November 15, 2008 (Muonio, Finland) – Day two at the opening FIS races in Muonio, Finland saw hundreds of skiers take to the start line and for many these races are their qualifiers for the upcoming World Cup season. The women competed in a 10km Classic race while the men contested a 15km course. Germany brought a team of World Cup veteran racers and it showed today.

On the women’s side Germany took first and third place with Stefanie Boehler winning in a time of 24:38.31 just 3.25 seconds ahead of Russia’s Olga Rotcheva. Boehler’s teammate Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle was just 7.04 seconds back from the winning time.

In the men’s race Germany placed three skiers in the top five taking 1st, 3rd and 5th spots. Former World Cup overall winner, Tobias Angerer, won with a time of 32:48.09, beating Aivar Rehemaa of Estonia in second with Axel Teichmann in third. Just 2.56 seconds separated second from fifth place. The USA’s Chris Cook was 45th at 1:25 min behind Angerer. The racing was tight today as Cook was only 11 seconds from a top-30 finish.

Complete results for both men’s and women’s races can be found here.

Beitostoelen, Norway

Day two of the FIS Races in Norway mirrored the Muonio races with the women racing 10km and the men 15km classic. Norway’s Marit Bjorgen showed good early season form winning with a time of 27:13.3. She was 13.6 seconds ahead of Norwegian youngsters Marthe Kristoffersen in second and Therese Johaug in third.

The men’s race saw 34-year-old Geir Ludvig Aasen Ouren of Norway take the win with a time of 36:54.8. Finishing just 10.1 seconds behind him was Switzerland’s Toni Livers and in third was another Norwegian, Tore Ruud Hofstad.

For the complete women’s results click here. For the complete men’s results click here.