September 15, 2016 – Nebulizer – Puffer, inhaler call it what you want, this little hand held device is causing the Norwegian Nordic team all kinds of problems these days – read more here)

Here is my history of having dealt with this whole process, as I’ve been in the sport since the late 60’s, and have seen about everything to come along in that time frame.

In 1974, at the Junior Nordic European Ski Championships (not called the World Juniors yet), Bill Koch made me aware, that he had completed a medical protocol for exercised induced asthma and had a medical clearance form that the organizers should be made aware of. Here Kochie was, to the best of my knowledge, using the nebulizer legally for his first time – by any skier in a competition.

Now, let’s jump ahead to 2006 or ’07, at which time I was the Nordic ski coach at Bowdoin College and I happened to see the skiers from one of the other college teams pre-race, passing a nebulizer amongst themselves. I watched them doing it the next weekend too, this team had a number of Norwegian skiers in their make-up.

Back on campus, I wrote to the coach of the team, and told him to stop this activity as I knew what they were doing was an illegal doping act. He wrote back and challenged me on my statements. I wrote him and told him I would be sending a memo to WADA and we would see what would happen. End of conversation. I wondered how these skiers could have come up with that scheme on their own – or was it already happening in Norway back then?

Justyna K. from the Polish Women’s XC team has been making statements for a number of years about Marit Bjorgen’s open use of the nebulizer. Is there a link to those Norwegian skiers in the US – who knows?

The part that was bothersome to me was that these skiers were in a 4-year program at their school and would become friends with many of the other college skiers. And the coach, would likely become friendly with the other coaches at other colleges, and here they are cheating against their so called friends! For me it was a SAD COMMENTARY!

Summer Racing in North America ? – Last fall I attended the USSA/USST Coaches Conference in Lake Placid in September and raised the issue for the lack of summer time racing in North America. Low and behold, that weekend when the “Climb to The Castle” was held, it was minus the US Ski Teams participation. I challenged the team’s coaching staff as to this decision and they replied that the majority of the skiers at the camp were sprinters – therefore, the race wasn’t their cup of tea. Their workout for that same period was a 4-1/2-hour hike.

Last summer’s experience at Toppidretisvecka (2015) in Norway which the US Team was invited to is the kind of racing they need to be doing here in the US. Multiple races in a 2-3-day period – just like the Climb to the Castle race in Lake Placid. As far as I know this summer is looking the same for the US Team – minimal racing. When I say racing – I’m not talking time trials – but promoted sanctioned races with bibs, results, press releases, prize money the whole ball of wax.

I also feel that domestic skiers get to see so little of the National Team and that it’s the team’s responsibility to get skiers on start line when they have the chance. Otherwise how are these homebodies able make that next step? Putting on a bib helps to take care of the future skiers to come – the final step – RACING!

We’ve had some decent results over the past seasons but the Norwegians still dominate the rest of the X-C skiing world. It’s definitely clear that the Norges stay much closer to their racing peak during their off season than any other xc skiing nation in the world. It may be possible that they manage their racing peak all through the year (yes, 12 months – would be interesting to know), and if not, at least starting in the fall to bring their racers on to peak racing fitness one to two weeks prior to the start of the WC in November.

The American women, who have enough talent and depth to challenge the red, white and blue of Norway were skiing to be in the top 30 in WCs for at least the first half of the season and were gaining racing fitness to the point they were racing in the top 15 the rest of the year – with a fair number of podiums.

So, how do you make that happen for a FULL winter season? Race way more then you did the past year – some 10 to 15 times starting in May and continuing through the summer and fall. There are weekends (multiple) that they race 3-4 times, this being a big part of your overall program, so as to be ready, come NOV. 26th for the first WC. Then make sure you manage your racers programs individually for racing at the top level for the rest of the winter. Not team decisions, but individual decisions.

READ HERE TO FIND OUT WHAT IT IS LIKE IN NORWAY FOR YOUR SUMMER PROGRAM’S RACING SUPPORT AND LOGISTICS – (CHECK UNDER RESULTS) HARD TO BELIEVE ISN’T IT!

Super course et super spectacle à l’Aix Ski Invitational ! (this is the way it should look)

The Olympics and More – I’ve always known I would be in sports and was always interested in the Olympics like any young athlete and like every kid dreamed of being there – and I have!

My first close encounter was in 1958 when I was taking an academic break from college and was approached by Al Merrill, NPD, for the US Nordic Teams, to come and work for him in Squaw Valley on the trail system for the ’60 Olympics and to compete in the North American Championships, which were the trial races for the Olympics.

My next brush with the Olympics was the biathlon tryouts in West Yellowstone in ’64 and then again in ’68 as I helped with the uniform staging for the ’68 team going to Albertville.

Then I really fell into the Olympic scene a number of times over the next 20 years: ’72-Sapporo, ’76 Innsbruck, ’84 Sarajevo, ’88 Calgary, ’92 Albertville, all being coaching assignments and then again in ’94 in Lillehammer as an analyst.

So, over the years I have watched a tremendous transformation of the Games — money and the growth of the summer and winter, the sponsorships, the money, the number of events, the money, the legacies, The Money, TELEVISION, THE MONEY, THE NUMBER OF ATHLETES, THE MONEY.

Then the striking of the word amateur from the OLYMPIC CODE with the gradual inclusion of full-time, highly-paid professional athletes took place, with no notation of professionalism in the code. It means any one can attend as long as they meet the qualifying criteria for whatever sport they are trying out for – poor as a church mouse or rich as a king – doesn’t matter, your way is paid. BUT, ARE YOU PAID FOR YOUR PERFORMANCE?… A BIG FAT NO!!!!!

READ more HERE:

Those athlete’s like the NBA, NHL who are paid big salaries (millions) from their owners. But none of those dollars (NONE) are for going to the Olympics. So, can you believe what you just read – those London Olympics generating billions of dollars made off the backs of the Olympic athletes who are not paid even though there is no question about them having the potential to legally (IN THE EYES OF THE IOC) collect paychecks.

ITS TIME FOR THE IOC AND ALL IT’S NOCS TO STEP UP TO THE MONEY TROUGH – THEY’VE GOT 4 YRS TO PUT AN ACTION PLAN IN PLACE. NOTE TO THE IOC…YOU BETTER HOPE THAT YOU DON’T GET A CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE AN ATHLETE’S BOYCOTT!

TIME TO SPEAK UP ATHLETES – YOU’VE GOT THE POWER!!!

DOPING – I was disappointed in how few athlete’s spoke out about all the doping that has taken place over the years in Russia. Does it mean so little, that it wasn’t worth talking about, or don’t you care? Hard to believe the officials will do their best to rectify the medal placements and the results standings. I know FIS has a big job on its hands to get all of that straightened out from Sochi! Think of the money lost along with the medals.

TALK TO YOU SOON!