GEPA pictures/ Mathias Mandl

The rehabilitation process after his terrible Wengen downhill crash is not the only topic on Aleksander Aamodt Kilde’s mind. The injured ski racing giant speaks out officially about his distrust in the top leadership of the Norwegian Ski Federation. Without changes, he will not return to ski racing.

“If I am going to return, something must change at the very top of the (Norwegian) Ski Federation,” Aamodt Kilde tells NRK.no in an interview published on February 7.

While he focuses on getting back on his feet after the horrific downhill crash in Wengen on January 13, the speed event giant speaks candidly when describing the Norwegian Ski Federation leadership. He says it is demanding to think about an organization that fights against you, according to NRK. Aamodt Kilde uses terms like “arrogance” and “zero response” during the NRK interview when describing the Norwegian Ski Federation leadership. In his impression, the leadership looks down upon the athletes, and the Ski Federation believes athletes will continue to come and go.

“But, in the end, there might not be anyone (new) coming (into the team) because there is such a high level of arrogance that people can’t bear to have anything to do with them,” Aamodt Kilde tells NRK.

Years-long conflict

The ongoing conflict between Norwegian national team skiers and the Norwegian Ski Federation has lasted for several years. Aamodt Kilde and Lucas Braathen, who announced his retirement in October 2023, have stood at the forefront of the battle for the alpine skiers. The athletes want changes to their contracts with the Norwegian Ski Federation, which currently limits the athletes’ marketing rights and control over their personal image rights. The Norwegian Ski Federation has refused to make adequate changes according to the athletes’ requests, and the conflict has become long and tedious without positive results.

During the winter of 2022, the Norwegian Ski Federation’s legal committee supported the athletes’ request for changes in marketing rights. The legal committee stated that the athletes own their image rights and that the athletes and the Norwegian Ski Federation needed to reach an agreement stating to what extent the federation can use the athletes’ image rights in commercial contracts.

The conflict had already lasted for a long time at that point. After the legal committee’s statement, the skiers expected to negotiate a new agreement with the federation. However, the contract presented by the Norwegian Ski Federation in April 2023 did not consider the legal committee’s conclusion, according to the athletes.

In September 2023, the leadership of the Norwegian Ski Federation’s legal committee informed the Norwegian Ski Federation board about the legal committee’s perspective. It made a concrete suggestion for a new contract, which the athletes had approved, according to NRK.

Despite this, the Ski Federation’s board decided in October 2023 to ask the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and the Confederation of Sports (NIF) to assess questions regarding interpretations of relevant parts of NIF’s laws.

Soon after, Braathen announced his retirement from ski racing.

In November 2023, the NIF legal committee concluded and stated its support of the athletes.

The Norwegian national team alpine skiers have yet to sign a contract with the Norwegian Ski Federation for the 2023-24 ski season.

Strenuous total load

Aamodt Kilde tells NRK that the Norwegian skiers believe they have approached the conflict with “good and constructive” steps during the past three years but are left feeling frustrated. “We have hit the wall, time after time,” he says.

He explains he has attempted to maintain some contact with the Norwegian Ski Federation president and general secretary, but after some e-mail correspondence in November, he has been waiting to hear from them since November 28. The lack of response has affected him going into this season.

“I won’t say this has been a direct consequence towards the crash in Wengen. I believe there are other reasons for that happening. But that there has been a total load into this season, which has been a bit too much, cannot be excluded,” Aamodt Kilde tells NRK.

Confidence in the Norwegian Ski Federation has decreased, according to Aamodt Kilde.

“If you ask me, it is quite clear what has to be changed: It is the board and how things are governed,” Aamodt Kilde says in the NRK interview published January 7. However, he does not wish to mention specific names.

Norwegian Ski Federation response

The Norwegian Ski Federation board has decided that a broadly composed task force will assess changes and modernization of the current national team contract. A new national team contract must be ready for the 2024/25 season and must be approved by the board, according to a Norwegian Ski Federation press release on February 9.

According to NRK on February 7, the Norwegian Ski Federation’s president, Tove Moe Dyrhaug, and head of the alpine committee, Ola Evjen, had responded to NRK through the Ski Federation’s Media Director Espen Graff regarding Aamodt Kilde’s comments:

“The athletes are the most important thing we have, and we go to work for them every day. Therefore, Aleksander is invited to be a part of the task force, and we will listen to him and the other athlete representatives when we, together, will look at how the national team contract can be modernized. In the task force, there will be room for everyone to talk openly about the issues Aleksander brings up. Everything must be put on the table so that the task force can deliver a proposal, which is as reconciled as possible, to the (Ski Federation) board.”

Dyrhaug and Evjen also state in the e-mail that they will continue the dialogue directly with Aamodt Kilde within the task force, according to NRK on February 7.

Arne Baumann, the General Secretary of the Norwegian Ski Federation, will lead the task force. It will include athlete representatives from ski sports governed by the Norwegian Ski Federation, various sports directors, sponsor representatives, and additional members from the Norwegian Ski Federation. Alpine Director Claus Johan Ryste will also be part of the task force, according to the press release on February 9.

Aleksander says no

“Aleksander Aamodt Kilde is the athlete representative for alpine skiing and is strongly desired as a member of the task force, but this is not clarified as of now,” the Norwegian Ski Federation’s press release stated on February 9.

A few hours later, during Friday evening before the World Cup giant slalom races in Bansko (men) and Soldeu (women), the Norwegian alpine national team athletes sent a statement to NRK:

“Aleksander, supported by the rest of the national team’s athletes, has decided to not partake in the task force, due to the composition of the task force as of now,” the alpine skiing athlete writes in the statement, according to NRK.

Loving the sport

“I have maximum five years left of my career and know that when I am done, my income is done. That is why we discuss image rights,” 31-year-old Aamodt Kilde says during the NRK interview published January 7.

“I love this sport so much that I wish to come back. But I can tell that if I am to come back, something must be changed in the (Norwegian) Ski Federation leadership,” he says.

Aamodt Kilde won the World Cup overall title in 2020, the Downhill Cup in 2022 and 2023, and the Super-G Cup in 2022. He has captured 21 World Cup race victories from 2016-2023. He holds four Olympic and World Championship medals and the 2013 Junior World Ski Championship title in giant slalom. However, he is still missing a senior championship gold medal in his impressive collection.

Sources: NRK.no, the Norwegian Ski Federation, FIS