Helene Ripa recovers and sets sights on Finsterau

Already recovered from the bad cold she caught by the start of the year, Swedish Helene Ripa has her sights set on the World Para Nordic Skiing Championships in Finsterau, Germany, between 10-19 February.

The 45-year-old did not compete at this year’s World Cup in Western Center, Ukraine, because she opted to fully recover ahead of the Worlds.

“I have not had a great start this season,” she admitted.

“The tracks are challenging but I think it is good to try everything.”

“I caught a cold before the World Cup in Vuokatti, Finland, in December 2016 and then another after the New Year. But I hope to be on the right track before Finsterau, I am really looking forward to racing again.

“The tracks are challenging but I think it is good to try everything.”

Ripa will focus on the cross-country middle distance classic and mixed relay, which are her strongest events, but will still compete in the sprint freestyle because it is “a good ‘get-started’ race and is an event where anything can happen.”

Three years ago at the Sochi 2014 Winter Paralympics, the Swedish won gold in the middle distance classic and silver in the mixed relay together with teammate Zebastian Modin.

During the last two years, however, Ripa has been training hard to qualify for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games in canoe, which she eventually did. But that left her less time to devote herself to skiing.

“Since I managed to qualify for the Paralympics in canoe I put my skis on the shelf and trained only for canoeing. My big challenge was to become more explosive, something that I think could also benefit me in my skiing,” she said.

“I also spent a lot of time in the gym. With gold at the European Championships and a fifth place at the Paralympics I had a pretty great summer season, even though I did not roller ski at all.”

After the Worlds, Ripa is planning to compete at a World Cup in PyeongChang, South Korea, a competition that will also serve as a Test Event for the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games.

“I am very excited about that. I am really looking forward to trying the courses and distances for next year. I will definitely be using that experience in my plan and training the best that I can,” she added.

The 2017 World Para Nordic Skiing Championships will gather 135 of the world’s best biathletes and cross-country skiers from 25 countries in Finsterau, Germany, between 10-19 February.

All races will be shown live at Finsterau2017.com.