DAVOS (VG) After a strong early winter, even Northug (27) takes on Christmas celebrations in Central Europe with big brother Petter. He’s just glad it won’t be like the last time the two celebrated the holidays alone.
– She was very ill. It was a good thing, he says, that I was so old that childcare didn’t get involved Until Northog – Now World Cup Sprint Leader – To VG and his smile.
Because today he thinks with horror on Christmas Eve when the two brothers checked into a hotel on Bernina Pass in December 2015.
There is a mountain pass at an altitude of 2400 meters between Switzerland and Italy. Impeccable conditions to begin with.
Peter Northug He was preparing at the time for the Tour de Ski. Until he enrolled as a 20-year-old apprentice.
And the water, and the grain, and the store were shut up
But Christmas Eve itself was unforgettable. The dinner was immortalized on what was then the Northog television special. You can see the photo at the top of this case.
– On Christmas Eve we were told they closed the hotel. They were on their way to their Christmas celebration and we were given the key to the main entrance to the hotel. There was water and cereal on Christmas Eve. I hope this year will be better, because it was a weird birthday seven years ago, he says and smiles more.
– It was very special. When you’re used to hearty Christmas dinners at home on the farm, all of a sudden you get water and cereal, and the shop closes. But the experience was also fun.
Big Brother Peter confirms that this time the hotel restaurant will open its doors on December 24th.
Today – seven years later – the roles have changed. After a number of best results and a fourth-place finish in the freestyle event in Davos last weekend, even Northug is now taking the Christmas break as World Cup race leader, just a few points ahead of Johannes Hosflotte-Kleibeu.
He refers to the past month and a half as “a grueling ride”. The 27-year-old runs every weekend and performs at just about every occasion.
The danger now is that he might slip a bit in form, so he enters a training period, drops the Tour de Ski and improves his WC form with other competitions after the new year.
– He obviously didn’t learn from last year
For his part, Peter Northug will be training for a very important month of January at the Long Distance Circus. So don’t think that training camp in Italy will be a resting place in the near future…
– We’ll work with focus, says Peter Northug.
Bigbroren refers, among other things, to Even Northug He “slept” during the World Cup race in Betostolen earlier in December.
– If he hadn’t slept there, he might have allowed himself to enjoy Christmas a little, but he clearly hasn’t learned from last year, he continues with what seems to be a twinkle in his eye.
When asked what it was like to have a brother still involved in the sport as an expert and as a performer in the ski classics, Till Northug answered:
– He is, after all, the same. He knows best. But basically he only wants me well. He’s good at reminding me of what’s important. And i appreciate that.
– He is safe, at the same time he is at a point where he can be with me. It’s very nice. It’s Christmas and it’s good to have a family.
So what might be waiting for him under the tree and inside the packs for the World Cup’s best sprinter?
The little brother says that the gifts have changed. In the past, he’s received everything from a princess hat to an iPhone from his older brother. Some years there were beautiful clothes.
– You never know with him, he says.
Then VG Peter himself asked what awaits his little brother under the tree this year:
– I made a DVD with the 2015 Fallon Sprint Final, he says.
There is no competition at all. Northug then won his first career sprint gold medal. That time in classic style.
The little brother can do the same feat during the La Planica lavatory in February…
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