– It has been absolutely fantastic to be involved, says Camilla Gjersem. The figure skater has fought her way through more than 20 competitions in the Champions of Champions. But now the dance is over for the season’s youngest participant. Trønder success On Friday, the gang once again got to try their hand at team competitions. This time they worked together in pairs. And first they got to work on building a – more or less – stable tower. The tower must reach all the way up to the altimeter and remain stationary for a minimum of five seconds. Only creativity sets limits on how it should be built. Photo: Alice Asplund / Nordisk Banijay/news Football player Pål André Helland draws inspiration from world architecture: – If you start from the Eiffel Tower, you are on the right track, he says before the competition starts. And the idea is not a bad one: A slightly swaying “Eiffel Tower” remains stationary for five seconds. The Trønder team can celebrate their victory. – We are very pleased, says partner Marit Malm Frafjord. Muskelkjør But the handball player is not as successful in the second exercise of the evening: In the classic “Situps” you have to carry balls that are in the board in front….. and place them in the back board. All with the help of situps. The exercise requires strength, speed and precision. And it doesn’t take long before it starts to hurt. – We are driving at pace, Camilla Gjersem shouts to teammate Ole-Kristian Bryhn along the way. Together they show their abs and take a deserved first place. – Incredibly good to walk away with the victory. I needed those points, says Bryhn. Decisive chase start After two exercises, figure skater Gjersem and footballer Helland have the most points. This ensures them the biggest head start at the start of the hunt, where it will be decided who has to go in the night test. But a lot happens along the way. See picture sprinkle: The participants prepare for lactic acid and two rounds of hard work. They will roll a ball, adjusted for weight, around a very tough track in two laps. It is a steep climb, and it is not long before Gjersem is overtaken by other participants. The participants must also shoot at three balls. If they miss, there will be small extra rounds. Round number two will be the hardest. Anders Aukland will be a strong number two, after Pål André Helland. Here he congratulates Marit Malm Frafjord on fourth place. She has just avoided ending up in the night test. Pål André Helland secures another victory. Anders Aukland and Ole-Kristian Bryhn take silver and bronze, while Marit Malm Frafjord fights for fourth place. Camilla Gjersem and Birgitte Lersbryggen must therefore meet in their first duel. Floorball player Birgitte Lersbryggen had the fastest reaction time in the fifth night test of the season. Photo: Skjermdump / news In Sonja Henie’s footsteps For Gjersem, the journey stops here. She speaks only warmly of her stay in the Master of Masters. – It has been incredibly fun. I think it was an honor to be asked. The 30-year-old is one of the very few Norwegians who have asserted themselves at the top of the world in figure skating after Sonja Henie. She is also the first to bring sports into the Master of Masters. On screen, she has shown the versatility required to make it far in the sport. – It’s incredibly fun that people have noticed it, been surprised and say that figure skating seems fun, says Gjersem to news. Gjersem was accepted into the national team as an 11-year-old together with her twin sister Anne Line. They have supported each other and competed against each other throughout their careers. Photo: Lise Åserud / NTB She is happy to help promote the breadth of Norwegian sports. – And show that if you have motivation and are passionate about it, you can also get far. How does the dream of becoming a figure skater start, and what lies behind the few minutes you are on the ice in a competition? Camilla Gjersem talks about how the skating dream was a family project, about being compared to her twin sister, and being present on the ice. Throughout her career, she has collaborated with and competed against her sister Anne Line Gjersem. Figure skating has been their joint project. And never, ever, have the sisters argued about figure skating. – We have only backed each other and supported each other. SUPPORTING SISTERS: Camilla captured the EC place in 2012, while her sister participated in the Olympics in 2014. In 2015, Camilla was chosen to participate in the EC in Stockholm, where she qualified for the final after the short program. She is Norwegian champion five times. Photo: Lise Åserud / NTB scanpix She says the same about the participants in the Master of Masters. During their stay, they managed to become a nice and close-knit group. – We are on the same team, states Gjersem. Read more about Camilla Gjersem’s life and career:
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– It has been incredibly fun – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
