When she was a teenager she had major problems with eating disorders. And it didn't get any better for Jessica Diggins when she became a senior, who was subjected to comments that affected her so much that it gave her thoughts of suicide.

- It is very naive to say that weight does not matter in endurance sports. We can all say it's part of it. But if you look at the puzzle that cross-country skiing is, and why you go fast, weight is just a piece of it. And there are many other pieces, she tells NRK.

- Focusing on weight instead of focusing on how strong you are in the head, how mental exercise is, how technology is, how physics are, how stress level is in everyday life and how happy you are. When coaches point to weight as the single most important thing, then it becomes silly to me. Unfortunately, I have heard many stories about trainers saying things like that, and it really contributes to eating disorders.

"The brain thought I was fat"

Diggins herself has heard comments about her weight which negatively affected her when a volunteer coach commented on her weight.

- He said I was so much bigger now than I was when I was in high school. And I should have thought that I went through puberty, of course I'm bigger than when I was 15. But the brain thought I was fat, she says.

However, Diggins points out that it may have been meant as a compliment to the fact that she had built muscle. But that was not how she perceived it.

- The way it was said hurt me.

Health is more important than results

Diggins also says that she has not experienced weight in the American national team, and she is supported by national teammate Sadie Bjornsen, who confirms that the American team is different.

- It is possible to create a supportive environment that helps practitioners find a body that works for them. It is not worth risking your health to be as fast as possible. I want to be able to have children after my career. To be able to do that, I have to stay healthy and not let medals be more important than being healthy, ”says Bjornsen to NRK.

ARCHIVE: Ida, 17, about eating disorders: "Hardly wanted to live when I was on the bottom" (April 7, 2019)

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Ida Andersson, 17, has been fighting eating disorders for several years. She says that models that look different are important for inspiration for young athletes. "If you want to be the best, you look at the best," Ida tells SVT Sport. Photo: Tom-William Lindström