from each other's experiences and will be further inspired and motivated for the future after taking part in the gathering," says Baldishol.

Tove Moe Dyrhaug, President of the Norwegian Ski Federation, has followed the development of the Equinor International Junior Camp in recent years with pleasure. She was also in place in Sandnes last week, and followed the young talents in the competitions that took place in connection with BLINK ski festival.
"This has been a long and fine collaboration between Equinor and the Norwegian Skiing Association, and it is important to share knowledge across the nations and develop Cross-Country skiing further together, as well as learn from each other. It is good that the national team athletes visit the gathering, as this provides inspiration for further investment. And in these days with war close at hand, it is extra nice that this gathering takes place and you can train, collaborate and have social gatherings across the nations," says Moe Dyrhaug.

Facts about the Equinor International Junior Camp:

• The collection is part of the collaboration between the Norwegian Skiing Association and the sponsor program Equinor Morgendagens helter.

• 85 runners from 12 nations take part in the meeting which is organized in Sandnes in the period 1-8. August 2023.

• The purpose of the gathering is to contribute to talent development and thus the development of cross-country skiing across national borders. By training, learning and sharing knowledge and experiences through meetings with peers at the same level from different countries, the gathering will contribute to the flourishing of cross-country skiing both nationally and internationally

• Participating nations: Italy, USA, Finland, Norway, Germany, Andorra, Slovakia, Japan, Croatia, Estonia, Denmark, Latvia.