December 5, 2009 (Lillehammer, Nor) – American Johnny Spillaine is off to a great start placing 6th in the HS140/10km on Saturday in Lillehammer, Norway with team mate and NC Worlds gold medalist Bill Demong in 14th ahead of Austrian legend Felix Gottwald back in the mix after a 2-yr absence. Winner Frenchman Jason Lamy-Chappuis, double-bronze medalist at the 2009 Nordic Combined World Championships, led Saturday’s jump portion of the Lillehammer World Cup with a jump of 139m (138.1 points).

His teammate Tino Edelmann tied with Wilhelm Denifl (AUT) for 3rd, 14 seconds back. Spillane (USA) was 7th, starting 27 seconds out of first; Demong was 16th, starting 56 seconds back; Brett Camerota was 29th 1:15 back; Bryan Fletcher, 51st, and Canada’s Wesley Savill (Altius Ski Club) was 65th. Snow was falling during the competition, making for difficult visibility.

At the start of the skate portion, the top 18 competitors were all within a minute of each other, making for a tight, near mass start race. Lamy-Chappuis skied his own race, knowing that strong skaters Petter Tande (NOR) and Frenzel would probably catch him. Sure enough, the podium was decided in a sprint, with the cooler headed Frenchman nipping them at the finish. Lamy-Chappuis also won last weekend’s World Cup and is a favorite to medal in Vancouver. Tande delighted his countrymen with a second place ahead of the trio of Germans – Frenzel, Edelmann and Kircheisen.

Spillane, who had surgery on his knee this summer, moved up a spot, but missed out in a sprint with Bjoern Kircheisen (GER) to finish in 6th, ahead of Jan Schmid (NOR) and Anssi Koivuranta (FIN), while Demong moved up two places to finish 14th, ahead of Felix Gottwald (AUT). Fletcher gained 10 places in the skate and was 41st, Camerota ended up in 56th, while Savill was 62nd.

Full results here.

Results (brief)

1. Jason Lamy Chappuis (Fra) 24:25.9
2. Petter L. Tande (Nor) 24:26.0
3. Eric Frenzel (Ger) 24:27.4

6. Johnny Spillane (USA) 24:39.6
14. Bill Demong (USA) 25:22.3
41. Bryan Fletcher (USA) 27:04.3
56. Brett Camerota (USA) 28:22.1
62. Wesley Savill (Can) 30:44.6