Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo resigns from Norway national team so ski association can ‘spend money on other athletes’

Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo has decided to drop out of the Norwegian national team ahead of next season so the association can “spend money on other athletes”.

Cross-country skier Klaebo has been part of the senior Norwegian national team since April 2017 and was expected to be a part of the setup until 2025.

However, he has instead decided to withdraw ahead of the new season.

Klaebo said in a post on Instagram: “Big changes before the next season…I have decided to say no to being a part of the national team for the next season.

“I don’t know what the future will look like, but one thing is for sure – grandpa will still be the head coach and dad my manager.

“A lot of things have happened in a short time, but the planning process starts now.”

Klaebo, 26, is the most successful male overall race winner in FIS history and won three gold medals at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

The victory meant he became just the second racer in history to record 20 World Cup victories in a single season. It was a fourth overall Crystal Globe for Klaebo, who has achieved a total of 90 podium finishes at World Cup level in his storied career.

He has cited cost cuts to the Norwegian ski association as the main reason why he no longer wants to be a part of the national team setup.

He said in a press release: “With my resignation, the ski association can reduce its costs and instead spend money on other athletes. Yes, now they will also not have to pay for my altitude camps.

“I have several colleagues in the national team who I feel have been badly treated in this withdrawal process.

“I will keep in close contact with my national team-mates, even though I will no longer be part of the national team.”

The 26-year-old continued: “There were never any negotiations between the association and me on this matter.

“I have done what I think is the right thing to do as the situation with the ski association and the national team is.

“The decision makes me lose revenue and cover costs. Now I’m going to fund this myself.

“I feel it would have been wrong to get support for altitude camps at the same time as team-mates have lost their place due to cost reductions in the association and the national team schedule has been reduced due to cuts.”

Klaebo insists that he has never received “preferential treatment” from the Norwegian Ski Association and believes withdrawing from the national team should shut down any speculation.

He said: “I also know that several people have thought that I have received preferential treatment that I should not have received – and which they believe is unacceptable.

“Now that I’m out of the national team, they don’t have to think about what they think is differential treatment. For the most part, I also stood on my own two feet last season. Now I’m going to stand on my own two feet.”