On Saturday, Maren Lundby made a comeback in international competition, after over 600 days away from the sport. For almost two years, she has struggled to get back to her “match weight”, and has been honest about the health challenges she has faced. She has not yet reached the weight needed to fight for top positions, and has settled down to the fact that it will take time to reach the right weight in a proper way. Still, she wished that a speech didn’t have so much to say. – My wish is that it is possible to assert yourself even if you are five kilos too heavy. Five kilos is not very much, but there are quite a few meters in the ground, says Lundby to news. Now she is launching possible solutions to overcome the weight problem. Different sizes Lundby emphasizes that she accepts that the situation is like this, but acknowledges that she has thought about measures that can change the weight problem. – There are many things that can be adjusted. For example, the suit for someone who is a little heavier could be bigger. Or if you can have even longer skis. That would have compensated for the extra weight, says Lundby. LAUNCHING SOLUTIONS: Maren Lundby. Photo: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB She believes that such a solution would have opened the way for ski jumpers of all possible sizes and shapes to fly far on skis. – Then it would have been more about the technical and physical aspects, she says further. She is unsure of how the regulations should be changed to make it fair, and believes that it should be thought through before possibly being put into effect. – But I could imagine that they had tried anyway. Now it’s the case that I can jump even if I’m heavier, but then you see that I’m a little way off the top. If you get a set of regulations where all possible jumpers can jump far, then I think it’s worth considering, she says. She adds: – Some are genetically built to ski, while others are not. If that aspect had been made to have a little less say, I think it would have been healthy for the sport. Rather, Lundby believes that there is no doubt that weight has a lot to say in show jumping. By changing the regulations, it will lead to the best jumper winning, regardless of size. – These things here are what separate the best from the second best. If everyone could compete with equal conditions, the best jumper will win anyway. – Is it healthy to focus so much on weight? – It is probably both. I don’t want to say that our sport is very unhealthy, as I perceive it, but there is no doubt that there are some who work harder at it than others, she says. This will not be a new battle for Lundby, in the same way that she has worked to ensure that women are allowed to stand on the ski-flying slopes, but hopes that the International Skiing Federation (FIS) will look for ways to change the regulations. – I know that Fis has this on the agenda, she says. Do you need someone to talk to? There are several helplines, chat services and support groups where you can share your thoughts and feelings completely anonymously, and get support, advice and guidance. Mental Health Helpline: Call 116 123 or write to sidetmedord.no. Press 2 for parental care and press 3 for the student telephone on the same number. Mental Health Youth: Chatteteste at www.mhu.no on Monday to Thursday 18–21. Tenesta is aimed at young adults (18-35 years). Healthy Sports: Chatteteneste at sunnidrett.no or contact by e-mail: [email protected] Nettros – Counseling for eating disorders: Chatteteneste at nettros.no or call 948 17 818. Must monitor weight Sandro Pertile, who is running director of Fis, tells to news that they have started keeping weight statistics on athletes who participated in international competitions. ACCOMPANYING: Sandro Pertile. Photo: Geir Olsen / NTB – We decided that this summer. After each official jumping practice, the athletes must go to the control room to weigh themselves. We will keep an eye on that throughout the winter, to see how the situation develops, and be clear if there are any changes that need to be made in the spring, says Pertile to news. He nevertheless underlines that weight is an important prerequisite for performance. – You have to fly and you have to be light. It is a quality you must have, but we must try to prevent the extreme challenges surrounding it, and control the trend between the athletes, he says. – Are there health challenges in sport? – I don’t think we have health challenges, and see no reason to make changes now, but we will follow through the winter, he says further.
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