November 26, 2016 (Ruka, Finland) – Paal Golberg (Nor) took the men’s first win of the season as Canada’s Alex Harvey was the lone North American to make the heats ending up 25th on the day as he just missed out on a Lucky Loser spot to advance to the semi finals.

Calle Halfvarsson from Sweden was second grabbing his first ever World Cup podium in a classic sprint. Meanwhile rising young Norwegian star Johannes Klaebo, captured his first ever World Cup podium. Golberg was a replacement for Petter Northug Jr and Klaebo replaced Eirik Brandsdal who is sick.

“I was surprise to see that I was the only men from NA to make it in but in the other hand, Kuusamo is always very competitive with skiers from the big nation racing for a start during period 1,” commented Harvey. “The first race is always the most stressful, so today was no different. The fresh snow overnight made it even more stressful for ski testing but we made the right pick.

“Conditions were hard for everybody, it snowed overnight and then some more during the day so you had to sacrifice the kick a little bit if you wanted skis running super fast. It made the last hill very challenging but everybody was in the same boat there. Plan is to race tomorrow, get close to or even back in the top 10. 15km classic is more Devon’s favorite than mine but I did have a few good ones in this event so I’m looking forward to it,” he added.

US speed king Andy Newell was a surprise miss qualifying 40th as fellow top sprinter Simi Hamilton is ill and did not start so the American team came up shy today for the men.

“Yes it was unexpected for me not to make the top 30 today. I felt pretty decent but then again have not done any maximal efforts in about two weeks because of my elbow infection so it was hard to tell. I think it was a combination of being a little flat and also dragging a little too much kick wax around the course. I will feel things out tomorrow and see how it goes,” Newell told Trax by email.

Fellow American Erik Bjornsen was just behind Newell in 42nd while Len Valjas from Canada was 54th with Canuck Devon Kershaw 63rd, Knute Johnsgaard (Can) 69th, Eric Packer (USA) 78th, Bob Thompson (Can) was 80th, Jesse Cockney (Can) was 83rd and Andy Shields was 91st.

“Finishing 25th definitely leaves me wanting more, but Kuusamo is always a really competitive field. I believe it is one of the deepest on the circuit with lots of guys fighting to just get a start next week. There is no room for error here and the difference between moving on to the next rounds is so small. It is so tight out here,” said the 28-year-old Harvey.

“The goal was obviously to go much further in the rounds, but I think it was positive to just make it in the qualifier,” said Harvey. “The skis were great and really fast today. Heavy snow overnight made it challenging for everyone to find the right skis. We went with really light kick in the qualifier and took it to the limit with getting up that final steep hill to the finish. We went with a little more grip in the heats for the hills. It was a tiny bit slower, but we knew I could draft the downhills. I was much stronger up the hills, and had a really strong finish, but just not quite enough.”

Canadian Coach Ivan Babikov commented, “It’s a sprint, can’t be surprised about anything, it’s so short and fast, if you make one mistake, you might not go through. So many variables, so many things that you can’t control sometimes.

Meanwhile Harvey believes his shape is there. “It is an improvement from last year when I didn’t qualify here so overall it is a step in the right direction. Sometimes sprinting for me before Christmas is hit and miss. Distance races are all about endurance whereas the sprint is power and speed. With the depth in the field if you are one or two seconds slow you don’t qualify because it is so competitive. Every athlete is different, but sometimes it takes a bit for me to get in that top form. The great news is my shape is there and I have a lot to take away from today,” he added.

We wondered how Babikov felt being on the other side of the fence as the former national team member is in his first coaching role with the team.

“It’s quite different as you can imagine, being on the sideline and watch them compete. Not only that, I would call it working behind the scene, there is a LOT of work happening before and after athletes race. Lots of things to prepare, test, think about, make sure everything is ready. But I really love it,” Babikov shared with Trax.

So was he nervous at the World Cup opener? “Honestly, today we were so busy, I just didn’t  have time to be nervous. Conditions were quite rough, that fresh overnight snow just made it very complicated for the athletes to adjust, especially to the kick part. Very different from a day before, that I think threw some athletes off.”

What’s the plan for Sunday? “The plan is to have a “better” race day tomorrow,” quipped Babikov.

Men’s Qualification here.
Men’s Final here.