He chose to take a lighter training schedule in the spring to study and recharge for the winter. Now, Jens Burman has started hard work towards the winter’s highlight, the World Championships in Trondheim.

The Swedish traditional cross-country skier Jens Burman had a bumpy winter. He struggled during the Swedish premiere in Gällivare, finishing ninth in the classic 10km race and eighteenth the next day in the 10km race in freestyle technique.

With the results, it was clear that there was no World Cup premiere in Ruka, Finland:

“After the races in Gällivare, I went home and did long easy ski sessions. No hard intervals, just focusing on being out for a long time. That brought my body back. But sometimes, knowing what is needed to turn things around is difficult. Sometimes you just have to try different things,” says Burman to Langd.se.

Have you reflected on the start of last season?

“Absolutely. And I don’t really have a good explanation for why it went so poorly in Gällivare or how it turned around so quickly. I had a few minor colds during the fall. It may be that my body was tired, but it didn’t feel that way. But as I said, I am happy I quickly returned to the level I want to be.”

At the skiathlon on the upcoming World Championships courses in Trondheim (during the last World Cup weekend before Christmas previous winter), Burman finished eighth, and the next day, he finished tenth at the 10km race.

“Of course, it feels good to have shown that I can ski well on those courses, and it’s a course and an arena that I enjoy. The distance courses start with a gentle climb, a long working section where you have to maintain your pace for a long period. If you are strong and have a good engine, you will have an advantage on that part of the course. I think that will benefit me. Then there’s another part of the course, which is about high-speed double poling around the stadium. Those are parts I’m working on,” says Burman, who, like the Swedish national team, will go to Trondheim to race Toppidrettsveka in mid-August.

“Of course, getting to know the area, the environment, and the surroundings can be good. But for me, I think it’s as much about seeing what the hotel looks like, how long it takes to get to the stadium, and how the logistics work, like testing the courses on roller skis. It won’t be quite the same as on snow,” says Burman when Langd.se met him during the Swedish national team camp in Åre a couple of weeks ago.

Burman has started training seriously again after a slightly calmer spring:

“I’ve deliberately started this training period a bit slower. This is both to recharge the batteries and because I started studying to become an electrical engineer. It has been nice to think about something other than just training during this part of the year,” concludes Burman.

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