The commentary explores the current state of Swedish skier William Poromaa, who is seen as a main competitor to Finnish star Iivo Niskanen for the Olympic 50 km event. Prior to the upcoming Milano-Cortina Games, the list of medal candidates appears short, featuring only a few Norwegians alongside Niskanen and Poromaa. Expectations for Poromaa have dimmed significantly after his disappointing performance in the combined 10+10 km event, where he fell behind by over 45 seconds.

Poromaa has been experiencing an incredibly challenging season, as indicated by his worrying physical tests during the base training period, leading to discussions about overtraining. His health issues prior to the World Cup, including a missed event due to sickness and an injury sustained during the Tour de Ski, have further hindered his performance. His best placement in the World Cup this season has only been a modest seventeenth, which underscores his current struggles on the international ski stage.

Despite his past successes, the Swedish team had hoped for a resurgence in Poromaa's performance leading up to the Olympic Games. However, after a series of setbacks and notably poor results, including the inability to deliver results expected from a medal contender, those hopes are diminishing. This raises questions about whether Poromaa can recover in time for the Olympics and how this will affect his and Niskanen's standings in the competition.