TRONDHEIM. Emil Iversen, 34, was happiest of all after his third place in the Trondheim skiathlon.
After the race, he left Granåsen with fiancee Bettina Burud, 29.
– Now it will be a little champagne, or scumpa as you say in Sweden, says Burud to Sportbladet.
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Burud and Emil Iversen’s fan club with several family members is waiting in Granåsen’s parking lot.
They have had to wait quite a while.
Iversen was Saturday’s man of the week in Trondheim after his third place. The 34-year-old was poked in the World Cup premiere in Ruka last weekend and now it was a long-awaited success for the veteran.
– We are very happy now. What else can you be? Coming third in the World Cup is huge, so we are super happy, says Bettina Burud to Sportbladet.
She continues:
– I can’t say much technically about the race because I don’t have any expertise there other than that I see what everyone else sees. But I’m very pleased.
Norway’s youngest billionaire
Iversen and Burud are very circumscribed in Norway.
Iversen has long been one of Norway’s big long-distance profiles and, for example, took World Cup gold in the five-mile in 2021. Burud inherited the food chain Kiwi from his father in 2011 when he died in a boating accident. She then became Norway’s youngest billionaire and according to a survey from 2019, according to Norwegian Dagens Näringsliv, she was the country’s youngest billionaire when she was 23 years old.
Iversen himself says that he was moved by the support he received from his team, which includes everything from family to coaches.
– Many of them are here today cheering and getting to be part of this experience. I think there are many people who are as happy as I am – from chiropractors to doctors, coaches, sponsors, family, fan club and my girlfriend. It has been a dream day. I promised myself I would put on a show and it’s been exciting all the way. I solved it perfectly and third place is like a victory for Team Iversen, he says.
“Age is just a number”
The hope is that Iversen succeeds in securing one of the coveted Olympic spots. Bettina Burud, on the other hand, does not dare to book a trip to Italy in February.
– I don’t think I should say anything about that. But I have no idea, it’s usually someone else who decides. We hope that it goes well during the rest of the season and that we end up there, absolutely, she says.
Emil is still 34 years old. He has had some setbacks, most recently when he was not selected for Ruka, and now he is third among the very best. What does that say about his character?
– He is a tough guy and you only get tougher and tougher the older you get. So I think age is just a number and he proves that here, that it shouldn’t matter. He still has some powder in his body and that is the most important thing when it comes to skiing, says Burud.
How will you celebrate this?
– It will probably be a little champagne for me or scum, as you say. Isn’t that what you say?
Well, it is.
– Yes, it will probably be something like that for me and probably a little Christmas must for Emil.
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