February 22, 2013 (Val di Fiemme, Italy) – Check out these interviews with USA’s Kikkan Randall and Sophie Caldwell, plus Canada’s Dasha Gaiazova direct for the FIS XC Skiing World Championships in Val di Fiemme following yesterday’s 1.5km CL sprint races – report, results and more photos HERE.

Kikkan Randall (USA) © Nordic Focus

Kikkan Randall (USA) 19th

How were you feeling coming into today’s event following Davos?
Kikkan Randall: I felt good coming into today’s race. I had a couple days to travel and recover from Davos and was able to put in a good intensity workout on the sprint course with my teammates.

How were conditions today – and your thoughts on the course?
KR: Conditions were just about as tricky as it gets for classic skiing, a little loose snow in the track and right around the zero mark. Our team did the best we could but it was kind of a gamble today.

The course was pretty tough. You had to hold a high speed the whole way and there wasn’t much rest out there. A good championship course I think.

You looked good at the start of your quarter final but dropped back up the first climb – how were your skis?
KR: I had better kick in the quarters but they ended up being a little slow.

You then made a good jump from 5th into 3rd on the steep climb, a great tactical move – talk about your strategy today.
KR: My initial strategy had been to ski up in the top three and be ready to make a good sprint in the last 150m. But when I found myself in the back I knew I couldn’t wait. When we went around the fast downhill turn I felt everyone drifting left I stayed right and was able to get a better a better line to the corner. For a little bit, I felt back in the race.

You had a strong skier leading your heat – did that help you to push a bit harder or vice versa?
KR: It’s always good to have a strong skier in your heat, then the time ends up being faster and incase you don’t make the top two, you have a better shot to be lucky loser.

Are you happy with your result?
KR: I am satisfied that I gave my best effort out there today. The skis weren’t perfect and I’m not a perfect technician in classic. I was aiming for a better result today and I know that if some things had gone a little better I could have skied closer to my goals. Regardless, today will be a great warm up for the team sprint.

Thanks for your time and good luck with rest of the championships
KR: Thanks

Dasha Gaiazova (CAN) 42nd

Sophie Caldwell (USA) 20th

Is this your first Senior Words…?
Sophie Caldwell: This is my first World Champs.

Were you nervous coming into today?
SC: I was a little nervous coming into today but mostly excited. It’s been really fun being a part of the World Champs team and everyone is extremely supportive, making it easy to get excited for the races and forget about some of the nerves.

Sophie Caldwell (USA) © Nordic Focus

How were conditions today – your thoughts on the course and your skis…?
SC: I think the temperature was hovering around freezing and it was lightly snowing when we left our hotel this morning and started again sometime during the heats. The course was pretty hard and long. There was a very big climb out of the start and then a pretty technical 180 degree turn on the ladies course before the finish stretch. I think god tactics were definitely important as well as having skis that kicked up the first climb and carried speed into the finish stretch.

Talk about your quarter final – you skied smart and took over third near the end.
SC: I tried to stay relaxed in my quarter and not panic if I wasn’t in an ideal position. There were a couple places that I was able to move into a good position due to a combination of good tactics and luck! I took the 180 degree turn wide and was able to ski by some people who took it too sharp so I moved myself into 3rd place. Long double pole finishes generally aren’t my strength so I just put my head down and went as hard as possible in my finish stretch and got passed by one person.

What helped you in your heat today to make it into the quarter finals – wax, conditions, preparation?
SC: I was happy with my skis and really excited to be there. We did some good race prep yesterday around the sprint course that definitely helped me get a feel of how it skied while going fast. I barely snuck into the heats, qualifying 30th with some very tight times. Going into the heats I recognized the fact that I could only move up so I just pushed as hard as possible and tried to fight for each place!

How did you prepare for today’s race?
SC: I had been doing quite a bit of racing at the Scando Cups before Davos but since Davos, I’ve kept every ski short in attempt to come into today feeling rested. I felt good today so I think that mini taper worked well!

Are you happy with your result?
SC: I’m very happy with my result! It was the first time I’ve qualified in the top 30 in a classic sprint and I was excited to be able to improve on my qualifying position in the heats.

Good luck with rest of the championships
SC: Thanks