– I think it’s getting a little too much, says Barbro Tomter Dahlen, chairman of Rustad IL Langrenn, to news. For this season, athletes and parents must pay a service fee, in addition to the entry fee, in order to participate in national races. For seniors, it now costs NOK 100 more per exercise. For the juniors NOK 75. This applies to races such as the Beitos Sprint, NM, Norwegian Cup, Junior WC, muster race and Scandinavian Cup. But this has caused strong reactions: – It is clear, many do not have the opportunity to go to the Norwegian Cup races, or the junior NM and senior NM, as long as the club does not cover large parts of the sums that the athletes have. And in addition to the service fee, you also have a travel allowance for circuits a little further north, so that starting fee is quite hefty per ski race, points out Dahlen. – Have you received reactions from parents? – Yes, we have had reactions from parents, including athletes, who think it is getting expensive. The Norwegian cross-country national team washes out of the grease bus before the fluoride ban comes into effect before the 2023/2024 winter season. The total price, for each individual race, is therefore NOK 225 for juniors and NOK 270 for seniors. As Dahlen mentions, the juniors must also pay a travel distribution fee of NOK 150. The Norwegian Ski Association tells news that this is a measure to equalize the differences in travel costs in the country, and that it is distributed back to the athletes based on where they are traveling from and where the event is. Realizing that people are reacting Before this season, the International Skiing and Snowboarding Federation (FIS) and the International Biathlon Union (IBU) introduced a full fluoride ban, at all levels. To cover the costs the Ski Association has for enforcing the fluoride ban, for the development of ski races, and for the TV production of national races, they introduced a service fee. It was decided at the autumn meeting of the cross-country committee last year. MUST BE FLUORIDE TESTED BEFORE START: Skis set up for fluoride testing. Photo: news Something that should give the Ski Association a total of NOK 1.55 million, it says in the presentation for the autumn meeting. Event manager at the Norwegian Ski Association, Erik Husby, points out that the increased costs relate to the purchase of test machines, among other things. In addition, they had to train and certify equipment inspectors according to FIS’s rules, as well as pay for, among other things, travel costs for those who carry out the testing. – We would prefer not to make our sport more expensive. Our goal is to make it here as cheap as possible. And I sincerely hope that this will not be a fixed fee when we now see that things are working and we have found a way to enforce those things, says Husby. NOT A FUTURE PLAN: Erik Husby, development manager at the Norwegian Ski Association, understands that people react. Photo: NTB – Do you feel it is right that these expenditure costs are something athletes and parents have to bear? – I understand that some people react to it. We do not want it to be any more expensive in the future, but simply to be able to offer that service here and to have fair competition with the fluoride ban, this was a fee that had to be added this year. And as the circles completely agreed that we are doing this season, says Husby further. – A paradox Former leader of Buskerud Ski Circle, Gabriel Johannessen, says that he has also received reactions from parents who think this is inappropriate. – There are probably very divided opinions about what this has meant. But what everyone can say, and what no one can refute, is that this has become very much more expensive. Sports and cross-country skiing, which many claim are expensive, have definitely become more expensive, Johannessen points out. Johannessen believes that the fluoride ban has also had unexpected negative consequences: The distance between those who go the fastest and those who go the slowest has increased, both in the World Cup and the Norwegian Cup. And the service charge has only led to greater expenses. – It is therefore a paradox that such a measure is initiated, Johannessen points out. – All those who thought that when fluorine disappeared, it would become more equal and more uniform… but it doesn’t. In order to get the best possible glide, it now requires more equipment and even more expertise to be able to lubricate the skis, he says further. Had to throw away equipment worth half a million As a consequence of the fluoride ban, Rustad IL cross-country skiing has had to throw away equipment and ski lubrication worth over half a million kroner. They have also had to purchase corresponding and relatively expensive equipment. – It is clear that if you want to hang out today, then you must have all the ski lubrication. But you don’t have the opportunity to buy that anymore. The differences are only getting bigger and bigger between clubs and athletes, she says. But even if the Oslo club has had greater challenges in raising money, they are a club that covers a large part of the expenses of the athlete. If they didn’t have the opportunity to do so, more people would quit, Dahlen believes. – There are several people in our club who do not have the opportunity to participate if we do not push in 50 per cent of the costs, so they would be gone. – But it is clear that something must be done soon if children and young people are to continue skiing, she emphasises.
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