Svenska Triathlonforbundet
Contact Information
Address
Nedre Kaserngården 5
Gothenburg
416 82
Sweden
President
Ria Damgren Nilsson
Secretary General
Ola Silvdahl
Website
http://www.svensktriathlon.org/
Phone
+46 317266186
Latest News
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Lisa Norden on racing at home as Stockholm event launches
Stockholm was recently announced as the host for the sixth round of the ITU World Triathlon Series and today the Swedish Triathlon Federation launched the event at the press conference in Stockholm. And when it comes to the matter of triathlon and Sweden, who immediately springs to mind but Lisa Norden. Those competing in Stockholm for the first time are in for a treat in this charming city, the central part of which consists of fourteen islands on the south-central east coast of Sweden. Norden, a regular on the ITU world series since 2003, believes the city provides an ideal location for one of the biggest events on the ITU calendar. “I'm always blown away by how easy it is to get out in the trails even being downtown Stockholm. The city is surrounded by water and has many parks and trails providing excellent walking and running routes" said Norden, who is currently in Mooloolaba for this weekend's World Cup opener. “The city really comes to life in summer, knowing it's only there for a limited time, Swedes tend to make the most of it. It's also a breathtakingly beautiful city, so training there is a real pleasure.” In a country where winter temperatures drop well below zero, Norden avoids the freezing months by training at home for the mild European summer then leaving for Australia as temperatures dip in Sweden, but is thrilled by the involvement of Stockholm in the 2012 series and what it means for triathlon in the area. “I'm super excited for the fact this race will raise a lot media interest and coverage for the sport,” said Norden. “Triathlon is a sport that is slowly growing back home, and an event like this could potentially work like wood on the fire. I'd love to see full age group races and lots of first timers out there racing with us.” Norden recalls the sweet feeling of sharing her first World Cup podium with reigning Olympic champion Emma Snowsill and Olympic silver medallist Vanessa Fernandes at the 2008 Mooloolaba BG Triathlon World Cup. Since then Norden has been no stranger to the world series podium, but has yet to have the experience of a home crowd. “It's going to be amazing to have the benefit of racing at home,” said Norden. “To know the place, the language and a lot of people in the crowd. It's also a bit nerve wrecking that way and will be one of the more important races for me this year.” Norden describes Stockholm as a clean, friendly beautiful city with lots of very, very tall people. So, for those triathletes looking for ways to spend their down-time, Norden offers up her knowledge on how to taste the Swedish culture and bereft of growing 5 inches, how to fit in with the locals. “The old town of Stockholm is very picturesque and definitely worthwhile to take some time to explore. Public transport is great and you can get to pretty much everywhere in the city with the tube. We love to eat pickled herring for breakfast (...) and everyone should take an afternoon at a bakery for a true ‘fika’ experience. This is pretty much an afternoon brew with a cinnamon roll (kanelbulle) and a lot of talking. “Swedes might seem reserved at first, but we do love coffee and talking.” It has been a long time since ITU has been in Stockholm. Fifteen years to be precise when the city held the 1997 Stockholm ITU Triathlon World Cup. At that time ITU was only nine years old and yet to make its Olympic debut which came in Sydney 2000. It is astounding to look back over this relatively short period of time and to see just how much triathlon has evolved. Thanks to the ITU’s tireless efforts, this development has stretched to the four corners of the globe. While it is clear that the Nordic nations have had an understandable domineering presence within the winter triathlon circuit, triathlon has been steadily building in the region since 1990 leading all the way up to the 25-26 August 2012 Stockholm weekend of racing, which will include the crowd pleasing ITU Triathlon Mixed Relay World Championships. {/exp:tagstripper:tagsToSave}
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Norden Takes Inagural Sprint World Title
Sweden's Lisa Norden continued her brilliant 2010 season, earning the first-ever ITU Sprint Triathlon World Championship in Lausanne today. Norden won with a last-lap surge to top current world number one Emma Moffatt of Australia. "I was quite relaxed going into the race today. I tried not to think about it being a world championship," Norden said. "The race went perfect. I really wanted to test my legs on the run and, obviously, they felt great." Moffatt secured the runner-up position, holding off local favourite Daniela Ryf, who thrilled the Swiss crowd with a third-place showing. "It was a real hard race today, but it was also a lot of fun to race this distance, and I think that helped take some of the hard out of it," Moffatt said. Fifty-six women dove into crystal clear Lake Geneva to start with race with a 750-metre swim. As she has done all season long, Moffatt moved right to the front at the start of the swim, leading a group of four women, including Norden, out of the water in just under 10 minutes. I was quite relaxed going into the race today. I tried not to think about it being a world championship. The race went perfect. I really wanted to test my legs on the run and, obviously, they felt great. Lisa Norden Norden and Moffatt pulled away from the rest of the pack on the first of four challenging bike laps, as Ryf led the charge to catch the two leaders. Ryf broke away from the chase pack after only a few kilometres, and rode solo for most of the first lap to catch the two girls up the road. Her hard riding paid off, as Ryf caught Moffatt and Norden and the new lead group of three worked together to pull away from the rest of the women. By the time the lead three hit the second transition, their lead was just over a minute, as the chase group, led by Switzerland's Nicola Spirig, struggled to keep pace. Out of transition, Moffatt and Norden immediately pulled away from Ryf, running side by side for the first of two laps along the Lake Geneva waterfront. Norden put on a big surge with only one kilometre left to run and Moffatt could not respond. Norden ran down the finishing chute with plenty of time to celebrate the second ITU World Championship of her career. She previously won the 2007 U23 world title in Hamburg, Germany. I've struggled a lot over the last couple of months and have had a hard time keeping my fitness up. Such a strong effort wouldn't have been possible anywhere else today. It made such a difference to be in my home country and have the crowd on my side. Daniela Ryf "The run was very intense today," Norden said. "I'm used to racing twice this distance, so the run is more about pacing and getting into a rhythm. There was no time to get into a rhythm today-it was all out from the start." Norden's winning time of 58:02 was 14 seconds better than runner-up Moffatt. Ryf rounded out the podium, finishing another 34 back of the Aussie. "I've struggled a lot over the last couple of months and have had a hard time keeping my fitness up," Ryf said. "Such a strong effort wouldn't have been possible anywhere else today. It made such a difference to be in my home country and have the crowd on my side." Rounding out the top five were Aussies Erin Densham (4th) and Felicity Abram (5th), putting three Australians in the top five. {/exp:tagstripper:tagsToSave}
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Top Moment: Norden vs Moffatt
When Lisa Norden and Emma Moffatt went head to head at the Series Grand Final on Australia’s Gold Coast, only one would emerge as the new world champion. Following a season of up and downs the final result rested on the last race and ultimately the last discipline with Norden needing to beat Moffatt by two places to clinch the world title. As they headed out of transition together it was clear that neither athlete would give an inch and sure enough the home crowds were treated to a spectacle as their local hero Moffatt battled the charging Norden for the full extent of the ten kilometre run to the finish. Make sure to check back next Friday for the next installment of the ITU’s 2009 Top Moments exclusively on triathlon.org. {/exp:tagstripper:tagsToSave}
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Norden puts Swedish Triathlon on the Map
Before returning to Gold Coast and the scene of her world championship silver medal for the start of training for the 2010 season, Lisa Norden enjoyed some down time in her home town of Kristianstad in Sweden where she could reflect on a magnificent 2009. The former ITU Sport Development athlete took some time out to speak to her local newspaper whilst showing off her culinary skills. Interview edited from Skanskan.se Lisa Norden holidays at home with mother Kerstin and her two dogs in her house in Torp. But between a triathlon camp in Falun, a speedy trip to Mallorca for reconnaissance training opportunities and then a longer run training stint in Kenya she did manage to get a few days of vacation... if one can call it vacation. “I have started to secretly train a bit. We should have a training camp in Kenya soon and I don’t want to go completely untrained.” She laughs and the recent World Championship silver medallist takes out all the necessary ingredients for a tasty apple pie. Speaking of which, second place in the World Championships back in September was well above Lisa Norden’s own expectations for the recently completed season. “We had scheduled a relaxed year without major goals,” she says. “I had never dreamed that it would end like this. After the podium places in Madrid, Hamburg and London, I was sure I had exhausted all my results, but then I went and won the next event in Yokohama. Absolutely fantastic!” After the podium places in Madrid, Hamburg and London, I was sure I had exhausted all my results, but then I went and won the next event in Yokohama. Absolutely fantastic!”Lisa Norden Before the Grand Final on the Gold Coast in Australia in September she was second in the series, and even had a chance to overtake the overall leader Emma Moffatt. “It was a spectacular final and very tactical. I was forced to finish two places ahead of Moffatt to take home the gold, but it didn’t happen; Moffatt also won the final and I was second.” The secret behind Lisa Norden’s success this year may sound strange, but it was largely due to a knee injury which destroyed her season build-up and ensured that she had to devote much more time to the swimming pool. “The injury started in January, my knees started creaking when I was out running, but it took me until March before I could locate what was causing the damage - my cycling shoes. My new shoes were thinner which meant that I could not move my feet on the pedals, which in turn loaded the front of the knees more when I rode," explains the 24 year old. “But before we figured it out, I could not run. While all my training buddies were out on long runs I had to swim. And it paid off. In the final in Australia I kept up with the world's best swimmers. I tended to be far behind after the top athletes come up from the water,” she continues enthusiastically. But next season, Lisa Norden, will have to become stronger than her previous year. “I will focus on the races and be more like a runner than a triathlete. In order to seriously compete for gold at the London Olympics in 2012 I have to make running my secret weapon. I'm going down about half a minute per mile.” In order to seriously compete for gold at the London Olympics in 2012 I have to make running my secret weapon.Lisa Norden So the Olympics in London is your next big goal now? - Yes, absolutely. And of course, you will set your sights on gold… - Yes! Then I will be a strong swimmer and also run like a Kenyan. In fact I will go to Kenya for some run training now," she says with a big laugh. While Lisa turns her attention back to the apple pie in the oven, she talks of another dream. “I would like to open their own café. During the season, I usually pick up recipes from my training mates. My coffee shop would be Sydney-inspired and so there would be a menu with breakfast and lunch options and a page of desserts." Lisa is nominated for the ‘Annual Women’s Athlete’ at the Swedish Sports Gala which takes place in January. She is up against cyclist Emma Johansson, biathlete Helena Jonsson and swimmer Sarah Sjostrom. “It's a tough competition, and I do not really think that I will win. But it's pretty cool to have my name next to these great sporting girls," says Lisa humbly, and adds: “It is really cool, I have seen the Sports Gala on TV before with all the talented athletes, and now I have a chance to be there. My little sister was jubilant when she heard: "At last we'll see you in high heels, Lisa!" {/exp:tagstripper:tagsToSave}