January 22, 2013 (Liberec, Czech Republic) – The USA’s Sophie Caldwell (VT) put in a strong qualification run claiming 5th in the women’s 1.3km CL Sprint as the lone North American skier to advance to the heats as the U23 races got underway on Day 2 of the 2013 U23/Junior Nordic Worlds in Liberec.

Sophie Caldwell - a strong 9th © Rob Whitney file photo

Caldwell continued her superb skiing winning her quarterfinal heat. Her 5th-place finish in her semi-final round saw her day end with a top-10 score ending up a strong 9th. The top Canadian was Calgary’s Marlis Kromm who placed 32nd, just outside the top 30 and did not advance.

Erik Bjornsen © Rob Whitney file photo

In U23 men’s 1.3km CL race the USA’s Erik Bjornsen (APU) was also the lone North American to make the heats and cut the same trail as Caldwell winning his quarterfinal heat also finishing 5th in his semi to end his strong day in 10th. The top Canadian qualifier was Patrick Stewart-Jones, of Chelsea, Que., in 39th.

FIS Nordic Junior & U23 World Ski Championships Report – Pellegrino and Soboleva Take Gold
report by U23/Jr Nordic Worlds

The first medals have been presented in Liberec in the Nordic U23 World Ski Championships.  The sprints in Vesec were dominated by Federico Pellegrino from Italy and Elena Soboleva from Russia.  In the men’s category, most attention was focused on the famous names on the starting list. However, the younger brothers of skiing megastars, Gianluca Cologna and Tomas Northug, did not get to the finals and ended up in ninth and eleventh place respectively.

U23 Men's CL finishline lunge (l-r) Pellegrino, Mikkonen, Belov © courtesy of FIS

The twenty-year-old Russian star Soboleva won the women’s race with ease. She was already the fastest in the knockout rounds and fully confirmed her superiority. In the final, she crossed the finishing line with a comfortable lead ahead of the German silver medallist Sandra Ringwald and the bronze winner Hanna Kolb, also from Germany.  Kolb did not manage to repeat her success of last year’s junior championships in Turkey.

”I am so happy. I’ve been feeling very strong since this morning. I was fast in the qualifications and went to the quarter-finals with the fastest time. In the heats, I always tried to be in the front to gain control of the race. I believed I could go for a victory in the final. It is a dream come true for me,“ said the winner, Elena Soboleva.

Sandra Ringwald: “I’m so happy, it was so amazing to compete here today. It is awesome to get silver. In the morning, I was very tired, but then I thought it could be my competition today. I am so happy that the silver and bronze medals go to Germany“.

Germany's Ringwald and Kolb celebrate silver and bronze © courtesy of FIS

Hanna Kolb: “I am not disappointed at all about the third place. I hoped for a medal in the sprint. It is great that Sandra (Ringwald) is on the podium as well. It was really tight in the end between me and Daria Godovanichenko. I like the course very much. I think there is a great atmosphere in our team. We have many good athletes and in the U23 we push each other in training and also in competition.“

The Italian Pellegrino confirmed his spectacular form

The men’s category had an undoubted favourite. Federico Pellegrino from Italy has been succeeding regularly in the senior World Cup. In Switzerland in January, for example, he finished the sprint in second place, when he managed to beat everyone but the Norwegian Krogh; defeating, for example, Jönsson, Hellner and Cologna sr.

U23 Men Podium (l-r) Mikkonen 2nd, Pellegrino 1st, Belov 3rd © courtesy oif FIS

The Italian super-talent confirmed his excellent form when he was clearly the best in the qualifying races as well as the knockout rounds. It was only in the final that he had to use all his strength, when the gold was being contested to the very last metre.  The first three actually finished within twenty hundredths of a second.

“I am finally the World Champion! Last year I could not compete in Erzurum. I was ready and in a very good shape but it did not work out. So today is my big satisfaction. I’m very, very happy,“commented Federico Pellegrino on his triumph.

The famous Cologna brothers and Northug ended in the semi-finals.  The Norwegian athlete has now finished competing in the Liberec WC, and turns his attention to the National Championships and the World Championships adult qualifications in Val di Fiemme. The great favourite Sergej Ustugov from Russia, who won four gold medals last year in the junior championships in Turkey, ended up among the defeated.

Juho Mikkonen: “I am very happy about the medal today. It is my fifth Junior/U23 Championships. It was my last chance to claim a medal. The final was quite good for me. I started well and tried to go my way. I also managed to save some energy for the last 200 m. The silver medal is very important for me as it gives me motivation and energy for the next training.“

Evgeniy Belov: “In the qualification I did not feel good. It was very hard for me. It was difficult to breathe. The home stretch is very long. In the finals I felt much better and stronger. I am not very happy about third place. I wanted to be the winner today.“

Results (brief)

U23 Women
1. Elena Soboleva (Rus) 3:17.65
2. Sandra Ringwad (Ger) 3:20.73
3. Hanna Kolb (Ger) 3:20.46
4. Daria Godovanichenko (Rus) 3:20.20
5. Ragnhild Haga (Nor) 3:30.92

9. Sophie Caldwell (USA) 3:22.92
32. Marlis Kromm (Can) 3:35.72
34. Heidi Widmer (Can) 3:36.40
36. Elizabeth Guiney (USA) 3:37.18
38. Caitlin Patterson (USA) 3:38.11
39. Anne Hart (USA) 3:39.69
47. Andrea Lee (Can) 3:46.93

U23 Men
1. Federico Pellegrino (Ita) 3:36.75
2. Juho Mikkonen (Fin) 3:37.71
3. Evgeniy Belov (Rus) 3:39.90
4. Sindre Bjoernestad Skar (Nor) 3:38.55
5. Alexander Wolz (Ger) 3:41.93

10. Erik Bjornsen (USA) 3:40.74
34. Eric Packer (USA) 3:47.52|
36. David Norris (USA) 3:48.69
39. Patrick Stewart-Jones (Can) 3:49.72
47. Colin Abbott (Can) 3:53.61
53. Skyler Davis (USA) 3:57.62
DNS Andy Sheilds (Can)

U23 Women’s qualifications HERE.
U23 Women’s Final HERE.

U23 Men’s qualifications HERE.
U23 Men’s Final HERE.