– What do you think about losing your stamina?
Hanne Staff laughs. As a four-time world champion in orienteering, it was perhaps not the topic she had expected to end up at the bottom of.
– Initially, it sounds strange, but when I know what I’ve trained, and when I know that training is fresh, then I guess that’s the way it had to go, says Staff, who quit back in 2004.
– In the last exercise, I messed it up for myself, so in the end it wasn’t about the endurance, but more that I couldn’t do the exercise in the right way.
RØK: Hanne (th) was first in the water during this exercise Photo: Heidi Marie Gøperød, Nordisk Banijay/NRK
– There are some margins and coincidences here too?
– Absolutely. It is in many ways a game, and it will never be 100 per cent fair, but I think the concept and the scheme are very good. It is also very nice to be involved, and that is perhaps the most important thing.
The community most important
Based on her assumptions, the 50-year-old feels that she has gained a lot from the Master of Masters, and that it was fun to experience a night test.
– I have sat and watched the Champion of Champions over many seasons, so it was a bit nerve-wracking to stand there, you want to try to get ahead, says Staff, who fought against former kickboxer Andreas Lødrup.
She will remember the community between the participants best.
– It’s a bit strange, you very quickly feel that you’ve known them for a long time. You have so much in common. So I will remember the good conversations and the community the best, also I have to say that it was fun to compete again too. I’ve said no a few times, but I don’t regret trying this year, Staff tells God kveld Norge.
Mesternes-Ezinne went viral all over the world
– Whispered a little
Over one million Norwegians catch the Master of Masters every weekend on NRK, but Staff claims that she has not noticed that much extra attention at home in Nittedal.
– I notice it mostly on Facebook, but I don’t think I have the radar on. My husband says that when we go out together, he notices that more people recognize me than before. There is a bit of whispering. But it’s only nice feedback, she smiles.
