In the packed last week of the World Cup, many athletes excelled and gave the audience some amazing last performances to take into the summertime. One athlete in particular has not stopped to impress since his silver medal in Falun: Alessandro Pittin.

After two hard years with injuries and the tedious way back, physically and also mentally, the medal around his neck seems to have broken the spell for the Italian and the „Pitbull“ is back. He ended his season with an insane race in Lahti improving from the 38th to the fifth place and two third places in Oslo and Trondheim, remarkably both on large hills which have been difficult for Pittin after his two successive crashes.

Known for his prowess in the cross-country track, the lightning-fast Italian took his performance to a new level, especially in the last race of the season in Oslo. Making up three minutes in a 15 kilometre-race, he jumped on the podium coming from a 25th rank and astonished fans and fellow athletes alike.

„I have no idea what happened in the cross-country today“, a slightly flabbergasted Pittin said after the race. „I just had really good skis and I was skiing faster and faster and I ended up on the podium. In Lahti, I told you that you may have one of these races in a year of so… today I actually had the second one“, he laughed.

Like Akito Watabe, Pittin will probably be a little sad that the season is ending now that he is in top shape and a true podium contender that every athlete should watch coming up behind them in the race. If he manages to hold on to these experiences of success, stay healthy and train well in the summer, Nordic Combined might be in for a new big name for the history books in the future