Cross-country skiing: a Tour de Ski well finished at the top of Alpe Cermis for Hugo Lapalus and Mathis Desloges
The virus will eventually have them. Just returned to France, Hugo Lapalus and Mathis Desloges also contracted the first flu symptoms which affected a large majority of theFrench cross-country ski team on the last Tour de Ski. Head of the World Cup group, Alexandre Rousselet didn’t escape it either.
Tired after a long return on the roads Italians, the Doubiste still took the time to discuss the tour of the tricolors, mentioning in particular winning the purple bib but also the third place overall d’Hugo Lapalus or the difficulties encountered by women’s training. Interview at the microphone of Nordic Magazine.
- A few hours after your return to France, what is your first return to this Tour de Ski?
We still had a few “scares”. We started with thirteen athletes at the start of the Tour de Ski and ended it with two cross-country skiers at the top of the final climb. Every day, we wondered if it was going to last until the end for everyone. It was complicated psychologically too, even for them. But in the end, they delivered. We won this podium overall and then the purple jersey, which is always important with Hugo [Lapalus]. Mathis [Desloges] confirms and it is not trivial to do it on the Tour as a young senior like him.
- Is it important to see your athletes compete in many formats because that hasn’t always been the case?
We have been working on versatility for several years. It is certain that we do not have a king like [Johannes Hoesflot] Klæbo who expresses himself everywhere but I think that, for Hugo, it allowed him to complete his palette. Of course, it’s still difficult in qualifying for a sprint, but for the rest like the end of the race, he has improved.
- This purple jersey that you mentioned, what did you think of it?
All these little details are super important on a Tour de Ski. You also have to be a good climber and we saw that again this year. This jersey is a good thing brought by the FIS. It’s an extra carrot and it highlights the climbers in the peloton.
- The results seem rather positive so…
We have slightly more negative points all the same. It was very difficult for the girls. There is a problem at the moment. Our two leaders were absent [Delphine Claudel et Flora Dolci, NDLR]. It was still good to bring up the youngest like Léonie Perry. It was important that she came and she delivered. She did good things but unfortunately she was also sick. I think we will have the opportunity to see her again soon. For the other girls, it was still very hard over the distances.
“We expect a little more from them”Alexandre Rousselet at Nordic Magazine
- Can you explain these difficulties?
This is a bit of a complicated point at the moment. We have to let the storm pass and we hope that things will return better a little later in the season. We often talk about it with the staff. With Delphine being injured and Flora being ill, it broke the dynamic a bit. There were reasons for satisfaction on the Davos stage, particularly for Léna [Quintin]Melissa [Gal] and Julie [Pierrel]. Afterwards, we expect a little more from them too. We have higher demands. They worked well but for the moment, it still remains fragile. The situation is less clear than for boys.
- This Tour de Ski was also marked by numerous illnesses. How do you manage a virus within a team?
It’s complicated because, when an illness or virus enters the team, we have protocols and we are careful. We try to isolate the sick as soon as we can. We put on the mask and we no longer mix people at the table. We try to do things well, but in fact, it’s a virus that is there and it will affect each person one after the other. In a group, this can lead to tension even if it went well for us. This can cause tension and we therefore maintain a high level of vigilance.
We have to be even better at that. Since Covid, we have noticed that our immunity is quite low, even if we are even more careful. Athletes still get sick and it spreads faster than before. In the end, we still had Hugo and Mathis who performed even though it could have been a disaster. We got up in the morning with a little apprehension all the same.
- What does the future look like for the French team?
There is now a recovery period. Everyone will take advantage of this to heal and rebuild themselves. The Redheads weekend will soon be here. And behind that, our main objective remains the World Championships in Trondheim.
“We will be proud to perform in front of our audience”Alexandre Rousselet at Nordic Magazine
- This stage in Les Rousses (Jura) must also be on a lot of people’s minds…
Les Rousses, we had a superb atmosphere two years ago. We hope to find all that or even better this year. The track has also changed, particularly that of the sprint. We are very happy with that. The results of Mathis and Hugo on the Tour are motivating. We will have, in addition to the current group, many young athletes who will arrive and who will be able to discover the circuit. We will be proud to perform in front of our audience.
