March 06, 2011 (Oslo, Norway) – The first hint was a relay team without Devon Kershaw on it two days ago. Team officials said he had caught a cold and would be resting for the final event the 50km skate, but the race started today with no Kershaw on the line. According to head coach Justin Wadsworth, “It’s disappointing for sure, I’m just glad he has a medal in his pocket to take away the sting a little bit.”

This narrows the Canadian team in the 50km down to Alex Harvey – a marked man with every move he makes – and veteran Ivan Babikov, making team tactics more challenging. The Norwegians, Swedes, Finns, Italians and Russians all have four men each. As the race hit the 7.5km mark today, Babikov sat in the top 15 while Harvey was back in an ever-thinning out pack as the pace  was pushed at the front.