After a period of illness, Emma Ribom was back in the World Cup just in time for the sprint in Drammen.
Ribom had no problem advancing to the quarterfinals, and also won his heat.
But then the day came to a snowy end for the Swede. Shortly after the finish in the quarter-finals, it was announced that Ribom had been washed after receiving the second yellow card of the winter for an obstruction.
– It feels so boring. I don’t understand where the washing comes from. Often you have the feeling that something crazy happened on the track, but today I don’t understand where it comes from. I don’t think it’s a wash today, says Ribom with tears in his eyes.
Furthermore, Ribom says that Sweden has spoken to the jury but that they were not allowed to see any pictures of the incident and must come back after the competition.
A bit into his quarter-final heat, Ribom stepped brusquely in front of Jessie Diggins in the lane. It was not appreciated by the jury, who handed out a yellow card to the 26-year-old.
– It’s the incident with Diggins when they judge that she takes the skis. But now that I see the pictures, I think she is first. I have little doubt that it will be a yellow card. But first is her, says national team coach Stefan Thomson.
Emma Ribom in tears
Emma Ribom herself received the message shortly after the finish line.
What were you thinking then?
– That it can’t be true, I don’t understand where it comes from. Immediately I started thinking about where it came from. It feels really boring.
You were on your way in to the jury. What did they tell you?
– That I wasn’t allowed to go in and come back after the competition. It’s crap. It just feels really boring.
Emma Ribom’s first warning came even before the World Cup season, in the Swedish premiere in Gällivare, where the Swede drove the wrong way inside the stadium.
– Emma went wrong before the lap and drove outside the track markings. That’s what she got the yellow card for and we communicated that with her at the time as well, says Thomas Granlund who was head of the jury in Gällivare.
Here, Emma Ribom drives the wrong way in Gällivare, which led to a warning.
Photo: SVT
Sweden wants to change the rules: “Doesn’t feel quite right”
After Ribom’s washing up in Drammen, the national team now wants to see a rule change that prevents this from happening again.
– I think the World Cup should be isolated from national competitions. Before championships, you reset the cards and you should do that in this case as well. A premiere competition in Gällivare affects the competition in Drammen in March, it doesn’t feel quite right, says national team manager Anders Byström.
Competition director Michal Lamplot rejects Byström’s wish for a future rule change.
– Yellow cards are for punishing various infractions. I don’t agree at all that they should be zeroed out in the World Cup. Yellow cards apply at all levels, so it cannot be isolated to, for example, the World Cup, says Lamplot.
