In sprint, men often have a slightly longer course than women.

In the men's relay the distances are 10 km - in the women's relay 5 km.

In skiathlon, the men run 30 km - while the ladies run half the distance.

And when the men compete in their prestigious five miles, it is thirty miles that applies to the ladies.

Frida Karlsson, Charlotte Kalla and several other national team skiers now want the same course lengths for ladies and men in the WC, Olympics and World Cup.

- It is very strange that the boys go twice as far as us in, for example, skiathlon.

It is almost a bit offensive, Karlsson told TT yesterday.

"Have my full support"

Niklas Jonsson, outgoing Swedish representative in the International Ski Federation's (Fis) length committee, said, however, that the ladies should pursue the issue more clearly.

- No concrete proposal has been received.

Someone has to come up with suggestions and push the issue, he said yesterday.

His Norwegian colleague Vegard Ulvang, who heads the length committee, now expresses support for the Swedes' wishes.

- They have my full support, and it's high time.

This is an issue that has been on the agenda for a long time without getting much attention.

So it is good that it is now lifted by the Swedish ladies, he says to the Norwegian news agency NTB.

Suggested five miles in Holmenkollen

In 2018, Norway made a proposal that the ladies, just like the men, would run a five-mile race in the World Cup competition in Holmenkollen.

- There was great interest, but people were afraid that the distances would be too great, says Åge Skinstad, formerly among other things sports director of the Norwegian Ski Association, to Dagbladet.

SEE MORE: Maja Dahlqvist: "A step towards more gender equality" (March 27, 2021)

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Maja Dahlqvist says what she thinks about men and women competing the same distance at the Volkswagen Cup in Falun.

Photo: Hannes Forssell / SVT