by Deji Ogeyingbo
‘It’s mostly for fun”: Karsten Warholm’s decision to train in snow
Karsten Warholm is not your typical runner. The Norwegian seem to defy the conventional order in athletics. Perhaps that’s what makes him special. We don’t doubt the extremes he goes to keep his body in shape. As a Viking, his recent videos of him training in snow during winter caught the eye of many.
At the just-concluded indoor championships in Glasgow, Warholm shed more light on the event, as he wasn’t even sure at the start of the year that he would be at this year’s world indoors.
Karsten Warholm told global media that he was miserable in the workout noted below and he likes to train indoors. Well, that is comforting!
Olympic sprinter Karsten Warholm’s brutal training session in snow from the #Independent, https://t.co/Uq7tdf3mBS , @kwarholm,…— RunBlogRun (@RunBlogRun) March 7, 2024
Warholm’s unconventional winter training regimen left fans awe-inspired and puzzled, especially his daring decision to run in spikes, shorts, and without a shirt in freezing conditions. In a humorous video that circulated widely, Warholm’s coach, Leif Olav Alnes, stood at the finish line, contrasting his athlete by being completely bundled up and shivering, clutching a stopwatch.
“To be honest, it’s mostly for fun. It showcases what we have in Norway, and I know it’s kind of an exotic thing to see for people who live in warmer countries,” Warholm said after his second-place finish at the world indoor championships.
Having decided at the last minute to compete at his year world indoors., Warholm put his unbeaten streak on the line. Having run 46.58 and 45.86 in the heats and semis, there were talks of the possibility of him breaking the world record.
“I know where you are going with this, but I’m not going to say for sure I will take it down. I just want to see where my body is at and perhaps something special might happen”. Warholm said after the semis.
In the final, though, Warholm maintained an impeccable record in the indoor 400m, never tasting defeat since his debut in the discipline back in 2013. With a remarkable win streak under his belt, he set his sights on clinching a world indoor title to complement his three outdoor world 400m hurdles championships.
“It was good. I had maintained a very good pace up until 150m, and then the Belgium guy (Alexandre Doom) came up on the side, and he was stronger towards the end.”
It wasn’t to be for him, though, as he ended up settling for Silver as Doom passed him on the home straight.” It was a last-minute decision to come here. As long as I didn’t get any injuries, it was all OK. Of course, I wish I had won today, but it was so nice coming out here and performing in front of all that noise.”
Warholm will now focus on the outdoor season as he prepares to defend his Olympic title in Tokyo.
