While Norwegian partners are unsure whether they will continue to cooperate with Northug, Russian Spine Sports has a completely different attitude.
The day after Northug posted on Instagram that he had been stopped by the police for driving at 168 km / h in a 110-zone and drug discovery in his own home, notified Uno-X that they had stopped working with Petter Northug.
Norwegian Ski Association, Red Bull and XXL have not wanted to give a clear answer as to whether they will continue to cooperate with Northug in the future.
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But from the Russian ski shoe company Spine, Northug has now received unexpected support.
This week, Spine posted a post on Instagram where they write that they want to enter into a partnership with the abdicated ski king.
Free to Northug on Instagram
This statement came on Monday night, three days after Northug admitted driving under the influence of drugs and finding drugs.
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– Spine Sports has had meetings and negotiations about a collaboration with Petter Northug. Today we want to confirm our desire to collaborate with the great Norwegian, who is loved and remembered by millions of fans around the world, they write.
Here is the Instagram post:
Spine Sports writes to Nettavisen that they will not comment on the Instagram post further.
– We as a company refer to our statement on Instagram. We believe we expressed both our feelings and position sufficiently clearly there. The point we want to point out is that the athlete Petter Northug is enormously popular internationally, including in our home country Russia, the Russian company writes in an e-mail to Nettavisen.
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When asked about the negotiations for a collaboration with Northug, they also do not want to say anything.
– Regarding our specific contracts and cooperation with Petter Northug, we prefer not to comment at this time.
GETS UNEXPECTED SUPPORT: The Russian ski shoe company Spine Sports wants to start a collaboration with Petter Northug. Here is Northug from the press conference in Trondheim on Friday.
Photo: Terje Pedersen (NTB scanpix)
Tributes to Northug
Spine Sports has also posted a post on Instagram on January 28, where you can see Northug try Spine’s ski boots.
– The king of cross-country skiing is starting to consider Spine Custom Fit, they write in the post, among other things.
In Spine Sports’ Instagram post from Monday, they start by paying tribute to the ski star.
– Petter Northug is more than an Olympic champion. He is the man who has shaped the development of cross-country skiing in the last decade. There are no real rock stars in skiing – except for the man from Trondheim, they write.
Forgiven after controversial episode in 2010
Furthermore, they refer to the episode from 2010, about how special Northug is for the Russians.
– It is not often that Russian fans actively cheer on a foreign athlete, a rival. With one exception – Petter Northug. They had even forgiven him for the episode when he, after finishing third in a race, was seriously late for the award ceremony, which led to the winner of the race, Russian Maxim Vylegzjanin, having to wait. They would not forgive anyone else – but Petter got away with it. Because, you know, Petter!
The episode Spine Sports refers to was from a World Cup race in La Clusaz in 2010. Petter Northug was surprisingly sprinted by Russian Maxim Vylegzjanin in the race. Northug was so disappointed that he arrived late for the award ceremony and Vylegzjanin had to wait for the Norwegian. As a result, Northug was deprived of part of the prize money by FIS.
They also write that what Northug has done is dangerous and wrong, that he must change and be punished in accordance with the law. But they also believe it is important to show the Norwegian support.
– Leaving the great Norwegian without support in such a moment, turning away from him or even sitting on a fence while waiting, as some of his partners do now, is wrong. It will not only hurt the champion himself, but also the entire cross-country sport, they write.
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Aukland will not suspend the collaboration
In the last year, Petter Northug has launched his own eyewear brand called «Northug». Among other things, he has a cooperation agreement with the Norwegian Ski Association, but also several athletes. Cross-country veteran Anders Aukland is one of several athletes who collaborate with Northug and wear his glasses.
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For him, it is completely irrelevant to break the agreement with Northug, reported NRK last Saturday.
– What has happened is first and foremost very sad. Petter is a friend and a partner. In this case, it is difficult to say anything positive about what he has done and identify with his values, but for me it is completely wrong to distance oneself from him now, Aukland said to NRK da.
Petter Northug is charged with speeding, driving under the influence and possession of drugs after he was stopped by the police last Thursday.
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