Bastien Poirrier, the leader of Team Nordic Experience, feels too disillusioned after his season to find the motivation to start another one.

“Already last year, I had a hard time getting motivated, but I didn’t want to end up with a season that had been completely turned upside down by the Covid. Finally, today I feel drained by the second part of the winter; I didn’t do what I wanted to do from a sporting point of view,” says Poirrier to ProXCskiing.com.

“I’m really fed up because, in the few races where I didn’t have problems, I felt good, but there have been too many issues this year: I broke a pole in Marcialonga, I had Covid and back problems in February, I fell in Vålådalen, and finally I broke a ski at Ylläs-Levi, it’s too much,” explains Bastien and continues:

“That’s why I don’t want to go back for another season, and I’m fed up. We’ll see later if time is on my side or not. I also have other projects for this summer, such as renovating a house.”

“If I come back for another winter, I know it won’t be 100% on the Visma Ski Classics Pro Tour. I want to do other races like La Transjurassienne, the Engadine Skimarathon, or the French club championships.”

“There is also another factor that comes into play: for us, the French team, it’s not easy to continue at the top level. It’s challenging to find partners, and very few French athletes can live from skiing. So, we have to find a job that allows us to train and go to work. Thankfully we have passionate partners who follow us with the team. Without them, we would not be able to be at the start and live great experiences.”

If you stop now and must keep only one race as your favorite, which one would it be?

“Honestly, I don’t know. It’s too hard! I have several, for different reasons: Marcialonga and the World Cup stage in Lillehammer for the atmosphere, my winning in Dolomitenlauf, or Birkebeinerrennet, Reistadløpet and Toblach-Cortina for the landscapes.”

Poirrier’s best result was 11th place at La Venosta Time Trial this season. He has also been in the top 30 several times and has been on the Visma Ski Classics circuit since 2016.