February 05, 2017 (Soldier Hollow, UT) – While the day belonged to Russia the USA’s Paddy Caldwell delivered a stellar 9th-place finish in the U23 Men’s 30km Skiathlon. Alexander Bulshonov took the win as Russia swept the podium yet again with Alexey Chervotkin winning silver and Denis Spotsov the bronze.

Fellow American John Hegman of the Sun Valley Ski Education finished just behind Caldwell in 11th while Northern Michigan University’s Adam Martin placed 15th for three US skiers in the top 15. Evan Palmer-Charrette was the top Canadian in 26th with Alex Dumas 33rd.

Paddy Caldwell Interview

The three Russians had skied together nearly the entire 30k race, well ahead of a chase group of Jules Lapierre of France and Jason Rueesch of Switzerland.

As the three Russians came off the final hill after a grueling 30k, they locked arms on the downhill and coasted together into the stadium. As they came to the finish line, they stopped in unison seeking to cross together.

The competition jury reviewed timing and scoring records, along with photo assets and records of the finish referee, to ensure that the ranking was correct. According to FIS rules, the boot toe crossing the line is the determining factor (ICR 316.4.1).

It was the second straight gold for Bulshonov, who won the 15k freestyle two days earlier. Julien Lamoureux, Julian Smith and the USA’s Callan Deline did not finish.

Results here.

With files from Utah 2017