Stunning sport produces spectacular pictures. One name that is heavily connected with remarkable Swimrun images is Nadja Odenhage. Based in the Dalarna region in the middle of the picturesque Swedish forests Nadja produces photographs of Athletes that do stick out and transfer inimitable feelings. Endurance and adventure sports of all kinds are where she sets her marks. I catched up with her to find out more about her work and drive.

Runssel: Since when do you take images professionally? When and why did you start?
Nadja: I started back in 2012 after an injury that kept me away from doing sports myself. Some months after I got hurt I got granted a studentship called “Scandinavian photo scholarship”. At the same time, Mats Skott rang me and asked if I would join their ÖTILLÖ media crew. I loved the idea and subsequently teamed up as one of two photographers at the ÖTILLÖ media crew. I’ve been working professionally since.

Runssel: You have been involved in adventure sports for quite some time. What is the magnificence in capturing these sports?
Nadja: The outdoors! The nature! The shifting weather that produces thrilling conditions and of course the hard working athletes. The combination is magical and keeps me motivated and fascinated.

As the morning sun starts to bright up the Stockholm Archipelago Nadja captures the first long swim segment of the course.

Runssel: Besides Jakob Edholm you have been on the forefront of SwimRun snapping. You seem to capture the spirit of the sport in a very special way and certainly motivate people to go out and try this sport. Where do you see the speciality of the sport and what does it take to capture it?
Nadja: Thank you! I believe I’m intrigued by understanding the athletes, and by that also understanding the sport. Trying to be one step ahead and knowing where to find emotions and expressions. There is also an intellectual viewpoint. In SwimRun, the team of two adds something unique to the whole performance. There seems to be an extra dimension.

Runssel: Which camera set-up do you use while covering a competition? In what way do you pre-check the course? What complications do you face generally?
Nadja: I only use Canon. There’s no time to mess around with gear so I usually bring 3-4 fixed sets of cameras. For example one 7D with a wide-angle like EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM. One 5D with an EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM lens or an EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens depending on the type of competition and situations on the course. Unfortunately I also carry a pretty heavy underwater housing. Ikelite with a Canon fisheye EF 14mm f/2.8L II USM is my type of choice. It is great to work with but pretty heavy while climbing around of course. A flash is useful for the longer races that start before sunrise and end long after sunset.

I use Salomon or Icebug shoes like the Swimrunners i capture. Further than that fast drying clothes (Tierra is my favourite) and quality wool outfits (I like Icebreaker and Woolpower) keep me warm and comfortable at work. I end up muddy and wet in every race. Similar to the athletes I pretty much swim with my clothes on. I want and I need to dry up as fast as possible. I know my colleague even change to a wet suit for under water shots. So far that is where I draw the line.

It’s a challenge in itself to keep the equipment minimalistic as we do carry all our own kit around of the course. My absolute hero is my F-stop backpack.

It’s a very good idea to invest time in any kind of course pre-check. Detailed or not, but you need to know the sunlight and the estimated times of the athletes on race day. If I’ve been on the location before I’m wiling to try out new approaches and so on. It makes the race day a lot easier and the pictures way better. We have been lost some times and that is not what you want…

Being on the course beforehand is a good way to match logistics, knowing where to drive, where to swap vehicles, where to climb, where the boat can find me on a particular island and agreeing on an overall plan with the rest of the media team. Especially on a long and logistically difficult race like ÖTILLÖ all of the points mentioned above are very important. On other races, when I’m going solo, there are different kinds of issues. Sometimes it feels like i need to split myself in halfs. Races like Koster Swimrun or Ångaloppet are very hard to cover as i need to be quick around the course. The hardest part seams to be the faster and faster Swimrunners. All the records they break also break our schedules!

Former Ironman World Champ Faris Al-Sultan and his Swedish companion Peter Oom blend into the raw beauty of the Ötillö course. All well framed by Nadja.

Runssel: What has been the most extraordinary area you had the chance to take pictures off?
Nadja: Lofoten! And the first time around the ÖTILLÖ course in the Stockholm archipelago was amazing. The sunrise paired with the autumn – Pure Bliss. But the first time in any race is so much fun. You never know what is waiting for you. The peaks along the Engadin valley paired with the clear mountain lakes, the rough ocean and the fascinating Scilly Islands. The dark forest at the ÖTILLÖ 1000 Lakes, the marine reserve at the Koster islands and the midnight sun of Laponia – all wonderful and very special places.

Runssel: What outlines a blameless image for you?
Nadja: Umm, blameless tend to be boring. The more perfect the less interesting I guess. Extreme sport and rough nature helps. I like emotions, expressions, situations and movements.

Unperfected is fun! Like the one below. It was taken during last years Sprint race at the ÖTILLÖ Engadin race.

But yes, beautiful features can involve perfect natural lighting paired with natural framing. Like the Reed picture from ÖTILLÖ 2015.

And being there when it happens. Some things can not be planned. For example a spontaneous kiss on the race course.

Or that backflip from Koster Swimrun in 2015

Runssel: Do you have other photographers that inspire you?
Nadja: Yes, many for different reasons. For example Annie Leibovitz, Delly Carr, Jody Macdonald, Emma Svensson, Jimmy Chin and my Danish friends at Rebel Media House and Martin Paldan.

Runssel: Which races will you be covering in the 2017 season?
Nadja: I will not be at the ÖTILLÖ SwimRun series this year which gives me the opportunity to follow through a couple of projects as well as new partners. I’m really looking forward to this year even though I already know that I will be missing out on some great adventures with ÖTILLÖ. It’s a great crew, and I know they will have a very special year with lots of spectacular news. My list of races tends to get clearer as we move closer to race day.

Runssel: What would be a race you would love to cover and why?
Nadja: I’ve got a bucket list of course! But yeah, the last remote race in Patagonia would be a true challenge – Patagonia Expedition Race and perhaps competitions like Dragons Back Race in Wales or why not a year long documentary of a SwimRun team.

Make sure to follow Nadja via Facebook and Instagram and get lost on her website. 

I had a chat with Annelie and Jonas from swimrunpodden. In the 58th version of their podcast we talk about sports and SwimRun in particular.

Click HERE for the full interview.

“What is the plan this season?” It is the common dialog once you come across friends or fellow endurance sport junkies. Almost certainly I would not be exercising on a regular basis if there would not be the odd sporting contest on the horizon.

Face it – Signing up and dedicating to a competition adds sense and a direction to everyday training. Despite the fact that this can be demanding it also means supplementary drive. I certainly like to have goals and having a well-adjusted agenda is inspiring to look forward to.

With our move to Sweden it is apparent that my emphasis lies on racing locally. Getting the chance to spend time travelling the country with my family and seeing all the varied places across this stunning kingdom is something that I look forward to.

So for the imminent season these are the battles I choose:

28.05.2017 ÖTILLÖ Utö Swimrun

By now a classic in the continuously growing SwimRun logbook. This race across the islet of Utö is challenging and a proper first test for the system. I’ll be racing this with my friend Felix.

10.06.2017 Stockholm SwimRun

My first city SwimRun race. Living in a city that seems to made for this sport, this was the obvious contest to pick. The course looks super fun and should be pretty fast. Looking forward to race this in the original German Sparkle Party formation with Fabian.

01.07.2017 Åre Xtreme Challenge

Another highlight and a race that should be well out of my comfort zone. I certainly have to opt my kayak and mountain-bike abilities for this multisport classic across Jämtland.

15.07.2017 Åstol Runt

The 0.15 km2 landmass of Åstol is located on the west coast of Sweden. Since two years they offer a matchless Aquathlon in and around the islet. A 2k open water swim is followed by a 7k run. Undoubtedly I look forward to a proper Aquathlon and a delicious flatfish for recovery

05.08.2017 Öloppet

Styrsö island in the Gothenburg archipelago is where the world’s biggest SwimRun takes place. 5.700 meters of swimming and 33.825 meters of running alongside the inimitable Über-hobbit are on tab.

01.10.2017 ÖTILLÖ 1000 Lakes

After missing last year’s inaugural ÖTILLÖ chapter on GSP home turf, Fabian and I are planning to face the icy Mecklenburger Seenplatte for some challenging fun through East German liquids and trails.

22.10.2017 The Original Mountain Marathon

Ticking of another biggie from the bucket list. Pumped to finally get my legs across the U.K’s stunning northern fells with my old-friend Seb. Facing a icy and clammy night out and lots of navigation work are going to be epic entertainment.

To the elder generation of endurance sport nerds he is still well-known under his renowned moniker “King of Zofingen”. In a period that saw the punishing Powerman-event round the Swiss city of Zofingen at his ultimate peak, this man won the heroic run-bike-run happening on remarkable eight occasions. A year after his last victory he retired from professional sports in 2005. Several Ironman Switzerland wins alongside national and international Duathlon and Triathlon titles later Olivier Bernhard ended his impressive career.

As a fan of the sport with a endeavour for technical perfection the idea of the perfect running shoe kept him inspired to push the development of his idea forward. His original idea to supply an innovative running sensation lead him to a Swiss engineer. Little by little the duo advanced numerous testers and eventually found their elementary concept – a shoe centred around a unique sole technology. Bernhard and his buddies named their company On and called the diminutive cushion elements “Clouds”. In 2010, On hit the shops and just recently I had the chance to have a proper go with their up-to-date model, the On – Cloudracer.

No discussion – the most noticeable gadget of an On shoe is the unique sole scheme. With a mere of 18 separately positioned “Clouds”, the newest Cloudflow has the most cushion pillows of all shoes in the existing product range. The Zero-Gravity EVA foam replies nicely and delivers a fine momentum to the stride.

When it comes to looks and finishing features this shoe surely sticks out. The uncommon sole is not the only part that makes the Cloudflow stand. Plenty of little features make the shoe extremely classy and significant.

The total weight comes on with some sweet 220 grams. Not only this supports a fast run. Also the 6 mm Heel-toe offset is a feature that I liked. With the provided cushion and the low-to-the-ground feel, this is something that I appreciated a lot.

Some heel details – with my style of running I can only assess the forefoot ride which is great. At first I was a bit sceptical regarding the sole construction. I thought the stability might not be there. During several runs I was proofed wrong.

Zürich based company On smugly states that they are hunting “a quest for the perfect running sensation”. It certainly is a diverse feeling running on the pads and takes one or two runs to value the new feeling.

Style & Detail – It is fine to notice a lot of thought-out details. Besides the polite print on the slim and comfortable tongue, I liked the company-symbol that is placed on the lacing ring.

Element –  Undoubtedly Olivier Bernhard and his friends David Allemann and Caspar Coppetti created something special and unique with this sole design.

Sole scenes – Speedboard is the name of the design that’s included within the Cloudflow outsole. It is supposed to boost the stride-flow and contributes to a safe and steady kick. The traction on the road is great and I had no problems. While this is not a trail shoe it still performed for me on my resident off-road path in dry conditions.

Laced – It is pretty tasteful and comfy mesh that slips around the runners foot. The upper material feels nice and has great breathability. The laces are pretty thin but still hold things together.

From this viewpoint the slender and breathable upper is apparent. It adds to the nice and light flow that the Cloudflow provides.

Inside the ride – a guise at the inside of the Cloudflow sole and the 18 cushion pads.

Fun fact – The first prototype was made by slicing up a garden hose and super gluing the cross-sections onto the soles. That one only lasted a few steps and has been perfected since then.

Finale –From the very first glance out of the stylish black box till the previous workout on the track I ran with the Cloudflow. Whereas it looks diverse and matchless it undoubtedly has its function and benefits the run. I like the design that unquestionably matches the overall quality of this lightweight trainer. The Cloudflow is happy with a bunch of paces and the sole reproduces the individual needs. Undoubtedly I’m nosy what the Swiss chaps develop next out of their garden shed.

Whilst wandering around the isle this is a display that is pretty difficult to overlook – palm trees!

Some relaxed morning miles around the many quite off-road tracks.

Though San Sebastián de La Gomera has a pretty good 25 meter public swimming pool, I chose for the cold seawaters of the Atlantic ocean. There is a pretty lively local scene so if you are training in the mornings it is not hard to find training buddies at the shores of San Sebastián.

The stunning Teide crowning is a well-liked photo alternative.

Posing whilst the sun is calling it a day.

Harsh but gorgeously green vales are a characteristic hiking spot. The trail system is excellent.

And again. A sun-drenched Teide mountaintop.

Check my picture galleries one and two for more.