Chapter Text
April 2025.
The 2024-25 season had just wrapped up and Frans knew damn well that neither he or his teammate Tusse were going to have any success (or hopes) to impress the national team compared to Kevin, Axel and Jakob, who were actually getting FIG World Cup podiums. Although the three were a dead certain to go to the 2026 Olympics, there were many other skiers that were tipped for the fourth spot in the men's team for Sweden. Frans on the other hand counted himself lucky if he even qualified for one FIS World Cup event while Tusse had no such luck, only making it to one of them two seasons ago.
Neither of them had a chance in hell of making it to the Swedish Olympic Team for 2026 and if things were going to continue the way they were, he was lucky if his (and Tusse's) funding wasn't cut for next season.
But today, Frans had hopes that it was going to change. The Swedish National Team thought that he and Tusse need a bit of help with their performance which was code word for them being completely shit, so they were going to bring in a coach. That coach was former skier turned coach Loreen Talhaoui. She was fairly successful, definitely more accomplished than Frans and Tusse combined but nowhere near Kevin, Axel and Jakob, but he was happy to get the coaching.
The trio arranged a meeting at a small café in Stockholm, Sweden's capital. Loreen must've been a regular there because the second she came in with Frans and Tusse, she was ushered to a very discreet area of the café, even though it was already small as hell. Why would there be a discreet area?
Once they say down, Loreen cut right to the chase, "What is your dream, I'll try and achieve it?"
Oddly ambitious, but it wouldn't hurt to just say his dream in skiing to Loreen.
"Both me and Tusse wanna go to the Olympics, which is practically impossible." Frans explained, turning to Tusse who nodded.
Loreen smiled and tented her fingers together as she leaned towards, "I'm an accomplished World Cup skier, I can help."
Accomplished?
He needed to put this in a polite manner, but she was NOT an accomplished skier, nowhere near. She was better than Frans and Tusse, but not even the level of Kevin, Axel and Jakob.
Tusse also knew this, as he finally spoke, the sass radiating from him making Frans stiffle some laughter, "You came third once in a twenty year career, and that's because half the contestants crashed because of shit conditions."
He wasn't wrong.
Loreen, who didn't seem offended in the slightest, calmly told them, "...well I know the courses like the back of my hand, and the Swedish National Team appointed me to help you."
"How can you help us then?" Tusse asked, confused, like Frans.
Loreen asked them back, "Do you guys want to get to the Olympics?"
Well, it was something he really wanted to do, but it was impossible.
Loreen might help them become a better skier, but get them to the Olympics? No.
"Obviously, but there's no chance." He admitted as Loreen shook her head.
She said, "There is."
Did she have a plan for both Frans and Tusse to be selected by the Swedish national team for that coveted fourth spot?
"No, there isn't." Frans directly told her as she still shook her head.
Why on earth was she being so vague?
She cleared her throat and sat up straight, "Have you heard of Vanessa-Mae?"
He was well aware of her. The British-Thai violinist who went to the Olympics with the Thai Ski Federation and her management organising small qualifying events on purpose so she could qualify to the games.
But Tusse wasn't aware of it.
"Who?" Tusse asked.
Before anyone could say anything, Frans quickly shot Loreen a look and hissed in a low voice, "No...just no, that's fucking cheating."
"No, it's a loophole," She said, "You have Nigerian ancestry and Tusse here was born in DR Congo, so that's some easy Olympic spots to get."
That was true. His grandmother was from Nigeria.
But how was Loreen aware of this?
Maybe he might've said it in an old interview when he was a junior skier who was actually successful on the domestic circuit and Loreen saw?
"It's cheating." Frans replied back, still aware that what Loreen was suggesting was very much illegal.
Tusse turned to him and whispered, "You have Nigerian ancestry?"
Frans silently nodded as he focused his attention back on Loreen, who asked them, "How else are you going to get on the Olympic team?"
He was not cheating.
"We're not that desperate." Frans said as Tusse quickly hit back with:
"I am."
Frans hissed, "Tusse!"
Loreen smiled, but was confused as Frans anger, "What? It's good that he's eager."
She continued, trying to convince Frans, "We'll still be playing by the book Frans. Besides, I'm in contact with Måns, you know, Måns Zelmerlöw."
Wow. The Olympic gold medalist of giant slalom in 2018 was one of the best skiers Sweden has ever produced. He is the blueprint for all successful Swedish skiers, although Kevin, Axel and Jakob were currently eclipsing him by a margin.
Frans raised his eyebrows, "Yeah, how could we not know him? Olympic gold medalist and a bunch of other stuff, he's a legend here."
Loreen smiled, "Just leave everything to me. We're not cheating at all."
Well, they still were.
This was his only option.
He was presented with a massive dilemma, but Loreen had the connections to make it happen. It's not like Nigeria and DR Congo were going to get any skiers anytime soon apart from Frans and Tusse. In fact, he wasn't even sure if DR Congo had a national skiing federation.
Tusse was thinking the same thing, as he asked Loreen, "...one thing, DR Congo doesn't have a Winter Olympic federation at all, so how are we going to get through that?"
She nodded, "Like I said, leave it too me."
"Are you sure this is legal?" Frans asked, still a bit doubtful but knew that all small athletes had to resort to something outlandish to make their dreams come true...or maybe it was just him who was running out of morals.
"Yeah." Loreen said with a reassuring, but brief, nod.
Frans shook his head and murmured, "I can't believe I'm doing this..."
He and Tusse left the café as it now left Loreen alone.
__
Loreen pulled out her phone and contacted Måns, who quickly picked up.
"Hey Loreen, how's it going?" He asked as she wasted no time cutting to the chase.
"I'm doing fine. Can you do me a favour?" She responded.
Måns' directly said, shutting down whatever Loreen wanted to say with a, "No."
He hasn't even heard what she had planned.
Loreen kept a low voice so no-one around her would hear as she murmured, "You owe me. Tax evasion is a crime and I bailed you out."
It was supposed to be a big case in Sweden, especially with it coming to light through a few tabloids in early 2018, but Loreen managed to put a stop to that straight away...with some help.
Måns let out a long-drawn-out sigh, "...I did the same with you, so we're even."
He had a point.
"Look, just one favour and I'll never bother you again." She said, wanting to stick to it this time.
Måns sighed again, "Fine, but if it's illegal I swear to God-"
Loreen cut him off, "I want you set-up some phony and very small qualifier events in FIS Skiing because I just got some new skiers who want to go into the Olympics because they're average as hell and Swedish."
She definitely wasn't going to tell Frans and Tusse that, but they probably knew it themselves.
"That's illegal." Måns said, trying to shut down the conversation.
Loreen sighed and murmured her plan to him, "Ugh, it's a loophole. You have the power to set-up events, I can enter my skiers on short notice and ta-da, they can qualify."
She then quickly added, "Oh and if you can waive the waiting period for them to change their nationality, that'll be neat."
Måns wasn't budging.
"No." He said.
Loreen needed to pull out the big guns.
So she told him, "Måns, we've known each other for ages and I have a few things I know about you that the courts won't be pleased with."
Måns murmured something in Swedish to quiet for Loreen to hear as he then replied, "This is blackmail."
Well how else was she going to convince him? She had to be firm.
Loreen continued, "Just does the favour for me and I'll destroy all the evidence."
He sighed, "Fine. But if I get caught, I'm taking you down with me."
A fair compromise.
"Deal." She said, hanging up her phone and placing it in her pocket like no such conversation has just taken place.
__
October 2025
One of the first months of the skiing season is over and Frans, who is competing under the Nigerian flag and Tusse, who is competing under the DR Congolese flag, have just finished their fifth event in Belgium, which Tusse won.
Belgium?
Yes, Belgium.
If that wasn't a strange enough location, Frans and Tusse have previously competed in events in far flung locations, which were Moldova, Turkey, The Gambia – a place with NO snow – and Kyrgyzstan. There were about ten or less competitors in each event and a good amount were amateur at best. Tusse and Frans took turns winning the five events, with their only benchmark being each other.
One thing that left him scratching his head was: Was there supposed to be a cooldown limit if you wanted to change nationalities? He remembered reading it somewhere in the tedious rule book.
Frans and Tusse were at a dinky little restaurant, the atmosphere was kind of cute, but that wasn't what Frans was focusing on.
Technically, he and Tusse have now qualified to represent their countries in the Olympics Games, but he sort of felt like everything was a bit sketchy. Lots of things didn't add up and although Loreen always reassured Frans it wasn't breaking the law, he felt like something was up.
He voiced his concerns to Tusse, who remained oblivious.
"What Loreen is doing for us is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I'm never going to get something like this ever again." He explained, Frans knew where Tusse was coming from, but was he really that desperate? Or was he really that oblivious?
"I still feel like something is going on, I'm embarrassed it's taken me this long too realise it." Frans said as Tusse nodded and focused back on his hamburger and chips.
It was a confusing situation, so he was going to see how it all unfolded at the Olympics. He hoped he and Tusse weren't going to embarrass themselves on a global stage watched by the entire world.