FL500: A very happy winner

-It went almost to fast at the finishing stages. I had to move the leaderdog further back in the team- otherwise it would have gone way to fast, said a touched Ole Wingren (58) from  Nykarleby in Österbotten, Finland, as he came in as the winner of this year’s FL500. He is the first foreigner in many years to win this class. He passed the finishing line in Alta 14.49 this afternoon, 2 days, 2 hours and 41 minutes after he left the same street in the city of northern lights last Saturday.  

With this brilliant victory in this year’s FL500, Ole Wingren broke- finally according to many people- the Norwegian dominance, 16 years after the legendary Sven Engholm won Finnmarksløpet for the last time.- This is positive for the sport, deputy mayor Hilde Søraa empezied as she welcomed the proud winner back to Alta.

It was an Easter-feel in Alta today with the sun low in the sky and pleasant temperatures when Wingren came smiling and waving into the finishing area this afternoon. A lot of people had made their way down to the city center to get a glimpse of the winner. Local enthusiasts as well as a handful of Finnish supporters stood alongside Storgata and applauded Wingren and his dogs over the magical finish line.