{"id":5279,"date":"2026-06-03T22:56:03","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T20:56:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alicerombach.com\/?p=5279"},"modified":"2026-06-03T22:58:49","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T20:58:49","slug":"at-the-starting-line-in-saelen-sweden-beside-nearly-16000-skiers-the-starting-rifle-sounds-at-800-am","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alicerombach.com\/en\/at-the-starting-line-in-saelen-sweden-beside-nearly-16000-skiers-the-starting-rifle-sounds-at-800-am\/","title":{"rendered":"At the starting line in S\u00e4len, Sweden, beside nearly 16,000 skiers, the starting rifle sounds at 8:00 am"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the starting line in S\u00e4len, Sweden, beside nearly 16,000 skiers, the starting rifle sounds at 8:00 am. We all move together towards Mora \u2013 90 kilometers away. The start of the Vasaloppet is truly a moment outside of time. When the mass of speed and momentum wins, thousands push forward as if part of a single, living herd winding through the Swedish forests.<br \/><br \/>I grip my fragile poles, for everywhere lie broken pole parts and sunglasses. The race recalls Gustav Vasa in 1521, who sought support in Mora for a political coup to spark Sweden\u2019s fight for independence \u2013 but in this moment I will set the national myth aside.<br \/><br \/><strong>The blueberry soup is legendary: a small ritual, embedded in the epic. The magic lies in the community, the determination, the emotions, the grit, the fatigue \u2013 and a generous portion of self-reflection.<\/strong><br \/><br \/>This year there is fresh, fluffy snow, which is beautiful to look at, but since there are almost no tracks, it\u2019s no longer cross-country skiing \u2013 it\u2019s like an acrobatic dance with no halt or safety. Thousands of skiers look like children learning to ski for the first time, and I ask myself: what the hell am I doing here? Why this madness?<br \/><br \/><strong>I break the course into a mosaic: 90 kilometers full of mental anchor points, key sections, supply stations, the course profile \u2013 and the gold at the finish line \u2013 willpower and the medal. And something even better to look forward to after crossing the finish line. Every step counts. It really is step by step. Become your future self \u2013 behave like your future self, like the person you want to be.<\/strong><br \/><br \/>\u201cI f\u00e4ders sp\u00e5r \u2013 f\u00f6r framtids segrar\u201d \u2013 In the footsteps of our fathers, for the victories of the future. Sweden is known for its equality, but the Vasap motto focuses on fathers; indeed, it was mostly men. Today this race reminded us that greatness transcends time and gender. The winner crossed the finish line in Mora only ten minutes after the men, and I saw several para-ski athletes along the route. And I feel it: every finisher crossing the line in Mora is golden.<br \/><br \/>This is how we connect past and future: be the role model for your future self \u2013 become increasingly the person you want to be. In the short term: who do I want to be at the finish line? Who can I be on the course? In the long term: whether in high heels, sneakers or boots \u2013 with or without skis \u2013 what matters are balance, willpower, and self-leadership.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>In the last kilometers the torches and candles move me in the fading dusk. Not heroism, but a recalibration of the comfort zone.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At the starting line in S\u00e4len, Sweden, beside nearly 16,000 skiers, the starting rifle sounds at 8:00 am. We all move together towards Mora \u2013 90 kilometers away. The start of the Vasaloppet is truly a moment outside of time. When the mass of speed and momentum wins, thousands push forward as if part of [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5256,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[81],"class_list":["post-5279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-_","tag-fiktion"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>At the starting line in S\u00e4len, Sweden, beside nearly 16,000 skiers, the starting rifle sounds at 8:00 am - Alice Rombach<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/alicerombach.com\/en\/at-the-starting-line-in-saelen-sweden-beside-nearly-16000-skiers-the-starting-rifle-sounds-at-800-am\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"At the starting line in S\u00e4len, Sweden, beside nearly 16,000 skiers, the starting rifle sounds at 8:00 am - Alice Rombach\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"At the starting line in S\u00e4len, Sweden, beside nearly 16,000 skiers, the starting rifle sounds at 8:00 am. We all move together towards Mora \u2013 90 kilometers away. The start of the Vasaloppet is truly a moment outside of time. 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