Smiling today after “divorce”, accusations and criticism

The short version

• Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (27) is back on the national team and praises the new cross-country manager Cathrine Instebø
• Over the years, he and the Ski Association have had many conflicts in the public eye
• Klæbo believes that in everyday training there will be small differences for him
• The most important weeks of his career will come in February/March 2025, when the WC is held in Trondheim

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– I am very happy that the job with an agreement is out of the world. Now the focus is on the WC and what we will deliver there, says Klæbo to VG.

This spring, Klæbo smiled on stage with the rest of the national team. Kristine Stavå’s Skistad is also under the association’s wings again and if Therese Johaug makes a comeback, it will be for the national team.

Astrid Øyre Slind (Team Aker Dæhlie) is the only one who has not accepted the association.

The contrast is great from previous years – especially for Klæbo.

• In the spring of 2022, Klæbo and the Ski Association only reached an agreement a few hours before the presentation. It was a tough game behind the scenes.
• In the spring of 2023, the national team was presented without Klæbo, Skistad and Astrid Øyre Slind. Didrik Tønseth gave the union a passing grade for the withdrawal.

The relationship between Klæbo and former cross-country manager Espen Bjervig was obviously not the best. Now he praises the new cross-country manager, Cathrine Instebø, for the dialogue they have had this spring.

– There are different circumstances this year. I am very happy. It’s a bonus that we don’t have to think about it any more, says Klæbo.

Last summer there was a joke about whether Klæbo could go cross-country skiing or not:

He has been the big cross-country star on the men’s side for several years. But the conflicts with the Ski Association have been numerous and public since the breakthrough:

Some of Klæbo’s discussions and conflicts with the Ski Association

2018:

• After three Olympic gold medals in 2018, the skiing star wanted clearer commercial rules to deal with from the Norwegian Skiing Association.
• Already five years ago, the lawyer Pål Kleven – with Klæbo on the client list – believed that the Skiing Association misinterpreted the Norwegian Sports Confederation’s rules about who owns the athletes’ name, image and signature. This conflict “won” the athletes in the spring of 2024.

2019:

• Klæbo delayed signing the national team agreement due to market rights
• Klæbo was reprimanded for a photo he posted on Instagram with a clothing brand other than the ski association’s sponsor

2021:

• Klæbo responded that the Skiing Association had Viaplay as a sponsor and did not want to use the logo on their uniform during the race

2022:

• Klæbo took a long time to agree with the association about a place in the national team. There were tough negotiations to bring the greaser Frode Pedersen on. Pedersen was not allowed to continue until the 2023/24 season and later had a major confrontation with the culture among the Smørers.

2023:

• Klæbo said no to a place in the national team. He pointed to poor treatment as a reason. He accused the Ski Association of lacking values. It took time to agree on an agreement that allowed Klæbo to go to the World Cup.
• The national team athletes said they struggled to understand Klæbo.
• VG mentioned how Klæbo covered for the Ski Association’s main sponsor in front of TV interviews

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“A long and tough divorce”, was the verdict of Martin Johnsrud Sundby when Klæbo broke out last year.

“A failure for everything and everyone in the Norwegian team,” said Sweden’s biggest profile, Calle Halfvarsson.

Nor was the year outside the national team without trouble:

• The autumn was characterized by Klæbo and the Skiing Association taking a long time to agree on a necessary agreement so that the star could go to the World Cup. Klæbo accused the Ski Association of lacking values ​​and he was tired of conflicts. Critics wanted it to be about money for Klæbo.
• Before the start of the season, Arild Monsen, sprint coach and important supporter for Klæbo for many years, was bored. He called the whole conflict an energy leak and made demands on Klæbo before the start of the World Cup.
• Before the trial WC in Trondheim, VG also mentioned how Klæbo covered for the Ski Association’s main sponsor SpareBank1 when the TV cameras were on.

– It will be quieter for dad (manager Haakon Klæbo) and less control in the media now. Although we will not go underground for the media, it will not be the eternal chase of whether you can cross-country ski or not. Now you can change your focus and for once have some happy things, says Klæbo.

– Did you get tired of someone labeling you as greedy?

– I understand that people interpret things as they want. I was very clear last autumn that it has never been about money. The most important thing is to ski fast.

– Last year, that’s how I thought I should do it in order to succeed as best as possible. This year it is different.

With the rejection of a place in the national team, Klæbo had to fix “everything” himself last year. That means the training programme, medical treatment and taking care of the skis before winter. He lost access to Olympiatoppen’s training center next to the WC slopes in Granåsen.

Klæbo already had many of the solutions before the break-up:

• Papa Haakon is the manager
• Grandfather Kåre Høsflot is a coach
• Klæbo began a collaboration with the physio Meghan Stowe from the USA
• He has been used to doing large parts of the training on his own.
• He invested in a new roller ski mill in his own home.

In the last year Klæbo was on the national team in 2022/23, he was hardly present at the team’s meetings as he – unlike his teammates – prioritizes training at altitude.

Klæbo also got an additional partner in place in Norsk Kylling, worth millions. This agreement has now been broken as Klæbo joins the national team again, and Norsk Kylling is a competitor of the association’s sponsors Spar and Gilde.

– I am still very happy that I made the choice to stand outside and am very confident in that. But my motivation has always been to ski as fast as possible and be on the national team.

The sporting aspect was as follows:

• In the 2022/23 season as a team, Klæbo was superb in the Tour de Ski, won a record 20 races in the World Cup and took three WC golds.
• In the 2023/24 season (without a championship) outside the team, Klæbo fell ill both shortly before the start of the season and before the highlight of the Tour de Ski. Nevertheless, Klæbo won a total of 16 races, and came second in the World Cup.

– What worked better/worse outside the national team? And what will be the differences now that you are going back in?

– Grandfather has always had the main responsibility for my training and we have always had a good plan. I think it was good to see that even though I was on the outside and there was control around everything, I feel satisfied that I delivered a good season, says Klæbo and continues:

– The period of illness would come regardless of whether you are in the team or not. Maybe I’ll get more peace of mind and get to train more with the team on the national team, otherwise there aren’t that many differences. There is also a very good training environment with skiers who live in Trondheim.

Klæbo assumes he will get two meetings with the national team before the summer, and perhaps one in the autumn. He is investing solo in high altitude training and has made an agreement with the association where he receives financial support for these expenses.

– I don’t think things will be that much different, apart from things going in the right direction. We are sailing the same way. It’s a completely different momentum now.

With Klæbo on the national team, he can be used in advertising and marketing with the association’s sponsors. It can be useful for the Skiing Association, which has struggled financially.

– I assume the sponsors are satisfied that the association is going in the same direction. That is my goal when I join the team. I will contribute as best I can. It is probably good for partners and potentially new partners that there are slightly more smiles on faces here now than there were perhaps last year.

– After all, we are going into a WC season that can yield a lot.

• The WC takes place in Trondheim at the turn of February/March. The trails in Granåsen are a few kilometers from Klæbo’s home in Byåsen. These will be the most important weeks of your career.
• The Olympics in Milan/Cortina (cross-country skiing is held in Val di Fiemme, near the small town of Cavalese in northern Italy) await in the winter of 2026. It is already clear that Klæbo will be on the national team then as well.