Madshus racer Ingvild Flugstad Østberg (NOR) is named to the Norwegian Tour de Ski squad, the Norwegian National team announced on December 25. Østberg replaces Marit Bjørgen, who drops out of the Tour after experiencing heart arrhythmia just before Christmas. Bjørgen was admitted to the hospital in Trondheim for testing on December 23, but was released the same evening.
Østberg has skied consistently fast this season, and delivered some strong performances during the World Cup races in Canada earlier this month. Those efforts earned her the spot on the Norwegian National Team for the upcoming Tour de Ski, which starts in Oberhof (GER) on December 29.
“Ingvild will replace Marit Bjørgen for the Tour de Ski. We want to get into the races with as strong of a crew as we can muster, and Ingvild showed in Canada that shes on a roll,” says Vidar Løfshus, Norwegian national team director.
Løfshus is confident the 22-year-old will race well, especially in some of the stages.
“Ingvild has skied fast at several of the venues that are on the Tour, and I think she can deliver some very strong performances on some of the stages,” Løfshus says to Norwegian web site www.SkiAktiv.no.
Aside from Marit Bjørgen, all of the Norwegian skiers are healthy and prepared for the Tour de Ski. The upcoming Tour de Ski consists of seven stages over nine days. Stage one is a prologue in Oberhof (GER) on December 29. The Tour de Ski concludes with the dreaded hill climb up Alpe Cermis in Val di Fiemme (ITA) on January 6.