Ebba Andersson has, to say the least, an impressive list of achievements. Sixteen championship medals and eleven World Cup victories are clear examples of this.
But it wasn’t until last season that Andersson finally won her first World Cup race at Lugnet.
— A milestone for me to win a World Cup race in Sweden, says Andersson.
The 28-year-old Ebba Andersson is one of Sweden’s most accomplished cross-country skiers of all time. During the ongoing Olympics in Val di Fiemme, she added three silver medals to an already well-stocked trophy cabinet. Notably, she has never left a championship without a medal. She has won five Olympic medals and eleven World Championship medals. At the World Championships in Planica in 2023, she claimed two golds, and at the World Championships in Trondheim last year she skied her way to three more.
Next winter, as is well known, the World Championships await in Falun. This is an arena where Ebba Andersson has competed frequently. The first time she reached the podium at Lugnet in a World Cup event was in 2020. Since then, she has stood on the podium there four more times.
And last year, in the dress rehearsal ahead of the World Championships in Trondheim, she was able to win a World Cup race on Swedish snow for the first time, when she won the 10 km classical race at Lugnet. Her winning margin to Norwegian skier Heidi Weng was 18 seconds.
— It was a victory that had been long-awaited in many ways. Partly because it was my first World Cup win in Sweden, but also because it was my first win in a long time. I had been going through a bit of a win drought, so that victory meant a lot, Andersson said when reminded of the win during the Swedish media launch ahead of the ongoing season.
What is it like to compete at Lugnet?
— Lugnet, yes—has it ever really been calm there? There’s always great energy from the crowd, and as a Swedish skier you really feel the support. And the courses are tough, especially when we ski the entire “Mördarbacken” (the “Murder Hill”). Then you really have to be at your best both physically and technically to succeed, and that’s something I really enjoy, says Andersson, who just over a week ago won Olympic silver in the skiathlon.
On March 1, the crowd at Lugnet will see Andersson take on Mördarbacken in pursuit of another victory on home soil.
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