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After eight years in office as Worldloppet President, Juha Viljamaa from Finland is now in retirement. Ok, not really. He handed over the President title to Ben Popp from the US, but he remains a crucial part of the worldfederation for popular skiing as honorary president. Worldloppet Communication Manager, Gunnar, has met him at the Annual General Meeting for an interview:

Gunnar: Juha, you have been the head of the Worldloppet Federation for the past 8 years, let us know what has changed and what is still the same after all these years in the world of cross-country skiing?

Juha: The changes are obvious. The climate change is affecting cross-country skiing races directly. Over the past years, the snow conditions at various Worldloppet venues have become worse and led to race cancellations or other difficulties. We must learn from the past, adapt and be prepared. Race organizers need to think about a Plan B, like shorten or move the race race course to higher altitudes. Also the organizers need to be ready to produce artificial snow in bigger masses.

When thinking about what is still the same, then our skiers come into my mind. The spirit and motivation is still the same like it was eight years ago. And often I meet skiers at the tracks of Worldloppet, whom I know for many years now. When we dig into our statistics we see, that the average skier’s age is about 44 years, which is almost the same like it was when I became President. Also the percentage of female skiers has not changed a lot – a fact, the Worldloppet Federation has to work on over the coming years.

How do you see the role of Worldloppet in the upcoming decades? 

Worldloppet is and will be the leading organization when it comes to global marathon skiing. It is the official partner association with the FIS. In that role, as voice of the sport of popular cross-country skiing, Worldloppet will be a very important co-operator between all marathon ski organizations and series such as Ski Classics, Euroloppet and many else.

Will you remain active in Worldloppet or cross-country skiing in general? What are your plans? 

Of course! Cross-country skiing is a very important part of my life. I can’t imagine a life without skiing. I will never skip skiing… I will ski my own speed, but I will ski. As Honorary President I will also stay a part of Worldloppet. I will attend the official meetings and support where ever I can.

What was your biggest learning over the past 8 years? 

The slogan of Worldloppet is “skiing around the world”! This is a great thing: With traveling to various different race destinations, I got to know many different nations and cultures. During my journeys to China, USA, whole of Europe and so on I made friends literally all over the world. I am very grateful for that. Specially during these days intercultural exchange, sportsmanship and friendship are values, more important than ever. This is what makes Worldloppet so important: It overcomes borders and differences and brings together nations and people.

What will be the big chances and the big troubles when it comes to cross-country skiing in the near future?

This question I have answered already in the questions before: The biggest troubles will definitely come from the climate. Lack of snow, but also other forces of nature like heavy storms – we had the case at Birken past winter – will affect the race organizers regularly.

The big chances I see in Worldloppet’s role as intermediary. It is more important than ever, that we make relations based on respect, sportsmanship and friendship and this across boarders, across cultures, all over the globe.

Thanks Juha, have a great summer and see you soon at the tracks of Worldloppet!