Merja Rantanen- world championships hope of Jukola- host ‘Jämsän Retki-Veikot’ – is in weird situation, because this year she can’t take part as a competitor in Venla relay.

– I was 14 when I took part in relay for the first time and since then I’ve always been there, she looks back

She doesn’t want to evaluate the coming Venla relay much for not reveling too much of the terrain . – Pyrintö is my favourite team because we’re quite near Tampere. It’s hard to say other favourites because I follow very little other teams. Among finnish teams there are also Paimion Rasti and Pohjantähti, she estimates.

Merja has taken part in arrangments beside training. About a week before the competition she’ll look for ‘good feeling’, easy-to-orienteer feeling. – It’s almost there thought there’s been too much exhaustion during the season.

This season there’s already been Finlands championship sprint bronze and one accident with a rock during a competition. Rantanen was obliged to rest after the accident but it doesn’t disturb her preparation. World championships in home country are naturally very important and Rantanen has done every possible thing for them.  – Training has been quite challenging, what body can take and what not, she describes. Rantanen doesn’t reach for world championship sprint but for other distances.