COC/Swiss Cup, Sprint free technique, 05.12.2020 in Goms, Switzerland.
Photo: Urs Steger / © 2020 www.stegerfotografie.ch. All rights reserved.
This season started in Goms on 5 and 6 December 2020 with a sprint and a 10km skating. These two competitions counted for the Continental Cup (COC), and the Swiss Cup. Unfortunately, the Germans and the French could not race that weekend because of the Covid. In the sprint, I finished 3rd in the prologue. In the quarter finals I had good feelings, I gave everything and I won, but I didn't feel very well afterwards. I didn't have much time to recover before the semi-final. I was not well in the head and I had no energy left. I finished 4th in this half and 8th overall. The next day, it was the individual 10km. I didn't have too much pressure because I didn't have to prove anything to anyone unlike the sprint where I was more expected to do it. On the first lap, I went quite fast to see if my body was "fit". I hear that I have the best time after the 1st lap and that I have the 2nd after all the passages. I felt good, I thought I was skiing well. Before the last lap I was still playing for the podium. I gave it my all in the last climbs. My coach told me I was going for the win so when I heard that, I had a surge of energy and I sprinted for that last climb. It was crazy, I couldn't feel the pain anymore. I finished 2nd! First podium in COC.