Polar V800
GPS Sports watch

Q: Could you tell us a bit about yourself and your training?
A: I’m 31, which is pretty old already for an athlete. I’m conscientious about my training and even stress about it at times. I’m a perfectionist who ponders and analyzes things. I constantly aim to improve my performance – there’re always more ways to improve in biathlon. I’m very precise and don’t want to do anything in vain or half-heartedly. I don’t want to look back and think, say, that I didn’t train well enough last summer. It’s all the way or go home.

Q: How much do you train on a yearly basis?
A: I spend over a thousand hours a year practicing shooting. In mid-May, getting ready for a competition, I fired 15,000 shots. I practice 4-6 times a week and fire about 100 shots in each training session. I do physical training for 700 hours a year.

Q: What kind of a role do Polar heart rate monitors play in your training?
A: My training’s evolved as we’ve started measuring it. During training I follow my heart rate so that I know how hard my body’s actually working. I train basic endurance, speed endurance as well as maximum endurance, and heart rate zones help me to stay on track. There are swings in heart rate every day, but by monitoring it I’ve learned to understand my body; know when I’m tired or coming down with something. I also measure speed and distance. Even a top athlete enjoys reliving the routes afterwards in Polar Flow. Polar products have fun features like the Training Benefit. I also follow my heart rate when racing, especially when I’m about to approach the shooting station. If my heart rate is too low when I start shooting, it can affect my performance.

Q: How can you tell if you’re overtraining?
A: Usually you don’t notice the signals of overtraining until afterwards, for instance if you get ill. In especially hard training I spot it. For instance last fall it wasn’t going so well. My coach said everything seemed great, but I myself felt it. When I’m overtraining, my heart rate just won’t get up. My aerobic threshold is 160 bpm, and if I have to ski at full stretch to reach it, then I’m overtraining. My body is so used to hard training that it’s not easy to spot overtraining. Getting back on track after overtraining can take just a couple of days for me. But the effects can be seen later, after some months, and analyzed even later than that.

Q: What are your strengths as an athlete?
A: Knowing my body and being responsible.

Q: What’s the most challenging aspect about biathlon?
A: The sport in itself is so challenging! You can always shoot faster, have better skiing technique and ski faster. I’m used to training a lot, and I know what it takes to reach the top. You have to find the kind of training that works for you. For me, long and calm jogs do the trick.

Q: What keeps you going? Do you have days when you have to look for motivation?
A: Yes I do have those days, especially if the weather’s bad. I might think of a way to replace the training with another activity, but I never skip it altogether. I always look at the bigger picture. Little things count, so I don’t like to make exceptions just because I don’t feel like it.

Q: How do you handle a weak moment?
A: By analyzing it. I seldom can just forget about it, but try to find out what’s causing it, and break it down.

Q: Have you had bad injuries and how have you gotten past them?
A: I had knee surgery in 2009 due to repetitive strain injury. I went through 5 weeks of rehabilitation, walking with crutches, and I couldn’t run or roller ski for 3 months. The decision to go through the surgery had to be made quickly: I only had 12 hours to decide. I took a chance and it paid off. Since then it’s been easier, and it was the only way for me to continue my professional career.

Q: What does it take to reach the top of the world?
A: You have to believe in what you do, be a realist and recognize what kind of an effect various things have on your training. Everything you do has an effect and your whole life is in the game, but there’s also a big crew that surrounds and supports the individual.

Q: How do you relax?
A: I don’t have so-called normal days off – an athlete is always an athlete. I give my body time to recover and try to strain myself as little as possible. I sleep, read, knit and crochet, garden and spend time with my neighbors.

Q: What would your perfect day off be like?
A: My everyday life is so scheduled that in my spare time I don’t like to look at the clock. I’d want to stay out of the city and just do things around the summer cottage or in some other cozy environment.

Q: What made you become a cyclist?
A: I started out my cycling career as a boy, watching my father go out on his bike and at races. As soon as I tried riding myself I absolutely loved it. My father inspired me and we share a passion for watching cycling on TV and for the difficulty and beauty of the sport.

Q: What is your training philosophy?
A: When I have a goal, I will be fully focused and 100 percent dedicated to achieving it. Cycling taught me to work hard to reach personal goals. 90% of this hard work happens in training.

Q: What is the significance of a team for a cyclist?
A: Being a pro cyclist exceeds working hard in training. It is also about being a team player and working with others towards a common goal. I joined the team in 2012 and I benefitted from the optimal guidance provided by the staff and experts, helping me develop not just as a rider but also as a person.

Q: How much training do you do in a year?
A: When the season is underway I work from race to race, and train in between. Altogether I do roughly 12,500 kilometers, or 550 hours of training in a season, including off-bike training in gym.

Q: How is the training split?
A: Most of the training happens in the winter period when I am preparing for the season. When the spring season is over I take a short rest break before building towards the second part of the season. During the longer breaks between the races the training blocks are more extensive and specifically focused on the type of races that are ahead.

Q: How do you prepare for a specific race?
A: For the Tour de France, for example, we went on an altitude training camp with the team in Sierra Nevada, Spain. During the period of three weeks we did a lot of long training rides and climbing at altitude to prepare optimally.

Q: What achievements are you most proud of?
A: Winning the Paris-Roubaix was my main goal, and I achieved it in 2015, when I also won Milan-San Remo. I am generally proud to be able to show young riders that you can achieve great results clean as long as you are dedicated and give everything you have.

Q: How do Polar devices help you during training?
A: I turned pro when I was 21 years old, so over the years I have learned a lot about how my body reacts to training. My Polar heart rate watch helps me confirm the way I feel, both when I’m training and when I’m racing.

Q: What about after training?
A: We analyze the data gathered by my Polar watch together with the team’s trainers and experts. It provides valuable input about whether the training is going in the right direction and helps with formulating future training plans.

It all started when I was 13 after I ran my first cross-country race. As a young kid I always was active, playing soccer and mountain biking with my family. But out there in the cross-country mud was where I found my drive to compete and I learned to love endurance sport. I found my way to triathlon when I was 16 years old and have dedicated my life to becoming the best athlete I can be.

After a few successful results in ITU triathlon I switched over to long course Triathlon in 2014. I have found that I am suited to the 70.3 distance with my strengths in the bike and run. I am continuing to improve and always looking to be the most out of my body

Parallel to my professional racing career I am a spokesperson for dyslexia awareness. I have dyslexia and I believe the focus and discipline of sport has helped me to overcome obstacles and succeed in life. I am working with the Dyslexia Society to help spread awareness.