FL-Junior: Who will be on the podium?

Our expert Trond Ørslien has clear ideas about who will fight for the top three positions in FL-Junior.

Ørslien presents three candidates (in no particular order), who he believes it is worth keeping a particular close eye on this year. 

Hanna Lyrek and her dogs after she won FL-Junior in 2016. (Photo: Elisabeth Bergquist)

1. Hanna Lyrek
She is clearly a chip off the old block. Her parents have participated in Finnmarksløpet numerous times, both of them have competed in the Iditarod in Alaska, and Hanna herself has extensive race experience. She has been spoon-fed on mushing from an early age on, she won FL-Junior last year, and this can easily be her big year once again.

Guro Krempig and her lead dog after having crossed the finish line in FL-Junior 2015. (Photo: Mads Suhr Pettersen)

2. Guro Krempig
Guro Krempig borrows dogs from Harald Tunheim in order to race FL-Junior this year. Harald has good dogs, and Guro has previously had good results with them. Guro is an experienced junior and finished third in FL-junior 2015. Ørslien thinks Guro Krempig can be one of the competitors in the lead this year.

3. Iver Kolstad
Iver Kolstad is one of the most exciting names from the south. He is the Røros region’s new junior favorite, and a result of a strong mushing community in the region. Iver is more or less raised in the Femund Race and found his way into senior races in the south earlier this season. Will FL-junior 2017 be his breakthrough?