Banning Flouro Wax: Realistic Or Wishful Thinking?

Banning Flouro Wax: Realistic Or Wishful Thinking?

Newsfeed, Training & Outfitting
...We all know that in skiing two things matter: how your body behaves - and how do your skis. Body behavior & any enhancement of thereof are ever tightly controlled by anti-doping rules these days. But when it comes to skis - there's no limit as to what you could do to make them run faster as long as you stay within FIS- officiated length and shape restrictions. As one xcski insider puts it "if we learn tomorrow that gilding of skis with 24 carat gold helps the glide - we shall start doing that" Which means evolving from "just flouro" ( now known as LF) to high flouro to - for those who could afford them - expensive super-fluorinated waxes, powders and emulsions . And that's where the problem…
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Doping Control For Elite Skiers – How It Works

Doping Control For Elite Skiers – How It Works

Leaders, Newsfeed
...when you hang out with skiers, you soon realize that they tend to have two sets of behaviour over lunch or dinner: -Bursting with pent-up energy ( = training day was easy) -Too spent to lift a fork ( = training day was waaaay to hard) But occasionally third type descends rapidly and overwhelmingly. No, it's not fear or loathing - it's probably close to what one feels when he's been told to undergo unexpected sigmoidoscopy. In some ways that's what it is. Because the mood is called " Anti-doping officer is in the hotel" WADA/ADAMS rules say that " athletes…. are required to specify 1 hour each day (between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m.) during which they can be located at a specified location for testing. If they are…
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Of Athletes And Media

Of Athletes And Media

Leaders, Newsfeed
Athletes are special among the human folk - and not just because they are physically stronger. They are far more ambitious, result-oriented people than the rest of us, commoners. Whether she or he admits it, the dream picture goes as follows: crossing the line victorious first, competitors (blurry, despondent) behind, all the while giving a perfect 32-teeth Hollywood smile. Well, there is a problem with that last bit, about looking perfect. Because rightly or wrongly the media is not interested all that much in how good the athlete looks - it's interested in conveying emotions. And emotions are not necessarily all that pretty whether on still or on moving pictures a.k.a video. Stronger the emotions- the better are the pic, beauty be damned. Unfair and outright wrong? Well, what you…
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