March 06, 2011 (Oslo, Norway) – The skies remained clear, the temperature was just at the freezing point, the tracks were fast, and the fans were as crazy and fun as ever, as all of Norway prepared for the 50km freestyle race on the final day of the 2011 Nordic World Championships.

After 2 hours, 8 minutes and 9 seconds of top racing, it was the host country’s hero, Petter Northug who skied a smart and patient race for the gold. Of course he did what he always does when he can smell a finish line – he moves into a gear from another planet, flies by all of the competition as if he’s the only one going forward, and creates an insurmountable gap.

This time he did it to Russia’s Maxim Vylegzanin, who settled for the silver at 1.7 seconds back, and teammate Tord Asle Gjerdalen who skied in for the bronze, at 6.3 seconds behind.

Canada’s Alex Harvey had a phenomenal premiere performance at his first senior world championship 50km event scoring a photo-finish for fourth place with Norway’s Sjur Roethe and Germany’s Tobias Angerer.

In the end, the jury awarded Roethe fourth place (at 8 seconds back), Harvey ended up in 5th (at 8.2 seconds behind) and Angerer was 6th with the same time as Harvey. Fellow Canuck Ivan Babikov figured prominently in the race, aggressively breaking away at least twice, and staying at the front of the pack until the decisive break with under 5km to go, finishing in 17th at 50.2 seconds back.

Another fine day was had by American Noah Hoffman at his first world championships, staying with the lead pack until approximately 15km to go when he was dropped during one of the many attacks. The Hoff ended up 30th out of 82 starters at 4:38:7 minutes back – a phenomenal result for such a young skier.

“It was hard, but my energy seemed good. I was pretty psyched with how I felt. I lost a pole and to go up the big hill with one pole, that’s where I started getting dropped,” explained Hoffman in a USSA release. “I feel like there’s a lot more there sometime in the future. Those guys aren’t that fast.”

Teammate Lars Flora finished in 39th at 7:33.4 followed three seconds later by Tad Elliott in 40th at 7:36.8, with Nordic combined strongman, Billy Demong, in 51st at 11:57.9

Chris Grover, U.S. Ski Team XC Head Coach was thrilled with the team’s skiing and Hoffman’s result telling SkiTrax, “We felt that it was a great race for Noah. He has emerged this season as a top distance skier for the US now and in the future. I thought he skied very well for someone at his first WM. Tad and Lars were also very solid and Tad also has many years of development and gaining experience in front of him. Overall I was very impressed by our young skiers in Oslo. We have some big talent emerging. We had 10 different athletes in the top-30 and that bodes well for the future of US skiing.”

But the attention of Scandinavia was most definitely on Northug. This was his third gold and fourth medal overall at this championship. But instead of talking about himself and his race, he talked about the crowd.

“I think today we had a record with so many people. You get a kick with them at Frognerseteren if you are tired going up there,” said Northug at the press conference. Frognerseteren is a section of the trail where thousands of fans have set up tents, with camp fires going, and where a good deal of partying takes place. It has a legendary climb that is said to be the hardest on the World Cup circuit.

“People have been preparing for this race during the night,” said Northug, referring to a party that extended onto the race course well into the wee hours. “But the course was in good shape.”

Northug also paid tribute to his team when asked if the 50km gold meant the most to him of all of his victories. “As an individual yes, but the whole of Norway feels they’re part of the team when we won the relay. For me and the team it’s been a dream.” When asked what might be his highest wish, he added, “I have no wishes; I am happy.”

Russia’s Vylegzhann wasn’t quite as jubilant. “I wanted to win but I got a silver medal which is good,” said Vylegzanin. “I think it is possible to beat Northug. It is a stimulus to me. I want to beat him next time, but I must be better at the finish.”

Vylegzanin said his tactic was “to save as much power as I could – get as much [distance] away from the others and try to finish alone. That did not happen.”

Yet outside of skiing, he said he was impressed with Oslo – with the fans, who made it “very nice to run here in Holmenkollen. I like that.” He added that for his holidays he’d like to return to “…see the city and walk around. I have seen Trondheim and Oslo but only for skiing.”

Bronze medalist Gjerdalen recognized that he was coming off a slower time period and had difficulties training. “But if you do the right thing, and train properly,” he said, “You will get some medals – maybe not gold as it’s hard to beat these guys.”

He explained why he thought he had a good race when the rest of his season had not gone well. “I know I never give up… and others did.” Gjerdalen kept a straight face for most of his delivery as he said he had a plan with the team. “All five Norwegians go hard – maybe get a gap like Therese [Johaug] did – two minutes and split the gold.” When asked if he actually thought that was possible, he broke into a grin and said, “You can write whatever you want.”

Like the other skiers, Gjerdalen paid tribute to the fans. “There were so many people out on the trails – it’s cross-country skiing central here. It was a dream.” He added praise for the whole team and crew. “It was the whole team who won. The waxers too. No other wax team worked so long and so hard. Without them you cannot get a medal.”

The race started out calmly with skiers staying together with a measured pace, eyeing one another for nearly an hour, but at 55 minutes into the race, Italian Roland Clara attacked, gaining 11 seconds on the pack. His lead was short-lived as he was soon caught but Clara remained near the front, pushing the pace.

As the racers went through the feedzone, Babikov was sitting right at the back of his skis, sharing that space with Northug. The Canadian moved up and took the lead but soon after  Sweden’s Marcus Hellner took over. Not far behind Harvey and Hoffman sat a little farther back in the pack.

Hellner was followed by a sea of red suits as Norway surrounded him at 24.5km. Clara was eventually dropped to finish 28th as the attacks began to take their toll. Other  strongmen like Hellner’s teammate Daniel Rickardsson pushed the pace as skiers dropped off the back one by one. By 30km, there was a lead group of 40 with another 39 strung out behind.

This lead group made for constant excitement, especially in the last 15km. The Czech Republic’s Lukas Bauer and Hellner were eager to ensure that this race would not simply be a preliminary bout before Northug unleashed his sprint. They made him work for every kilometre.

The Swedish express of Johan Olsson and Hellner kept the fast pace into the feedzone at 1 hour 26 minutes into the race. Italy’s Pietro Cottrer Pillar was there as well making his presence known. Northug was wary of all and as the transition zone approached, the wily Norwegian surged to the front to again ensure he was free and clear during the important ski exchange.

The racers were back in a group by the next climb. Hellner made another move, followed by Cottrer Piller. The pace increased once more and soon Hellner was out solo with Norway’s Sjur Roethe chasing. Russia’s Ilia Chernousov, who would end up 12th, shadowed them. Babikov and Harvey stayed in with the lead group, skiing comfortably as the attackers never got too far with Northug marking every move.

Such aggressive skiing shrunk the group and by the 40km mark there were 21 skiers in the break strung out 9.1 seconds apart. Among them were Switzerland’s Dario Cologna, Germany’s Tobias Angerer, Canada’s Harvey and Babikov along with Hellner and Northug.

Each climb was one of attrition, but the Canadians kept pace with Harvey in the top eight as Hellner continuing to push.

At the final ski exchange again Northug moved to the front happy to let thing resettle after the transition as Bauer, the Norwegians and the Swedes accelerated the pace out of the stadium. Hellner pushed again while teammates Olsson and Richardsson tried to box in Northug, who was on Hellner’s tail, with Bauer, Harvey and Babikov keeping a watchful eye.

At 44km a decisive break included the entire Swedish team of Hellner, Rickardsson, Olsson, and Soedergren along with Angerer, Harvey, Bauer, Cottrer Piller, Babikov, Northug, Gjerdalen, Petter Eliassen, and Martin Johnsrud Sunby – all five of the Norwegians. Vylegzhanin was there as well along with Finland’s Juha Lallukka, Belarus skier Sergei Dolidovich, Russia’s Chernousov and Martin Bajcicak of Slovakia.

Rickardsson continued the pressure as Cottrer Piller fell off the back with Switzerland’s Cologna who did not have the legs today. It was a war of attrition as Babikov also struggled to maintain the pace of the leaders with only a few kilometers remaining.

Ten skiers entered the stadium and it looked like it may be a group sprint finish which favoured Northug, but Bajcicak fell on a corner and took Johnsrud Sundby with him.

With one kilometre to go Vylegzhanin attacked but Northug, also wary of Harvey, went after him. It was Harvey that Northug felt could be his biggest threat. Gjerdalen, Roethe, Harvey, Angerer and Lallukka followed, but only Gjerdalen could start to close the gap.

Northug was not going to be denied as he counter-attacked the Russian on the final uphill and soon was cruising into the lead on the inside track that would take him into the final stretch to the finish line with a comfortable lead to the delight of the packed partisan crowd in the stadium.

Northug skied in for gold and collapsed as Vylegzanin took silver and Northug’s teammate Gjerdalen earned the bronze. The big sprint was for fourth and it was the photo-finish of Roethe, Harvey and Angerer.

The 22-year-old Harvey of St-Ferréol-les-Neiges, Que., finished just two seconds off the podium. The result was a new Canadian record at an individual World Championship distance race, set 22 years ago by Al Pilcher who was seventh in 1989 in Lahti, Finland.

“This is the toughest course on the World Cup with all of the climbs here. It is almost too much climbing so I’m really happy I was able to hang in there,” said Harvey in a Cross Country Canada release. “I was dreaming of a medal today. There was a chance for me to get one, but I couldn’t do anything more. My legs felt like concrete by the end.

“It was an amazing week. We wanted to get a medal and the gold was unexpected. We will take a lot of confidence from this. We need to focus a lot on the recovery and then if all goes right next weekend [at the WCup in Lahti, Finland], I think we can challenge for the podium again.”

As Northug shook hands with hundreds of admirers and Norwegian King Harald looked on, cross-country skiing in Norway, perhaps the world, had changed forever. The ten-day championships in the heartland of cross-country skiing was a love-in for skiers.

This is the place where it all started some 3,000 years ago, and today that history and the future merged. The Norwegians are talking about Alex Harvey as the skier who will displace Petter Northug. They admire him and teammate Devon Kershaw enormously. The love of the sport in Norway goes beyond national borders – it embraces the world.

Full results HERE.