Alfredsson promises that Norway's royal family will be standing on solid ground – on aluminium – when they enter their private suite at Holmenkollen for the world championships.
And when Anette Sagen, Tom Hilde and the other ski jumpers zoom down Holmenkollbakken or the nearby Midtstubakken, they will be watched closely by commentators and competition officials who will also be following from new facades in aluminium and glass.
Alfredsson will not. He aims to follow the world championships on television from his living room at home in Sweden.
"It will be especially exciting to follow the telecasts from Holmenkollen this year," says Alfredsson, who adds that he is hoping for ski jumping records and a bushel full of medals for the Scandinavian athletes during the upcoming championships.
The 2011 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships will take place in Oslo from February 23-March 6.
: February 21, 2011