When there is the national season opener at Beitostølen on 18 November, Jarl Magnus Riiber will be without Jarl Magnus Riiber on the starting line. The combined star has put behind him a period of illness that he has never seen the likes of in his 26 years. – I have never coughed and coughed as much as I have in the last eight weeks. One begins to ask oneself “what is happening?”. That’s what a frustrated Riiber says to news. He has been diagnosed with rhinovirus, which causes colds, coughs and sore throats. Not the biggest problem in the world for the man in the street, but when you are chasing medals and sporting success it is a crisis. – Never experienced before. In any case, when the disease never seemed to let go. Coughing attacks both in the morning and in the evening became the norm for the 26-year-old for a long time. Riiber began to worry that his lungs had been permanently damaged. – I had never experienced it this way before. It was new to me to never recover. It was a strange feeling to feel, he says. In mid-October, he was able to start training again. Since then, he has stepped up and is now back in daily training, but still a long way from top form. That is why he also stays at home when the other athletes travel to Beitostølen to open the season. – Do you get to train as you normally would now? – Yes, now I train a lot. It’s not so good, but you make up for a little of what was lost. I fill up with a little extra than what I would normally do. It will go beyond my jumping form now in the short term, but I hope that when I get everything together before I go to Kuusamo, I will be a competent combined runner again, he says. When the going gets tough in the sports arena, Riiber consoles himself with the fact that he has a lot to be happy about on a personal level. He gives his three-and-a-half-year-old daughter Ronja a lot of joy and replenishment in the weekday. Isolates oneself from the family But it’s not just about having kindergarten children when you’re a top athlete and want to avoid all the “basketballs” these kindergarten children often bring home with them. Therefore, Riiber has chosen to isolate himself from his family to minimize the risk of further illness. Now he has moved into his mother and father’s basement. In total, he will be away from the family for nine weeks. – It is heavy. Fortunately, I will meet them after the World Cup in Lillehammer. It’s December 4th. WANT TO SMILE: Then Jarl Magnus Riiber has to take measures that are not always as cheerful. Photo: Geir Olsen / NTB – What is it like to be away from your daughter when she is so young and maybe learns things while you are away? – There will be a lot of “Facetime”, but it will not be the same as being present and seeing her face to face. The most important thing is that she has fun and doesn’t have to isolate herself in order for me to achieve my goals. I hope we have a nice Christmas and New Year together, he says. – Not the funnest But it’s not just the family who see little of Riiber these days. His teammates have also missed him this autumn and winter, since Riiber has chosen to train a lot alone to keep his body in check. – It’s not the most fun to walk for two to three hours on the mills down here on Olympiatoppen. But it is one of the measures I have taken, to train as much as possible inside and get a climate that is very kind to my lungs. In any case, during a period where I will try to rebuild myself and at the same time have good control over each session. And I have also received very good help at the house here with regard to sorting out the lungs, he says. He calls it his own project, part of the goal of becoming an even better combined athlete. – When I have started a project, I am quite disciplined and manage to do exactly what I have to. It’s like the art of just doing what you have to and nothing more, then it will be fine in the end, he believes. – What is the goal for the season? – The goal is to win the World Cup overall. Plain and simple, he says. Then the bass lures must be kept at a distance. – We will show Norway what we can do! 01:02 This is how it went when Ramm did a standup in a speedo 01:08 Is this the most beautiful goal of the year? 00:30 – I can’t feel my fingers! 01:02 Show more
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