Each year thousand of skiers gather at Sälen in Sweden to ski the 90 km to Mora in Dalarna in commemoration of the Swedish king, Gustav Vasa who made his escape there in 1520 dressed as a peasant.
He had been on the run for weeks trying to escape from the Danish troops in order to raise a rebellion against the Tyrant Christian II, king of Denmark, Norway and Sweden
The story behind the famous flight was the escalation of the wars between Sweden and Denmark in the beginning of the 16thcentury. After a successful invasion in the autumn of 1520, the king had assembled the Swedish aristocracy and high-ranking clerics to what they thought would be a conciliatory meeting in Stockholm. Instead it ended in a bloodbath, where 80 -90 persons were executed. As of today it is disputed to what extent is was the king or his troops, who planned the actual killing.
Amongst the beheaded were the parents of Gustav Vasa. To escape this fate he took to the North in order to rally the peasants to rebel. As the story goes he came to Mora and tried to entice the men, but first they declined. Later they changed this decision and two men were sent after the later king. They caught him at Sälen and returned to Mora, where they began to rally around him.
The race was first run in 1922, inspired by the run by King Gustav Vasa in 1520.
Mora
In itself Mora is well worth visiting. An old trading place near the river Österdalen, it is known for its traditional handicrafts – the Mora-knife, the darlar-horses and other woodcarvings.
The artist Zorn was born there and he amassed a huge collection of traditional material culture and buildings from the countryside. Today his paintings may be enjoyed in the Zorn Museum, while his collections can be seen at the Open-Air Museum called Zorns Gammelgaard. It was Zorn who created the memorial statue of Gustave Vasa erected in Mora.
Another place, where the tradition is kept alive is in Ornäs, where the king tried to find shelter. The manor dating from the 15th century can still be seen.
Open-Air Museum in Mora, Zorns Gammelgaard
