The news of the departure of Frida Karlsson and Maja Dalqvist from the national team hit like a bomb.
Now the management will hold a meeting with the riders of the national team to review the Swedish model.
Length director Lars Oberg says there has been irritation that builds up over time.
Frieda Carlson And the Maja Dalqvist She will not belong to the national team this season. The skaters will train on their own after they disagree with the Swedish Ski Association on their agreements.
It is above all related to Carlson and Dalkvist’s unwillingness to participate in the national team’s pre-season camps.
– It is not about the agreement itself. We were willing to compromise, we could spend more days at home and maybe skip camp, so we don’t need any compensation. Following the message, Carlson told Sportbladet that we are very disappointed.
Carlson was also disappointed that the decision was communicated live overnight, just hours after the conversation had stopped.
– Of course I think it’s sad that we do not agree. Efforts were made by both parties to find a solution, including Frida and Maja. We’ve shortened their camp days and given them the opportunity to bring their own coaches. But we have twelve other A-Team skaters who have signed an agreement where camp presence is a very essential part of the Swedish model that has made us so successful, says length manager Lars Öberg.
“exploded”
The national team meets in Falun on Tuesday for the start game. Even so, management will sit down with drivers to discuss what future driver agreements should look like.
There has been general criticism of how transfer agreements are designed. We did a fairly large review and everyone except Maja and Frida signed up. But I’m not happy with that, active people need to be seen, heard and able to participate and influence. I am fairly new to this service, but the picture I got is that there has been anger that has built up over time as opinions have been expressed that we are giving riders too little pay and setting too high commercial requirements. It’s been a long time and we got the fuel and it’s exploded now. I will sit down with the activists and review what should be the activities of the national team and the agreements between the skaters and the federations.
But in the case of Carlson and Dalkvist, it’s not about money.
We were able to increase the compensation and make some improvements to the agreements and most of them were satisfied enough to sign. But in their case, the part with the presence of the camp was the last. Oberg says:
– We believe in this model and everyone is very valuable. Then you may need to review and rebuild. But not for this season, although we’ll start talking about it now. It’s going to be a white paper and we have to really dare to question ourselves and listen to the action.
May receive rewards
Are you open to canceling this form even if you think it is behind the success?
– Not overnight. But we must constantly dare to evaluate ourselves and question ourselves. I think we need to better listen to active people and their points of view. We cannot find 14 individual approaches, but there must be a middle ground. It’s basically the model that we have that has made us successful and I’m finding it hard to see that we’re going to break it completely.
Carlson and Dalkvist will compete in national team uniforms during the winter, despite the fact that they have chosen to be outside the national team. They will also participate in the national team rewards in any podium, something Charlotte Calla She didn’t get it when she ran her own business.
– They will have to sign a shorter agreement even before the first World Cup, and it is based on the need to reveal the sponsors of the skating federation. It may be that you haven’t got bonuses before, but if you’ve done well, you should get them even if you’re not part of the national team for various reasons. It doesn’t seem fair otherwise, Oberg says.