February 22, 2012 (Erzurum, Turkey) – Canada’s Dahria Beatty and Janelle Greer, both of Whitehorse, cracked the top 30 in Wednesday’s women’s 5km classic race at the Junior World Championships in Erzurum, Turkey. Beatty finished the race in 25th and just over a minute back of the winner, Russia’s Natalia Zhukova. Greer was close behind Beatty in 28th. Also racing for Canada were Anne-Marie Comeau (39th) and Emilie Stewart-Jones (42).
The USA contingent consisted of three skiers in this morning’s race including Corey Stock (40th), Mary O’Connell (54th), and Stephanie Kirk (61st). Emily Hannah did not start.
In the men’s race, which was won by Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov, Canada’s Alexis Turgeon posted the top North American result finishing in 33rd place, followed closely by the USA’s Logan Hanneman in 35th. Also suiting up for the USA were Will Wicherski (61st), Michael Vigers (68th), and Cole Morgan (78th).
Canada’s Geoffrey Richards (41st) and Knute Johnsgaard (73rd) also raced today.
Full women’s results HERE.
Full men’s results HERE.
February 22, 2012 (West Yellowstone, MT) – Snow is falling in West Yellowstone, Montana, and skiers of all ages are invited to participate in the 33rd annual Yellowstone Rendezvous Race on March 3, 2012. Race organizers have been busy marking the course and making final preparations for the event. The skiing has been great all winter.
Part of the American Ski Marathon Series, the Yellowstone Rendezvous Race is a cornerstone of cross-country skiing in West Yellowstone. Join hundreds of ski enthusiasts in this historic race. This year the race is proud to once again have Yellowstone National Park Lodges as its corporate sponsor. There are six different race divisions offered for skiers of all ages. Marathoners can enter the 50 kilometer freestyle race, which consists of two laps around the perimeter of the Rendezvous Ski Trail system. Racers can enter the 25 kilometer classic or freestyle events, and the 10 kilometer race is a great choice for those preferring a shorter distance. The 5k and 2k races are geared for kids.
Register before February 27th to save on entry. Race registration deadline is Thursday March 1st at 12 noon. Please visit www.rendezvousrace.com for more information, and find us on facebook for the latest updates on the race.
On Sunday, March 4th, the West Yellowstone Ski Education Foundation will host their annual Youth Ski Festival where kids 13 and under can participate in a variety of ski games including relays, musical chairs and more! Bring the family and experience winter this year. Day-of registration. Please visit www.rendezvousskitrials.com for more information.
February 21, 2012 (Madison, WI) – Last weekend, CXC hosted the USSA SuperTour in Madison, WI, as part of the Madison Winter Festival. Saturday saw some of the top U.S. skiers contest a Classic Sprint competition, while Sunday was all about the USSA SuperTour Free Sprints. Natalia Naryshkina (CXC) and Jari Joutsen cleaned up in the women’s and men’s classic competition, while Sunday saw Jennie Bender (CXC) and Philip Furrer take top honours in the freestyle sprints on a 1km course under sunny skies.
February 21, 2012 (Erzurum, Turkey) – The 2012 Junior/U23 World Championships kicked off in Erzurum, Turkey on Monday with freestyle sprints for the Juniors. Canada’s Janelle Greer of Whitehorse, YK, led a youthful contingent of North Americans, finishing 28th in the women’s skate-sprint event. After finishing 26th in the qualification run, Greer was eliminated in her quarterfinal heat.
No other Canadian or American athletes qualified for the heats. This was Greer’s third trip to the Junior Worlds as Sweden’s Stina Nilsson won the women’s sprint.
Also representing Canada in the women’s event were Dahria Beatty (48th), Emilie Stewart-Jones (55th), and Anne-Marie Comeau (57th), all of whom are among the youngest competitors in the race.
Canada’s Alexis Turgeon narrowly missed qualifying in the men’s sprint placing 33rd in qualification. Teammates Knute Johnsgaard and Geoffrey Richards were 51st and 52nd respectively. Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov won the men’s gold.
“We are a very young team and there is a huge learning curve for these athletes,” said national team coach, Eric de Nys, in team release. “These athletes are skiing at altitude for the first time, which is a whole new experience. These are the best athletes in Canada for their age, and for some it is the first time they’re racing against the top athletes in the world, so they also learn it is time to get their work boots on.”
Eight American athletes also competed in the Monday’s junior sprints, although none qualified for the heats. Competing in the women’s event were Corey Stock (41st), Emily Hannah (49), Stephanie Kirk (51st) and Mary O’Connel (58th). Reese Hanneman narrowly missed the heats, qualifying in 34th position, followed by teammates Cole Morgan (35th), Will Wicherski (72nd) and Forrest Mahlen (87th).
Women’s Qualifications HERE.
Men’s Qualifications HERE.
Women’s final results HERE.
Men’s final results HERE.
February 21, 2012 (Kontiolahti, Finland) – The IBU World Junior Championships got underway in Finland yesterday and Canada’s Julia Ransom led all North Americans with an eighth-place finish in the Youth Women’s 10km Individual competition. The 19-year-old Ransom, from Kelowna, B.C., missed only three shots in four rounds of shooting, and finished with a time of 41:38.1.
Germany’s Julia Bartolmaes captured the first gold medal while Galina Vishnevskaya of Kazakhstan won the silver medal, with Norway’s Hilde Fenne grabbing the bronze.
Three other Canadians and three American women also hit the start line. Anna Kubek (USA) was 30th while Sarah Beudry (CAN) was 33rd; Tara Geraghty-Moats (USA) placed 44th, while Rose-Marie Cote (CAN) finished in 47th place. Erin Oliver-Beebe (CAN) finished in 50th, with Melissa Manning (USA) and Mikaela Paluszek (USA) finishing up in 58th and 72nd place, respectively.
Youth Men 12.5 km Individual Pursuit
France’s Aristide Begne missed just one shot on his way to gold ahead of Maksim Romanouski from Belarus, with the Ukraine’s Artem Tyshchenko finishing in the bronze medal position.
Calgary’s Christian Gow led the North American men in the 12.5-kilometre individual pursuit competition. The 18-year-old missed one shot in each of his four bouts on the range to finish in 11th overall.
Following Gow was Sean Doherty (USA) and Samuel Dougherty (USA), finishing in 26th and 28th position. Canadians Albert Bouchard, Stuart Harden, and Carsen Campbell finished mid-back (36th, 38th, and 41st place), while Nicholas Proell (USA) finished 55th and Jacob Prince (USA) ended up in 83rd place.
February 20, 2012 (Toronto, ON) – We are pleased to announce the standings for the SkiTrax Fantasy FIS Marathon Cup 2011/12 International Contest after the the 76km FT La Transjurassienne in France. The inaugural FIS Marathon Cup contest is proving to be exciting, with leads swapping weekly and no clear leader pulling away. It’s still anyone’s competition! Team legrandbo has assumed the lead with 428 points and is followed by anty ski in second with 418 points. Team Broken Poles is in third place with 399 points. Note the maximum number of available points after La Transjurassienne is 571.
View the full contest standings after La Transjurassienne HERE.
Stay tuned for contest standings after the next event on the FIS Marathon Cup calendar, the 63km Tartu Maraton in Estonia, held this past weekend. And note you may be eligible for bonus points from the Gatineau Loppet held this weekend as well.
FIS Fantasy Marathon Cup Prizes
* 1st Prize – OneWay Premio 10 WCup Skis, Diamond Storm Premio 10 Poles, SNS Premio Pilot Bindings. (value $1,350) * 2nd Prize – Nipika 4-nights for 2 people in luxurious cabin, including Trail Fees (value up to $1,160)
* 3rd Prize – Alpina ESK Ski Boots (value $449) * 4th Prize–Halti XC Race Suit Hemmo Set (value $269) * 5th Prize – Fischer RCS QF poles (value $225) * 6th Prize – Cross Country Canada e-Store Gift Certificate (value $200) * 7th Prize – Fresh Air Experience or High Peaks Cyclery Gift Certificate (value $150) * 8th Prize – Rottefella Xcelerator Skate/Classic Bindings (value $120) * 9th Prize – Auclair Micro Mountain Olympic Gloves + Earbags (value $65) * 10th Prize – Buff Headware (value $40)
Thanks to all of our great sponsors, including One Way, Nipika, Alpina, Halti, Fischer, Cross Country Canada, Fresh Air Experience, High Peaks Cyclery, Rottefella, Auclair, and Buff.
SkiTrax is North America’s leading Nordic skiing publication and the official magazine of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) and Cross Country Canada (CCC).
February 16, 2012 – Russell Currier, 24, a rising star on the US men’s biathlon squad, surprised even himself when he scored a career-best sixth place in the 10k sprint at the IBU Cup in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic last month – read more HERE. He then proved he could do it again when he matched his sixth place in Kontiolahti, Finland last weekend. It was an historic day for the entire US squad, with the team’s best showing ever in a World Cup. Lowell Bailey finished 5th, while Tim Burke placed 13th and Jay Hakkinen was 16th. SkiTrax caught up with Currier after his breakthrough results and here’s what he had to say:
The coaches and I had no idea what to expect out of the sprint race on Saturday. I came down with what I think was food poisoning the day before and wasn’t even sure if I should race. I didn’t feel 100% Saturday morning, but I was close, and with the way shooting and ski speed had been going lately, I made the call and decided to go for it.
I like the course profile in Kontiolahti. It’s very basic and has a good variety of climbs. The -15 Celsius weather wasn’t as fun. I’m not a fan of racing in a buff or with tape on the face, but I didn’t have much choice in the sprint race.
My shooting has felt good the past couple of weeks. Our coach and I worked on bringing my range times down a little bit. I was able to shave off a few seconds for the race on Saturday, which ended up making a huge difference.
Ski speed felt decent considering I had to duck out of the mixed relay the day before. I don’t know what food it was, but this is not the first time this has happened to me in Finland. I didn’t have anyone that I knew was fast around me. All I could do was break the course down into increments and do each one as best as I could. On the last loop, I only had a few splits. Hearing that I was in the top eight helped get me through the last flat section before the finish.
The whole race felt surreal. My goal was to get in the top 40. With the way I had been feeling the day before, I was just hoping to make the top 60 for a pursuit start. The whole day for the men’s team was a tremendous success. It was officially the best day the US men had ever had. I was honored to be able to say that I was part of it.
The pursuit was another good day for our team. I moved down to 23rd, but it was still a good race for me. Prone was decent with one in each stage. I would have liked to have shot a little better in standing, but I wasn’t the only one struggling with shooting that day. Pacing and tactics were much more professional in Sunday’s pursuit than the pursuit in Nove Mesto. My legs felt a little heavy and stiff so I was very surprised when I found out afterwords that I had the 10th fastest ski time.
The IBU Cup field is more competitive than ever. You could say the same thing about the WC field to, but the IBU field has taken the biggest increase the past couple of years. Biathlon is such an up and down sport it’s not always fair to compare results from day to day. I can finish a race and give a better analysis of how it went than the result list can. I’ve had a few mediocre days on the IBU and WCup circuit this season. The sprint race in Kontiolahti was just one of the very good days.
Both races this past weekend were a confidence boost for the athletes and staff. We’re not working any less hard or professionally than the Euros. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t be up on the result list. The weekend was simply a good example of this and our organization as a team.
February 15, 2012 (Toronto, ON) – We are pleased to announce that team modification is now open for the FIS Fantasy Marathon Cup 2011/12 Contest – the twist. Contestants can modify their team until Feb. 18 at 10pm EST prior to the 63km CL Tartu Maraton in Estonia on Feb. 19.
Contestants may only swap one of their team’s four main skiers – either male or female – not their Outlaw Skier. All points earned to date by the skier that’s out are retained, and only points earned by the new skier from Feb. 18 going forward will be counted.
Note: you only have one chance to make the swap – once completed you will not be able to change your selection so please be sure of your choice before making the change.
* 1st Prize – OneWay Premio 10 WCup Skis, Diamond Storm Premio 10 Poles, SNS Premio Pilot Bindings. (value $1,350) * 2nd Prize – Nipika 4-nights for 2 people in luxurious cabin, including Trail Fees (value up to $1,160)
* 3rd Prize – Alpina ESK Ski Boots (value $449) * 4th Prize–Halti XC Race Suit Hemmo Set (value $269) * 5th Prize – Fischer RCS QF poles (value $225) * 6th Prize – Cross Country Canada e-Store Gift Certificate (value $200) * 7th Prize – Fresh Air Experience or High Peaks Cyclery Gift Certificate (value $150) * 8th Prize – Rottefella Xcelerator Skate/Classic Bindings (value $120) * 9th Prize – Auclair Micro Mountain Olympic Gloves + Earbags (value $65) * 10th Prize – Buff Headware (value $40)
Thanks to all of our great sponsors, including One Way, Nipika, Alpina, Halti, Fischer, Cross Country Canada, Fresh Air Experience, High Peaks Cyclery, Rottefella, Auclair, and Buff.
SkiTrax is North America’s leading Nordic skiing publication and the official magazine of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) and Cross Country Canada (CCC).
February 13, 2012 (Edmonton, AB) – Check out this video, featured on edmontonjournal.com, from the 55km Canadian Birkebeiner race and ski festival was held this past weekend in Edmonton. Barret Dunbar of Saskatoon won the full distancerace with a pack, while Wietske Eikelenboom of St. Albert won the women’s race. Full results HERE.
February 10, 2012 (Anchorage/Girdwood, AK) – Top-ranked Utah sits in familiar position atop the team standings after the first day of the Seawolf Invitational. But it was anything but a normal day on the hill for the RMISA schools here at Kincaid Park (Nordic) and Alyeska Ski Resort (alpine).
In a day where the Nordic and alpine teams competed a mere 40 miles from each other, the conditions could’ve have been more opposite. The Nordic freestyle races were held under ideal conditions while the giant slalom races were cancelled due to poor snow conditions.
Rain throughout the day Wednesday and mild temperatures overnight left about a six inch crust of hard snow at the Alyeska Ski Resort and conditions worsened throughout the day. The women completed one run and the men made it through about 20 skiers before race officials cancelled the remainder of the first run and both second runs.
Because the first run of the women’s race was completed, it will count as a race both for team scoring and NCAA qualification purposes. Because the men’s race was cancelled before the first run was complete, for the scoring of the Seawolf Invitational, Saturday’s slalom race will be doubled.
Utah’s Jamie Dupratt became the fifth different skier to win a GS race wih her first run time of 1:03.00. She beat out Alaska Anchorage’s Anais Urbain, who took second in a time of 1:03.44. Utah racked up 135 out of a possible 141 points by then finishing third and fourth as Julie Bordeau took third in 1:03.73 and Tii-Maria Romar fourth in 1:03.81. Colorado’s Erika Ghent rounded out the top five in a time of 1:03.87.
Utah’s 135 points topped host Alaska Anchorage’s total of 115 as the only two teams in triple digits. New Mexico (89), Colorado (86) and Denver (82) were all then within seven points while Montana State (73) edged out Westminster College (71) by two points.
Meanwhile in Anchorage, the women’s 5K interval start freestyle race started the days action and Colorado won the race impressively taking the top two spots individually. Eliska Hajkova won by 20 seconds over her teammate Joanne Reid with a time of 13:52.5 compared to Reid’s clocking of 14:12.8. Reid edged out UAA’s Jaime Bronga by six seconds as her time of 14:18.8 closed out the podium finishers. New Mexico’s Clara Chauvet (14:21.5) finished fourth while Utah’s Maria Graefnings rounded out the top five in a time of 14:30.6.
The Buffs tallied 120 points while Utah (105) and New Mexico (103) both hit triple digits and Alaska (98) just missed the mark. Montana State (90) and Denver (75) rounded out the team scoring.
On the men’s side in the 10K freestyle race, Montana State’s David Norris completed a successful double loop of the course in a time of 24:28.6, topping Colorado’s Rune Oedegaard by about 14 seconds (24:42.5). Oedegaard edged out Utah’s Miles Havlick, who closed out the podium in a time of 24:47.5. Denver’s Andrew Dougherty finished fourth in 25:12.9 with Montana State’s earning fith place in a time of 25:19.1.
Montana State edged Utah in the team scoring for the race, 119-116, with Colorado (107) right on their heels. Denver (92), UAA (84) and New Mexico (73) rounded out the team scoring.
In a meeting of alpine coaches after the conclusion of the crazy day, it was decided that an extra qualifier race will take place in Montana ahead of the RMISA Championships. The men will get a make-up race while the women will earn a seventh race to help qualify for NCAA Championships.
The schedule in Montana will now begin on Wednesday, February 22, with slalom races that were originally scheduled for the following day. Those RMISA Qualifier races along with Thursday’s giant slalom make up races will both be FIS-U sanctioned. The RMISA Championships will then begin Friday with giant slalom races and conclude Saturday with slalom races. The RMISA Championships are not an FIS-U race but are sanctioned by the USSA.
February 09, 2012 (Toronto, ON) – The Viessmann FIS XC World Cup featured a Russian extravaganza last week with an exciting midweek sprint event in Moscow, followed by another World Cup weekend. It was a momentous week for Canada’s Devon Kershaw, who took home bronze in Moscow and GOLD in Rybinsk. Read the stories HERE and HERE.
Siggy’s Speedsters still has a hold on the SkiTrax FIS Fantasy WCup 2011/12 Contest lead with 1,097 points, but Team daviking has moved from third into a close second with 1092 points, bumping 3LIT3 into third and a mere three points back.
For the complete FIS WCup Fantasy Contest standings after Moscow and Rybinsk click HERE.
SkiTrax Fantasy FIS World Cup 2011/12 Contest Prizes * 1st Prize – Fischer 11/12 Carbonlite Hole Skis, Xcelerator Bindings, Carbonlite Poles (value $1,100) * 2nd Prize – SkiGo Carbon 780 Roller Skis (value $580)
* 3rd Prize – Alpina ESK Ski Boots (value $449) * 4th Prize – Bjorn Daehlie Exclusive US XC Ski Suit (value $300) * 5th Prize – Sporthill XC Pants/Tights and Glacier Top (value $220) * 6th Prize – Fresh Air Experience or High Peaks Cyclery Gift Certificate (value $150) * 7th Prize – Bliz Proflip Visor (value $129) * 8th Prize – Rottefella Xcelerator Skate/Classic Bindings (value $120)
* 9th Prize – Concept2 Goodie Duffle Bag (value $100) * 10th Prize – Auclair Micro Mountain Olympic Gloves + Earbags (value $65) * WCup Break – Buff Headware (value $23) to top 3 contest leaders before the Tour de Ski
Thanks to all of our great sponsors, including Fischer, SkiGo, Alpina, Bjorn Daehlie Clothing, Sporthill, Fresh Air Experience, High Peaks Cyclery, Rottefella, Bliz, Concept 2, Auclair, and Buff.
SkiTrax is North America’s leading Nordic skiing publication and the official magazine of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) and Cross Country Canada (CCC).
February 06, 2012 (Minneapolis, MN) – The City of Lakes Loppet on Sunday drew nearly 600 racers, despite an organizer’s nightmare that forced relocation of the event just one week before the date. Because recent snowfall weakened the ice resulting in puddles on the original Chain of Lakes route, the event was moved to a man-made snow loop in Theodore Wirth Park in north Minneapolis.
After snatching the men’s victory at the Boulder Mountain Tour in Idaho on Saturday, Matthew Liebsch (Team Strongheart/Team Birkie) continued his winning streak the following day in the freestyle discipline at the City of Lakes Loppet in Minneapolis, finishing the 17km race in a time of 37:06, with second place, Brian Gregg (CXC) right on his tail in second, only one second behind. Eric Wolcott placed third with a finishing time of 38:33.
Caitlin Gregg (CXC) took home the women’s title in a time of 40:32 with more than two minutes to spare over her teammate in second place, Jennie Bender. Natalia Yakimova picked up the final podium spot for third place.
February 06, 2012 (Stowe, VT) – Dartmouth College all but locked up the overall win at the UVM Carnival on Day 2 (Sat., Feb. 4) with a plethora of top-10 results across all disciplines at both Stowe Mountain Resort and the Trapp Family Lodge. The Big Green leads with 675 points, UNH is second with 558.5 and Middlebury sits third with 538. Vermont, competing with a shortened alpine roster, is fourth with 493 points, but team position changes beyond the win are expected tomorrow when the carnival concludes with the freestyle Nordic races.
In the women’s 5k classic at the Trapp Family Lodge, Dartmouth’s Sophie Caldwell took the win and her teammate Annie Hart was third. Caitlin Patterson of UVM squeezed between them for second. The third scoring skier for Dartmouth was Erika flowers in seventh, ensuring the team win. Middlebury Panther Patrick Johnson secured his second victory of the season today in the men’s 10k classic. Dartmouth’s Sam Tarling was second and UVM’s Franz Bernstein was third. Big Green skiers Eric Packer and Gordon Vermeer added critical team points in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Day 3
It was a picturesque bluebird day at the Trapp Family Lodge Sunday (Feb. 5) where Dartmouth claimed the overall win at the UVM Carnival with 916 points. On an impressive Nordic performance, Vermont rebounded from fourth place the previous day to finish in second with 735 points. Middlebury was a scant six points behind in third.
Vermont’s Caitlin Patterson, whose last win came in the opening freestyle race at the Bates Carnival, grew weary of numerous second place finishes since and skated to victory in the UVM Carnival women’s 10k freestyle race. “Sophie’s [Caldwell] had the past three wins, so I wanted to come back with a reply. When I got here I was extremely excited just to ski, let alone race, because of the great atmosphere and our team energy.” Caldwell of Dartmouth was second, her teammate Erika Flowers was third, and Catamount Lucy Garrec was fourth. The UVM women’s positive energy enabled them to best the Big Green in team scoring for the race.
Middlebury’s Patrick Johnson, the story of the weekend, skated to his second win of the carnival by a noteworthy forty-two second margin over Dartmouth’s Sam Tarling. Johnson noted, “Every race right now, I feel like I have a good chance to win. This course has a long uphill finish, and I was definitely really tired at that point which means I was able to put everything out there.” His fellow scoring Panthers finished eighth and eleventh. Franz Bernstein of UVM was third and his teammate Alexander Howe was fourth.
Final team scores at the conclusion of the UVM Carnival:
1. Dartmouth College – 916
2. University of Vermont – 735
3. Middlebury College – 729
4. University of New Hampshire – 698
5. Bates College – 534
6. Williams College – 512
7. Colby College – 576
8. St. Lawrence University – 441
9. Harvard University – 357
10. St. Michael’s College – 300
11. Plymouth State University – 213
12. Bowdoin College – 137.5
13. Boston College – 111.5
14. Colby-Sawyer College – 106
15. University of Maine Presque Isle – 72
January 31, 2012 (Cable, WI) – Canada’s Chris Klebl skied to his second-straight silver medal at the IPC Cross-Country Skiing World Cup in Cable, Wisconsin on Monday in the Men’s 10k sit ski race.
The 40-year-old Klebl, of Canmore, Alta., powered his way around the challenging Wisconsin track – site of the famous American Birkebeiner ski race – to finish in second spot with a time of 33 minutes, 26.7 seconds on the 10-kilometre course.
“It was a good day and we had really good skis,” said Klebl, who added the conditions were windy and cold.
Klebl joined the Canadian squad after moving to Canmore, Alta., last year from the United States. Growing up in Austria, he became paralyzed from the waist down in 1995 in a snowboarding accident. The two-time Paralympian started competing in cross-country skiing in 2005, and finished fourth overall on the World Cup in 2011 with one World Cup bronze medal.
It was just the second race of the season for the 2011 World Champion since breaking his leg in November.
While his quick comeback to top form is nothing short of stellar, Klebl was no match for Russia’s Roman Petushkov who finished nearly 90 seconds ahead of the Canuck with a time of 33:26.7.
“Petushkov was in a league of his own today, but fortunately I maintained the gap and opened the lead throughout on the third place,” said Klebl, who only had one informal race against friends in Colorado this season to measure his fitness. “You just never really know where you’re at. When the injury happened I was super fit and having surgery instead of a cast was a bonus because I only lost 10 real days of training.”
Italy’s Enzo Masiello was third at 33:59.0.
Two Quebec-based Canadians were also in the men’s sit-ski race. Sebastien Fortier was 14th at 37:56.4, while Yves Bourques finished 18th (42:35.2).
The U.S. squad was led by Daniel Cnossen, who finished seventh in a time of 35:11.5. His teammates, Andrew Soule and Jeremy Wagner finished 15th and 16th, while Eric Frazier, Jose Augusto Perez, Ken Lacombe, Robert Ackerman, John Kremer, and Dan Santos finished 19th through 24th, respectively.
Women
Saskatoon’s Colette Bourgonje was the top Canadian in the women’s five-kilometre sit-ski event. The legendary Paralympian finished sixth at 22:46.5 – three minutes, 31 seconds off the golden pace set by Norway’s Mariann Marthinsen (19:19.2).
Alicia Brelsford Dana (USA) led Team USA in ninth place, with fellow Americans Christina Kouros and Micayla Briere in 11th and 14th spots.
Quebec’s Christine Gauthier was 10th at 31:11.1, while Ontario’s Christy Campbell placed 13th with a time of 35:47.2.
Men’s 10k sit ski results HERE.
Women’s 5k sit ski results HERE.
Other Canadian results on Monday included: Ontario’s Caroline Bisson was fifth (21:08.5) and Erica Noonan sixth (21:47.2) in the women’s five-kilometre standing category; Mark Arendz, of Springton, P.E.I., was 13th (31:37.2), and Louis Fortin, of New Brunswick, 21st (39:53.3) in the men’s 10-kilometre standing division; while Ontario’s Margarita Gorbounova and guide Brian Berry placed sixth at 19:22.4 in the women’s visually impaired division.
January 31, 2012 (Brezno-Osrblie, Slovakia) – Russia’s Alexey Volkov only missed one shot in the Men’s 12.5k Pursuit at the IBU Open European Championships that run Jan. 27-Feb. 2 in Slovakia to secure the win in a time of 31:48.0, +16.2 faster than second place, Serhiy Semenov (UKR). Daniel Bohm (GER) finished a further +2.3 back for the bronze medal. The top three only received one shooting penalty each.
The race within the race, however, was headlined by USA’s Leif Nordgren, who stormed from a 45th-place starting position to finish a phenomenal 21st, logging a time of 35:01.6 with only two shooting penalties. Team mate Russell Currier (USA) finished an impressive 24th despite a whopping five penalties. Mark Johnson (USA) finished 44th with two missed shots and a time of 37:39.9. No Canadian men competed.
January 26, 2012 (Minneapolis, MN) – Skiers have reached the midpoint of the 5-stage Tour De Twin Cities. On Wednesday evening, racers contested a prologue skate sprint under the lights at Wirth Park. The 1.4 kilometer course started on the high point of Wirth, gradually descended 60 feet, and then climbed back to the top.
With temperatures sitting right around 32 degrees, the man-made snow transformed to the point of being lightning fast. From the side of the course, it was apparent that some athletes were struggling to find the line between skiing with power versus slipping into a frantic tempo. The results confirmed a fast course: the top four male athletes finished within the same second, and the top three women were split by only one second.
The men’s race saw three new athletes on the podium. Tim Reynolds (Craftsbury Green Racing Team) took the win and the $250 bonus awarded to the sprint winner. Second and third went to Patrick O’Brien (Craftsbury) and Mark Iverson (APUNSC). Just 8 tenths of a second out of the win, and 1 hundredth of a second behind Iverson. Samuel Naney (Methow Olympic Development/Madshus) was oh-so-close to the podium in fourth.
On the women’s side, Jennie Bender (CXC) recorded the win and claimed the $250 bonus. With the overall victory in mind, Bender says, “I am in a little bit better position for this weekend.” Second place went to Lauren Fritz (APUNSC), and Caitlin Gregg (CXC) was third.
This was the last Minneapolis event of the Tour, as the races move to the St. Paul area for next weekend’s final events. With three races complete, Team Strong Heart’s Matt Liebsch (fifth in the sprint) has a solid lead in the overall classification with Sylvan Ellefson (SSC Vail) 19 points behind. After her win, Jennie Bender has the lead in the overall classification by just 4 points over Caitlin Gregg.
January 24, 2012 (Rumford, ME) – The EISA season kicked off with the Bates Carnival from Jan. 20-21. The alpine races were contested at Sunday River in Newry, Maine, while the Nordic events were held at Black Mountain in Rumford, Maine.
Day 1
EISA schools patiently awaited the start of Carnival races over the past few weeks. When racing finally kicked off today (Jan. 20) with the Bates College Carnival at Sunday River and Black Mountain in Maine, the University of Vermont could not be thwarted.
On the opening day of the Bates Carnival, Vermont didn’t just fire the missiles; they launched the nukes. Of a total twelve podium spots up for grabs, Catamount racers locked up eight and scored a head-turning 531 points.
Lucy Garrec (UVM) won the women’s 5km freestyle race and was joined on the podium by teammate Caitlin Patterson. It was Garrec’s first collegiate freestyle victory, and after the race she noted, “I felt like the [5km freestyle] course suited me and allowed me to be light and quick.” Sophie Caldwell of Dartmouth finished third. The Bates women made an impressive move into third place with solid results from Beth Taylor, sixth, and Hallie Grossman, eleventh.
The Big Green retaliated in the men’s 10km freestyle race when Sam Tarling took second, Eric Packer third, and Gordon Vermeer fourth for Dartmouth. Race winner Patrick Johnson has returned to his Middlebury team with evidenced strength this season, and Vermont’s Franz Bernstein found the podium in third.
Day 2
Led by a second alpine podium sweep in the men’s races on Saturday (Jan. 21), the University of Vermont extended its convincing lead to take a noteworthy win at the Bates Carnival. The Catamounts once again broke the 1000-point mark, tallying 1004 total points over runner-up Dartmouth who posted 837. Middlebury was third with 699.
Two areas of weakness for the Catamounts were capitalized upon by other teams. In the men’s 10k classic at Black Mountain, Eric Packer of Dartmouth timed his decisive break perfectly in the final kilometer to secure the victory. He noted that his coach’s specific training plan leading into the season was beneficial, “Ruff [Patterson] frequently had us do head-to-head intervals to mimic the chaos of mass start racing, and that type of workout really paid off today in the hectic, short distance mass start.” He was flanked on the podium by Vermont’s Franz Bernstein in second and Middlebury standout Patrick Johnson in third.
The women’s 10k classic leader board developed predictably with UVM and Dartmouth duking it out in alternating fashion. Vermont’s Caitlin Patterson returned to her familiar spot in the winner’s column while fellow Catamounts Amy Glen and Lucy Garrec finished second and fourth, respectively. Dartmouth’s Sophie Caldwell snagged third and the Big Green placed its other two scoring racers, Anne Hart and Isabel Caldwell, well inside the top 10.
EISA action continues Jan. 27-28 with the University of New Hampshire Carnival at Attitash Mountain Resort and the Jackson XC Center.
Final team scores at the conclusion of the Bates Carnival:
University of Vermont – 1004
Dartmouth College – 837
Middlebury College – 699
Results HERE.
Full breakdown of team scores available HERE.
January 20, 2012 (Innsbruck, Austria) – The second xc-ski event of the Youth Olympic Games – a skate sprint – took place on Thursday at Seefeld, Austria. Canada’s Maya MacIssac-Jones qualified 15th behind Silje Theodorsen of Norway, to move on to the quarterfinals in the women’s competition.
In the third quarterfinal, MacIssac-Jones was drawn against the #5 and #6 qualifiers from Austria and Switzerland and Chun Ma from China, who had qualified only 0.3s back of MacIssac-Jones. MacIssac-Jones qualified for the semis quite comfortably in first, with Nadine Faehndrich of Switzerland 0.3s back in second, well ahead of the rest of the pack.
Racing in the second semifinal, MacIssac-Jones finished fourth, at 4 seconds off the pace of Jonna Sundling of Sweden. At this point, it was unclear if the gap was due to a fall or other issue on the course. Sundling ended up second behind Theodorson of Norway. MacIsaac-Jones finished a strong eighth overall.
Team USA’s Heather Mooney qualified for the quarterfinal, but did not advance and finished 24th.
In the men’s event, USA’s Patrick Caldwell landed a fantastic fifth place in the final, after he placed 18th in the qualifier. In the quarterfinal, Caldwell placed fifth for one of the lucky loser spots and just squeaked through to the semi’s. He repeated his good fortune in the semi’s to make the final, where he grabbed his top-five result.
Canada’s Matthew Saurette was 23rd in men’s qualifying, as Norwegian Andreas Molden was the top men’s qualifier. Saurette skied in the 5th and last quarterfinal for the men, with Chrisander Holth from Norway, the #3 qualifier, and Caldwell. Marcus Ruus from Sweden won the heat with Saurette finishing a bit back at the tail end of the pack. It was a fast heat, allowing both Holth and Caldwell to qualify for the semis as the “lucky losers”.
The men’s race was won by Molden. Saurette ended up 29th overall.
January 20, 2012 (Gatineau, QC) – With just one month to go to the Gatineau Loppet, ski conditions are excellent in the Gatineau Park, with a good snow base on 94% of the trails. Numerous skiers have been heading for the hills since the holidays to take advantage of North America’s most beautiful skiing network, located right in our backyard! We’d like to remind them that there’s only a few days left to save 25% on Gatineau Loppet Registration. This offer ends on January 21st.
Calling for Volunteers! The Gatineau Loppet needs over 300 volunteers each year to fill a variety of positions. We’re looking for motivated people willing to help in the following activities:
– Feeding stations
– Officials
– Skiers’s bags
– Master of Ceremonies
– Polling
– Coffee and promotional material stands
– Security and parking
Volunteering for the Gatineau Loppet means being part of the biggest cross-country ski event in Canada. As a volunteer, you’ll be in contact with some of the best skiers in the world and celebrate this skiing event with great friends!
During the January 10 Gatineau Loppet Press conference, announced the participation of Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip in the next Gatineau Loppet. A passionate skier who has taken part in several Worldloppet events, Mr. Ansip will ski the 51 km classic race on February 18. The Embassy of Estonia will mark the event by offering a souvenir to every child who participates in the Mini Sport Échange Outaouais.
Video with Aidan Lennie, Winner of the 2011 51 km Freestyle Race Click HERE to view the video.
Gatineau Loppet / SkiTrax Special Offer
The Gatineau Loppet and SkiTrax Magazine, the largest cross-country ski magazine in North America, have teamed up to bring you great savings. SkiTrax keeps you up to date on all the latest Nordic news, ski gear, adventure and recreational skiing, including race reports from across Canada, the USA, and around the world – check out skitrax.com.
Gatineau Loppet participants save 50% off regular subscription prices. You can also try a SkiTrax-Pedal Combo Deal and get Pedal Magazine as well. Click HERE to take advantage of the Gatineau Loppet – SkiTrax special offer.
January 19, 2012 (Lienz, Austria) – The Dolomitenlauf Games will kick off this coming Friday with the Dolomites Sprint, held in Lienz/East Tyrol since 1987. Austrian sprint specialist Harald Wurm could write history this year in this head-to-head battle, and overtake Markus Gandler. After all, both have three victories under their belts already.
The Dolomites Sprint will be marking the start of the Dolomitenlauf Games this Friday 20 January 2012. This cross-country sprint comprises 6 heats and finals of 5 athletes each. The Dolomitenlauf Games will then begin with the 42 km long classic style Dolomites Classic Race on Saturday and the 38th Dolomitenlauf run (42 km free-style) in Obertilliach on Sunday.
“The sprint is particularly exciting and action-packed for the athletes and visitors alike due to its technical challenges and sophistication,” says OK Manager Franz Theurl, who organised the first cross-country sprint in the world in Lienz with his team in 1987. 30 sprinters from 10 nations will be entering the sprint arena in Lienz’s main square at 19:00 where a 5 m high ramp, downward starting curve, hairpin bend and ski jump present a particular challenge. “It’s a man-to-man battle! And we battle it out for every metre,” explains the 28-year old Tyrolean Harald ‘Wurmi’ WURM who, following 3 Dolomite spring victories (2010, 2009, 2008), represents Austria’s best chance to beat his ÖSV sprint colleague, Bernhard Tritscher. But for Wurm, this is about much more than winning the Dolomites Sprint for the 4th time. He also wants to overtake the Olympic silver medal winner and World Champion Markus Gandler, who already has 3 victories under his belt.
Strong Austria Representation
In addition to the 2 candidates for victory, Tritscher and Wurm, the ÖSV (Austrian Ski Association) is also sending Martin Stockinger, Thomas Ebner, Markus Bader and the rookie Aurelius Herburger to the Dolomites Sprint – 6 athletes with good prospects while more than 5,000 visitors look on! Austria will undoubtedly put up some strong competition and is also presenting a newly founded amateur national team (a new trend in cross-country skiing): the Skinfit Team Austria with Thomas Stöggl, Lukas Weitgasser, Philipp Bachl, Markus Keplinger, Michael Eberharter and strong German skier, Thomas Freimuth. The Tyrolean sprint champion Clemens Frischhut will also be taking to the starting line.
Strong International Competition
Strong sprint specialists from abroad will no doubt put up a good fight against the Austrians too: Czech sprinter Stanislav Rezac (leader in the FIS Marathon Cup) will be taking on the challenge, as will Swedish Vasaloppet winner Daniel Tynell and last year’s winner of the Dolomitenlauf, the Italian Fabio Santus. Frederik Byström is the second Vasaloppet winner in the start line-up. The Italian Christian Zorzi showed that he feels completely at home with sprinting too at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, where he won a bronze medal for the sprint discipline. This was followed by a gold medal in the team competition in Turin. “We have a very strong starting line-up in the sprint this year and for the first time, there will also be a national team from Switzerland and Estonia,” says Franz Theurl of the show.
The Dolomitenlauf Games will be declared open this coming Friday at 18:30 with the Dolomitenfeuer band. And there will be plenty of music and catering to enjoy in Lienz. In addition to the Lienz brass band, organisers have also booked Werner Otti, the man with two voices, who is famous from the ORF talent show ‘Die Grosse Chance’.
Favourable Weather Forecast
The arrival of winter means that the routes for the Classic Race and Dolomitenlauf race are ideally prepared, including the start and end points in Obertilliach. “And fantastic weather is forecast for the weekend,” says Franz Theurl. Those interested in cross-country can still register on the homepage www.dolomitensport.at until Wednesday as well as just before each race.
January 19, 2012 (Canmore, AB) – After consultation with the organizing committee, and in consideration of the weather forecasts, the race jury has made the decision to alter the event schedule as follows:
1) Friday, January 20: Interval start classic race (previously on Saturday)
Race start at 11:00 AM – 15 second intervals
2) Saturday, January 21: individual sprint free technique race (previously on Friday)
Qualification and heat times as per the race notice
3) All existing registrations for the interval start will be transferred into the new Friday time slot.
4) In the event that the Friday interval start race is not able to be held because of cold weather, it will be put back to Saturday, as part of a two day pursuit-with-a-break, and the sprint event will be cancelled.
5) Persons who are not able to accommodate the new race schedule (for example those who had previously registered for only Saturday and Sunday races) are asked to contact the Race Secretary to explore alternative arrangements.
January 17, 2012 (Innsbruck, Austria) – The inaugural Youth Olympic Winter Games are underway in Innsbruck and Canadian and U.S. athletes are already making headlines. Here are the latest Team USA and Team Canada updates from the Youth Olympic Games newsroom.
Canada’s Chef de Mission Beckie Scott visits Seefeld Venue
Beckie Scott, who was the first Canadian to win a Cross-Country Olympic Gold medal, has paid a visit to Seefeld Arena to support her nation’s athletes and also check out the track.
Describing her experience as Chef de Mission of the Canadian Team at the Innsbruck 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games as “mellow so far”, Scott was accompanied by her husband and their four-year-old son Teo, who was kitted out for some fun on the slopes.
Scott enjoyed time on the track, testing the challenging hills at Seefeld as Innsbruck 2012 athletes trained in preparation for the start of the Cross-Country on Tuesday.
Selyaninov Grabs Gold in 10km Classic, USA’s Caldwell 16th
Alexander Selyaninov (RUS) took victory in a time of 29:28.8, gaining a +11.4 advantage over Kentaro Ishikawa (JPN). Bronze went to Kazakhstan’s Sergey Malyshev, who finished +28.7 behind. Conditions were ideal, with packed snow, partly cloudy skies, and temperatures hovering around -7 C.
Patrick Caldwell (USA) was the top North American finisher in 16th place and +2:01.3 back. Matthew Saurette (CAN) finished 29th.
Sedova Scores in 5km Classic, USA’s Mooney 13th
Anastasia Sedova (RUS), sister of World Cup racer Peter Sedov (RUS), won gold in the women’s 5km Classic at the Youth Olympic Games. Sedova won in 14:18, nearly +20s faster than silver medalist Anamaria Lampic (SLO). Lea Einfalt (SLO) made it a double-medal day for Slovenia when she secured the bronze.
Team USA’s Heather Mooney logged the best North American result with a 13th-place finish at +2:00.8. Maya MacIsaac-Jones (CAN) finished 17th.
Takanashi Wins WSJ, Canada’s Henrich 5th
Sara Takanashi (JPN) won the Women’s Individual Ski Jump event with two jumps of 76.5m. Germany’s Katharina Althaus finished second with jumps of 71.0m and 72.5m. and Ursa Bogataj (SLO) took home bronze with a pair of 71.5m jumps.
Canada’s Taylor Henrich finished fifth with a leap of 64m in her first run and 66m in her second. Emilee Anderson (USA) completed the competition in ninth place after a first-round jump of 59.5m on the HS75 hill. She fought back to jump 65.5m in the second round.
Lanisek Tops in Men’s Ski Jumping, Canada’s Korek 8th
Anze Lanisek (SLO) won the Men’s Individual Ski Jump competition in Innsbruck with two solid jumps. The first was 78.2m and the second 77.5m. Mats Berggaard (NOR) took home the silver medal, with Yukiya Sato (JPN) earning the bronze.
Canada’s Dusty Korek was the top North American with an eighth-place finish and two consistent jumps of 77.5m and 77.3m each. Team USA’s William Rhoads finished 19th.
January 16, 2012 (Milan, Italy) – Canada’s Perianne Jones and Chandra Crawford won bronze in the women’s 6×1.4km team sprint FIS WCup in Milan on Sunday – their first-ever medal together and Jones’ first time on the WCup podium.
The moment was made even more special by the fact that Jones and Crawford had the honour of sharing the limelight with their American friends, Jessie Diggins and Kikkan Randall, who grabbed the silver medal – a North American first.
But their medal was not a given however, as a crash in the semis by Jones put their spot in the finals in jeopardy. Ten teams of two skiers made it to the final, including the Canuck duo, who worked efficiently together in their exchanges and skied excellently to earn their podium spot.
“This feels great. Today our whole goal was to relax, stay on our feet and kick when it counts,” said 28-year-old Crawford. “It is dynamite to be on the podium with Peri. We are a real team out here and want each other to succeed and it is awesome to share this with her.”
Last season in Dusseldorf Crawford landed on the podium in the team sprint with teammate Daria Gaiazova taking home the bronze. In Saturday’s individual sprint Crawford was 7th and her bronze in Milan on Sunday was her second WCup medal this season, after she won silver in the individual freestyle sprint in Rogla, Slovenia in December.
Jones was 12th in the individual sprint matching her career-best finish on the World Cup earned in Stockholm, Sweden last season. Her first visit to a WCup podium is a dream come true for the Almonte, Ont. skier and SkiTrax caught up with Jones after the team sprint event:
You lead off today – how was the start?
Perianne Jones: The first lap was totally crazy, I crashed in our semi-final, so I was just trying to stay out of trouble and read the rest of the people around me to make sure that didn’t happen again. There were lots of broken poles, and crashing everywhere, but we stayed out of trouble.
Is this is your first Team Sprint with Chandra – what kind of prep did you do?
PJ: Chandra and I have teamed up a few times in Dusseldorf, so this wasn’t our first time racing together, but we just practiced our tags a few times, and chatted briefly, but we have total confidence in each other after training so many hours side by side, so we didn’t talk much just went out and did our thing.
How were your skis today and conditions on the track?
PJ: Skis were amazing today, our techs are the best. The track held up really well too, so it was super fast.
Talk about the congestion on the Milan course and your exchanges.
PJ: We totally nailed the exchanges today, in the semifinal we figured out what worked, and we stayed with it through the final, and were always making up places in the exchanges.
You’ve been making steady solid gains with your skiing – what are you doing differently?
PJ: Nothing drastically different, just building on the fitness I have and being able to handle more training.
This is your first-ever WCup podium – how special is it for you?
PJ: It feels pretty great to hit the podium, it’s been a goal for a long time, and it’s also great to share it with Chandra. We have been teammates for a long time, since we were juniors…and being up there with Kikkan and Jessie was a real bonus.
All the best Peri – we are really proud of you guys.
PJ: Thanks!
January 13, 2012 (Nove Mesto, Czech Republic) – Olga Zaitseva (RUS) took the win in the women’s 7.5km sprint event at the IBU Biathlon World Cup in Nove Mesto on Friday with a time of 23:08.1 and a perfect shooting score, despite conditions that went from bright to stormy during the competition.
Tora Berger (NOR) finished second with two shooting penalties and +25.5 behind the winner, while Magdalena Neuner (GER) raced into third spot with three penalties and a deficit of +34.5.
Canada’s Zina Kocher (CAN) was the top North American finisher in 23rd spot. Teammate Megan Imrie (CAN) finished 44th, Susan Dunklee (USA) was 45th, Annalies Cook (USA) 51st, Sara Studebaker (USA) 54th, and Tracy Barnes (USA) 87th.
January 11, 2012 (Toblach, Italy) – Oh Italy….. I am finally back in connectivity after no Internet for days. There is a theory that Internet is especially sparse in Italy due to some Mafia thing but that has yet to be confirmed. Alas, my apologies for those of you that have checked back only to find my blog without recent updates. It’s been out of my control, for sure! (This also creates a huge back log in correspondence so if I haven’t written you back yet, this is why!)
This afternoon we have our second to last race of the Tour, a 10k classic mass start race at Val di Fiemme. I will make this post brief because I need to get ready but I really want to get something up to let you all know what has been going on.
As I’m sure some of you have seen or read in other publications, I took a slip on the ice Christmas day while running in Ramsau, Austria. It’s taken a while to get a proper diagnosis…. this has included lots of fitful reading on wikipedia, Web MD, and all of those other scary Internet sources where you diagnose yourself and then continue to have nightmares…. However, I was finally able to get both an x-ray and MRI, mid-tour in Oberstdorf, Germany. We were able to deal with an Orthopedic specialist but lots of the medical lingo was lost in translation and there was a fair amount of uncertainty- plus, we were literally trying to get on the road to arrive at the next stage of the Tour. It was quite a debacle of a day but more on that later.
The conclusion from the MRI is/was that I have a non-dislocated fracture of the distal radius bone. They were initially worried about the scaphoid-lunate ligament as well but that appears to be okay which is terrific news.
The second I fell on the ice I knew that something was terribly wrong. My hand was extremely swollen and my range of motion was poor. Christmas was literally 4 days before the beginning of the Tour and it was hard to know what to do. Since then, I have been racing every day, doing my best to compete. While my results have been extremely sub-par, I feel the need to complete the Tour. I’ve worked so hard to get here – and there are so many people who have helped me out along the way. I know there are a handful of other skiers from the US who would have loved to have the start opportunity and I feel the need to represent the US. I often wonder if the decision to keep racing is tough or just plain stupid. I was concerned about the potential of permanent damage to my arm but have been told since that it’s probably just pro-longing my recovery period.
Coming into the Tour my goals included fighting for a top ten stage results and finishing in the top 20 overall. While those goals are completely out of the question now, I continue to race because each time I put a bib on, I learn something valuable. With each stage of the Tour has come another World Cup start, another experience at a new venue, and some pointers and direction towards my results here (hopefully) next year, not to mention later this season.
Also, Val di Fiemme, (where we are now) is the site of the 2013 World Championships so while I’m racing today, I will literally be trying out the course for next year’s Championships. After yesterday’s “inspection ski” I was really psyched – I think the courses suit me well and it gives me a ton of direction for summer and fall training.
I promise a more complete update with tons of pictures soon. In the meantime, THANK YOU SO MUCH TO EVERYONE WHO HAS SUPPORTED MY JOURNEY!!!! YOU ALL MEAN THE WORLD TO ME AND I WILL BE FOREVER GRATEFUL! This injury has been especially difficult in that part of me feels like I’ve let some of you down but I’ve been told that I cannot think that way… and I know I can’t. Nonetheless, THANK YOU and I will continue to do my best to represent you all and get some stories and photos as soon as I possibly can!
January 11, 2012 (Oberhof, Germany) – In tough conditions with snow falling, Germany’s Magdalena Neuner won her second victory of the weekend taking the women’s 12.5km Mass Start with a winning time of 40:02 despite three shooting penalties. Norway’s Tora Berger was only 12.5 seconds back in second with two penalties while Neuner’s teammate, Andrea Henkel had only one shooting penalty to claim 3rd at 32 seconds back. No North American women qualified for the event.
The skiing was very challenging as the heavy snowfall created taxing ski conditions and difficult shooting. None of the top racers shot clean. With 2.5km to go, Neuner took the lead with her strong skiing and didn’t look back taking her second win of the weekend.
“It was a great race and a lot of fun since it is my last time here. I am in very good shape and I had very good skis, so I am very happy with my race,” Neuner told Biathlonworld post-race. “The penalties did not faze me I was always close to the lead and felt all day like I had enough power to handle Tora and Andrea. I was very relaxed all day.”
The snow subsided shortly after the men’s 15km Mass Start race began and it was Germany again as Andi Birnbacher was unstoppable shooting clean on his way to victory with a finishing time of 38:34. In second was Simon Fourcade of France at 24.3 seconds back with only one shooting penalty, followed by Emil Hegle Svendsen (NOR) in third with three penalties at 29.6 seconds back.
With better conditions a total of 19 men shot clean on the first round of prone shooting including Lowell Bailey of the USA, the lone North American in the field. Nine men shot clean on the second prone round and after the first standing session Birnbacher was one second behind the race leader Klemen Bauer (SLO).
Birnbacher shot clean in the final round while Bauer cracked missing three shots and was out of contention. Bailey missed two rounds in his first standing session, the only shots he missed on the day to finish 16th overall.
“I was pretty tired after the travel and competition in Schalke,” said Birnbacher, “I was still tired in the sprint so it was amazing that I did so well today. Having the wins is good for my confidence, but puts no pressure on me.”
January 10, 2012 – The Thames Valley Invitational Nordic Ski Race takes place January 12th, 2012 at Hardwood Ski and Bike. We have between 300 and 400 racers for this event with the race being open to all high school cross country ski racers and there is a novice/elementary school division as well. We have teams and racers registered from Barrie, Orillia, and the GTA and all over Ontario.
The categories for the race are:
– Elementary: 2 km
– Novice: 2 km (Novice is for high school skiers with limited skiing experience and no racing experience at any level.)
– Junior Girls: 4 km
– Junior Boys: 5 km
– Senior Girls: 5 km
– Senior Boys: 7 km
WHEN: January 12th, 2012 with races starting at 11 am
WHERE: Hardwood Ski and Bike, 402 W Old Barrie Rd, Oro Station, Ontario
January 10, 2012 (Rumford, Maine) – This year’s snowless winter isn’t getting the best of the cross country ski season – it’s in full force and Rudy Project athletes continue finishing ahead of the competition. At the 2012 USSA Cross Country Skiing Championships this past Tuesday in Rumford, Maine, U.S. Olympic skier and Rudy Project sponsored athlete, Torin Koos, found himself at the top of the podium, winning the men’s freestyle 1.6km sprint. Winning the women’s 1.4km sprint was another Rudy Project athlete, Jessie Diggins.
The event at Black Mountain, originally scheduled for last Monday, was cancelled early that morning as a result of temperatures being too warm for snow making on the barren course. However, as Mother Nature often does, within 24 hours, she chilled the 40-degree temperature to a frigid 15 degrees, cold enough to make snow for Tuesday’s competition.
In the men’s 1.6km sprint, Torin Koos was victorious, ahead of Blackhorse-von Jess in second, and Tyler Kornfield of the University of Alaska in third. Koos crossed the finish line wearing his Rudy Project Ekynox SGV Mask, an older model that Koos has been swearing by for years. “Most days, I’m usually rocking the Rudy Project Prestige Sunglasses. But on race days, I pull out the old school Ekynok SGV Mask with the double-layered racing red lens,” said Koos. “They are kind of like my lucky charm on race day,” he added.
While crossing the finish line in her Rudy Project pink fluo Noyz sunglasses, Jessie Diggins took the gold in the women’s 1.4km sprint. Finishing second was Caitlin Gregg and Jennie Bender in third, all sporting their Rudy Project shades. “As an official supplier for USSA, Rudy Project is honored to see so many Rudys out there on the championship course,” remarked Paul Craig, President and Co-Founder of Rudy Project North America. “We are especially thrilled to see so many top athletes crossing the finish line in Rudy’s fluo colors,” added Craig.
January 06, 2012 (Rumford, Maine) – Famed sports reporter and commentator Peter Graves was on site in Rumford, Maine at the US XC Ski Championships and spoke with women’s 10km FR individual start winner Jessie Diggins (USST-CXC) after her race. Sport insiders have spoken often over the last year about the near limitless potential of the 19-year-old. Graves also caught up with 15km FR men’s winner Tad Elliott, Caitlin Gregg (formerly Compton), and Sylvan Ellefson.
January 06, 2012 (Oberhof, Germany) – The Russian and Italian teams won gold in the women’s 4x6km and men’s 4×7.5km relay, respectively, at IBU World Cup #4 in Oberhof, Germany.
In the women’s race, Olga Vilukhina (RUS) anchored the Russian team to bring home gold with an overall time of 1:19:32 and 13 shooting penalties. Team Norway cruised in +5.9 later for the silver medal, and the French team grabbed bronze.
The Italian squad put together a fantastic race in the 4×7.5km men’s race with only five shooting penalties opposed to second place Russia’s 13. Italy won by a +6.1 margin, while Sweden scooped up bronze with six penalties and a +32.7 gap.
Team USA’s Lowell Bailey, Jay Hakkinen, Tim Burke, and Leif Nordgren opened the World Cup competition with a 11th-place finish, trailing the leaders by +5:42.3 and racking up 19 penalties.
“With the rain training has not been easy, but the organizers have been doing everything they can to put a good track together, ” said U.S. Biathlon High Performance Director Bernd Eisenbichler. “In the Relay, it’s always tricky in these conditions with both skiing and waxing….”
Results
Women 4×6 km Relay HERE.
Men 4×7.5 km Relay HERE.
January 05, 2012 (Cortina, Italy) – Marit Bjoergen (NOR) finally claimed the red leader’s bib over her closest rival Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) on Stage 7 of the 2012 Tour de Ski, a 15km free race with handicap start. The two were tied at three wins apiece before the stage, but at the end of the day, Bjoergen edged ahead grabbing the win and the leader’s bib for the first time during the nine-stage contest.
While it’s a small margin of seven seconds it’s the first time Bjoergen has ever been the Tour’s overall leader. She is now poised to become the first Norwegian to win the TdS. Team mate Therese Johaug (NOR) raced in a lonely limbo, maintaining her third place ranking and finished +3:16.9 behind.
The USA’s Kikkan Randall had a solid day, finishing fifth after starting fourth. She didn’t have the best first half but as her engine warmed up she picked up the pace. Krista Lahteenmaki (FIN) caught and passed her on the second lap to claim fourth on the day and is now 4th overall. Randall won a hard-fought race for fifth in an all-out sprint with Marthe Kristoffersen (NOR) and Charlotte Kalla (SWE), who settled for sixth and seventh, respectively.
Temperatures on race day were a comfortable minus 3 C when Kowalczyk pushed off first, 4.8s ahead of Bjoergen, who proceeded to bridge to her. Together, Kowalczyk and Bjoergen maintained their head-to-head battle over the entire 15km distance, neither able to shake the other.
When Bjoergen launched an attack on the second lap, Kowalczyk responded, refusing to be shaken. The race was decided in the final metres, when Kowalczyk made a small technical mistake, allowing Bjoergen to surge away and gain precious seconds for the win and the overall lead.
Johaug, in third place overall, now trails the leader by 3:20 and will have a hard time making up lost ground on the final two stages of the Tour. Randall also has her work cut out as she is 15 seconds from Lahteenmahki in fourth but is being hunted closely by Kristoffersen at only four-tenths of a second behind. In fact, sixth through 11th place are all within a minute of the American.
January 05, 2012 (Cortina, Italy) – Switzerland’s Dario Cologna pulled away from Petter Northug of Norway on Stage 7, the Tour de Ski’s Queen Stage, a 32km point-to-point freestyle race, breaking his Norwegian rival with a convincing win.
Cologna, who was in a league of his own today, turned what had been a meagre 13.5-second lead into a much more significant gap of one minute and 28 seconds. Skiing alone out front for all but a few minutes of the the race, Cologna stopped the clock at 1:09:25.2.
Canada’s Devon Kershaw, had a strong race as well posting the third fastest time finishing 4th on the day, to retain his 4th place overall position. Kershaw looked smooth and skied much of the day at the front of the chase group of five skiers that formed behind Cologna in the latter half of the gruelling race.
“This is a race I have been thinking about all year for 365 days. I was so nervous last night and this morning it was unreal,” said the 29-year-old Kershaw. “This is probably the best skate-ski race I have ever had. I couldn’t have imagined to have skied this strong.”
His teammate Alex Harvey, who was skiing with a second chase group, also had a good day, managing to hold onto 9th overall, although he lost a few seconds and is currently at 3:07.8 behind Cologna.
While Northug managed to hold on for second in today’s stage, he struggled early on and is now in a dogfight to stay on the podium at this year’s Tour. Cologna led out today’s handicap-start race with a 13.5-second lead over the Norwegian but Northug charged after him and quickly closed the gap. His push cost him tho’ as his Swiss rival accelerated soon after Northug caught him but the Norwegian could not match Cologna’s pace and quickly faded.
Northug was soon caught by Russia’s Alexander Legkov and the two skied together over the top of the long initial climb at 11.5km. The duo was eventually caught at about the 22km mark by a chase group of three that included Kershaw, Marcus Hellner (SWE), and Maurice Magnificat (FRA).
Entering the stadium just over a minute after Cologna crossed the line, the chase group of five was left to battle for the final two spots on today’s podium and the bonus seconds that came with them. Northug, who had been lurking at the back most of the time, showed off his classic finishing speed and out-sprinted the small pack to the line, followed by Legkov and Kershaw.
Cologna retains his overall lead in the Tour, but gave up time to all of his nearest rivals except Northug. There are now five skiers within a minute and half of Cologna, with two hard and decisive stages to go.
Also having a good day today was the USA’s Kris Freeman, who finished 42nd to moved up to 29th overall at 6:48.3 behind Cologna. Canada’s Ivan Babikov also skied well to move up from 43rd to 35th today and sits 6:56.1 behind the race leader.
January 03, 2012 (Toblach, Italy) – Russia’s Alexander Legkov finally broke through for his first podium of the season, a victory in today’s 5th stage of the Tour de Ski, an individual start 5km classic race in Toblach, Italy. Legkov finished today’s race in 13:49.5. Norway’s Eldar Roenning came in 2nd at 1.7 seconds followed by Dario Cologna (SUI) in third at 2.0 seconds back as he takes over the race lead from Norway’s Petter Northug was a little off the pace today, finishing in 12th.
The Russians were out in force in today’s race and surely nailed the wax or made the best of their zero skis, after placing six men in the top 11. Canada’s Devon Kershaw lead the North American men placing 18th as he finished 24.6 seconds behind Legkov. His teammate Alex Harvey had a bit of an off day, placing 29th at 37.5 seconds back of the leader. Ivan Babikov, who is nursing an injured arm after crashing in the Skiathon on Jan. 1, finished in 72nd place.
It was another tough day for the US team as well, with Simi Hamilton pulling out the Tour prior to today’s race, the victim of a stomach virus, according to Head Coach Chris Grover. The sole remaining US man in the Tour, Kris Freeman, finished 52nd on the day.
Cologna moves into the overall Tour lead after today, while Northug drops to 2nd, followed by Legkov in 3rd. Legkov’s victory today, including a 15-second time bonus for the win, has closed the gap to Northug to less than 30 seconds, so the Tour is beginning to look more like a three-man race. Kershaw holds onto 5th place, while Harvey has dropped to 15th overall after today’s disappointing result.
December 30, 2011 (Oberhof, Germany) – Check out this great video courtesy of the Canadian Team during Day 1 of the Tour de Ski, including training clips, action in the wax room, race footage, and post-race interviews with the athletes, including Ivan Babikov and Devon Kershaw.
December 29, 2011 (Oberhof, Germany) – Justyna Kowalczyk of Poland staked her claim to the women’s Tour de Ski overall crown with a win in today’s opening 3.1km Prologue stage in Oberhof, Germany. Kowalczyk bested World Cup overall leader, Marit Bjoergen (NOR) by 0.4 seconds over the 2.5km course. Sweden’s Hannah Brodin was third.
Among the American women, Kikkan Randall finished a solid 10th, with teammates Liz Stephen and Holly Brooks (who is suffering with an injured wrist – read more HERE) coming in 37th and 53rd respectively.
Meanwhile, Norway’s Petter Northug backed up his intentions to win the Tour this year with a win in the men’s 4.0km Prologue, beating Tour arch rival Dario Cologna of Switzerland by .7 seconds. France’s Maurice Magnificat finished third.
The Canadian men had an excellent day, with Alex Harvey finishing 6th and Devon Kershaw 12th. Ivan Babikov was further back in 38th position while Andy Newell had the top result for the US squad in 29th place, followed by Simi Hamilton and Kris Freeman in 63rd and 64th respectively.
Full women’s results HERE.
Full men’s results HERE.
December 29, 2011 (Oberhof, Germany) – So…. I haven’t said much on my blog yet about the Tour de Ski but here it is – starting TOMORROW! As there is no World Champs or Olympics this year, the Tour is kind of the pinnacle of the race year. Many of the top athletes have been aiming to perform well here all year. I was a last minute addition to the US Tour roster after having performances during period one of the World Cup this fall.
I am ecstatic to have the opportunity to race this event. As a distance skier and high volume trainer, I absolutely LOVE the thought of racing day in and day out, challenging myself physically, mentally, and emotionally. I have no idea how I’ll do or what will happen to by body as the days of fatigue add up but this is a great time to try it and I couldn’t be more excited for the challenge.
There are a ton of friends, family, and even people I don’t know that have helped make it possible for me to be here. As many of you know, I’m responsible for providing my own funding and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the generous support and enthusiasm of many of YOU. I hesitate to name anyone personally because there are so many of you and I don’t want to leave anyone out but you know who you are.
The experience of needing support and needing it fast has really been really moving. I only hope that I can repay many of you back with the generosity someday be it in the form of a ski lesson, athletic inspiration, a smile, or perhaps one day, dollars to a cause important to you. I know that on Thursday, when I put a bib on, I will feel like I’m racing with the support of people from Washington and Alaska; Kongsberger Ski Club, Alaska Pacific University, and Snoqualmie Nordic Team. THANK YOU so much to ALL of you!
As far as challenges go, I feel the need to share something that’s been on the fore front of my mind lately…. Christmas Day I decided to go for a short run before dinner. It was dark out and icy in places. Just as I was about to turn around and head back to the Kobaldhof, I slipped on the ice, falling back, and caught myself with my left hand. I knew instantly that it was not good…. but I wasn’t sure how bad. And I still don’t know. The plan for tomorrow, and each day afterwards is to ice, tape, take some anti-immflatatory medication and go for it.
The US team doesn’t have a doctor here at the moment so this morning I went and saw the Norwegian Team’s Doctor and “Physio.” (The Euro name for PT). They were incredibly generous to see me and were encouraging in that they do not think my wrist has a scaphoid fracture – my greatest worry via a couple hours on email and web MD. (Always a bad idea and also guaranteed to give you nightmares). If Petra Madjic can win a bronze medal at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games with broken ribs and a punctured lung, perhaps I can race the Tour, and excel in it with whatever injury my wrist may have sustained. It’s not ideal but I’m certainly not the first athlete who has gotten a bit beat up.
Time for bed as often rest provides one with the best healing and rejuvenation powers! Thank you everyone for everything and I’ll do my best to keep you posted through this incredible journey!
December 21, 2011 (Early Winters, WA) – This year, the Methow Valley Nordic Team has no less than four graduates who are skiing at an elite level in international competitions. Sadie Bjornsen and her younger brother Erik Bjornsen are members of the U.S. Ski Team, hoping to make the 2014 Olympic Games.
Brian Gregg, ranked among the 10 fastest skiers in the country, has been invited by the U.S. Ski Team to compete in Europa Cup races and has earned World Cup Start rights by leading the overall Super Tour.
Casey Smith, named Junior Biathlete of the Year by the U.S. Biathlon Team, and is near qualifying for the U.S. Biathlon European Championship Team
All four of these elite athletes will be giving back to the community and their home team, by giving a free ski clinic on Wednesday, Dec. 21, at the Mazama Community Center, for members of the Methow Valley Nordic Team. Over 30 kids have pre-registered!
Click HERE to view the announcement on Sadie Bjornsen’s blog.
December 19, 2011 (Sjusjoen, Norway) – Canada’s Brian McKeever and Erik Carleton teamed up to win their first-ever IPC World Cup race together in a 10-kilometre classic-ski race in Sjusjoen Norway on Sunday.
The childhood ski friends growing up in Calgary, who won three silver medals in as many races this week, finally climbed onto the top step of the podium together after clocking the fastest time of the day at 27:38.2 in the men’s visually impaired category.
“We have been doing a lot of skate racing so it was nice to change the technique and get this one,” said the 32-year-old McKeever. “I think we still have a little advantage over some of the guys in classic racing. The key to winning is to exploit your strengths and others weaknesses and we did that today.”
The track to the podium was anything but easy for the Canadian duo. Battling fatigue from a long period of racing in Europe and blowing conditions, McKeever relied heavily on the 33-year-old Carleton to find the quickest line to the finish.
“Erik pulled really hard at the front in some pretty strong headwinds,” said McKeever. “He worked hard crossing between tracks to find the fastest line and did an awesome job for me today.”
The Canadians were sandwiched on the podium by two Russian teams. Nikolay Polukhin and Andrey Tokarev skied to the silver medal at 28:50.6, while Stanislav Chokhlaev and Maksim Pirogov were third with a time of 29:39.9.
McKeever has become of the most accomplished para-nordic skiers in the world since being diagnosed with Stargaards disease in 1998. Brian, along with his longtime guide and brother Robin, has won 10 Paralympic medals including seven gold in his three trips to the Paralympics.
Brian leaned on Carleton to guide him to three victories at the 2011 IPC World Championships when Robin was sidelined with an ACL injury last year. A 1998 Olympian, Robin is now the head coach of the Canadian Para-Nordic Team. Regardless of the guide, the younger McKeever has worked tirelessly to win everything on the table in para-nordic skiing.
“We have trained more than 800 hours this year which is right up there with able-bodied skiers,” said McKeever. “Winning isn’t easy as we saw this week (finishing second three times in a row) so we have to keep working hard because it hasn’t been enough so far.”
Two other Canadians also suited up on Sunday. Colette Bourgonje, of Saskatoon, finished seventh in the women’s five-kilometre sit-ski race. Mark Arendz, of Springton, P.E.I., who won a gold, silver and bronze medal in biathlon races this week, finished 11th in the men’s 10-kilometre standing class.
December 16, 2011 (Obertilliach, Austria) – Two young Calgary biathletes shocked the world by finishing third and fourth in a men’s 10-kilometre sprint competition at the IBU Biathlon Cup in Obertilliach, Austria on Friday.
Nathan Smith put his name in the history books as one of a handful of Canadian biathletes to win a medal in international racing after capturing the bronze with a time of 24 minutes, 18.1 seconds, while senior team rookie, Scott Gow, narrowly missed the podium placing fourth at 24:31.4 against a deep field of nearly 100 athletes – many of whom compete regularly on the World Cup circuit.
“It feels great. Only a few other Canadians have had top-four results on the IBU Cup so two in one day is exceptional,” said Smith, who turns 26 on Christmas Day and becomes the sixth Canadian biathlete to medal on the IBU Cup over the last decade. The Canadian squad also finished fourth in Wednesday’s mixed relay.
“During the training season I made some strong improvements in both skiing and shooting and I was hoping to carry those over to the competition season. This result is affirmation the work is paying off in actual results.”
Both Smith and Gow shot clean with light winds blowing through the range, and took advantage of good skis on the hard-packed, fast Austrian course.
“Our coaching and waxing team have been doing an awesome job. I’m fairly certain our skis in Obertilliach have been the best of all the teams thus far,” added Smith. “So far this winter four men have put down top results on both the IBU and World Cup. This shows that our team is building depth. I also hope younger biathletes in Canada will see our results and strive to match and exceed them.”
Russia’s Evgeniy Garanichev won the gold medal with a time of 24:09.7 despite missing one shot in his first round of shooting. Germany’s Daniel Bohm snagged the silver with a time of 24:11.4.
Despite finishing just shy of the podium, it was a stellar day for the 21-year-old Scott Gow who made the climb to the senior ranks this year where he has split time on the World Cup and IBU Cup Circuit – a feeder series to the World Cup.
“The race today felt amazing. It was one of those rare days where great skiing with perfect shooting came together, and I’m more than ecstatic it happened today on the IBU Cup,” said Gow, who was clean in his two rounds of shooting. “The skis were the difference today. I have felt great the last two weeks on the boards and they were really good today which gave us an edge on our competitors.”
Equally brilliant off the snow, the sharp-shooting biathlete was an honours student at the National Sport School where he was one of a small group of students selected from around the world to attend United States Space School four years ago at NASA in Houston. An incredible experience for the young Canuck, Gow’s mission has since been focused on achieving his Olympic dream. He enjoyed a memorable campaign in 2011 where he carried the Alberta flag into the closing ceremonies of the Canada Winter Games after winning four gold medals in as many competitions, one week following a ninth-place finish at the Junior World Championships.
“This result is important for me because I feel like it validates my training over the past year, and gives me the confidence going forward to know that I am competitive on the IBU Cup,” said Gow. “Doing as well as I did today against the competition I had is a real boost of confidence because they guys we’re finishing with have good results on the World Cup and are considered World Cup caliber athletes, so it’s another major boost for sure.”
Two other Canadian men suited up on Friday. Calgary’s Tyson Smith shot clean to finish tied for 50th at 26:23.5. Aaron Gillmor was 96th (28:05.9).
Quebec’s Claude Godbout finished as the top Canadian in the women’s 7.5-kilometre sprint, placing 32nd at 24:32.2. Yolaine Oddou, of Val Belair, Que., was 34th (24:44.8), while Melanie Schultz, of Camrose, Alta., finished 53rd (25:43.1).
Russia’s Ekaterina Glazyrina shot clean to win the women’s competition with a time of 22:30.8.
Meanwhile, the top women’s biathletes in the country also had a solid outing on the World Cup circuit down the road in Hochfilzen, Austria.
Megan Imrie, of Falcon Lake, Man., skied to the final spot in the top-25 for the best result of her career. The 25-year-oldImrie, who represented Canada at the 2010 Olympics, missed two shots in her first of two bouts of shooting to clock a time of 22:18.1 in the women’s 7.5-kilometre sprint competition.
Zina Kocher, of Red Deer, Alta., will join Imrie in the pursuit competition with the top-60 athletes after placing 50th with a time of 23:08.0. Rosanna Crawford, of Canmore, Alta., rounded out the Canadian performances in 73rd (24:05.7).
Russia’s Olga Zaitseva won the women’s sprint with a time of 20:36.6. Darya Domracheva, of Belarus, settled for the silver medal at 20:%0.5, while Sweden’s Helena Ekholm locked up the bronze after clocking-in at 21:06.8.
The IBU Cup and World Cup events continue on Saturday in Austria with the pursuit competitions.
World Cup Women
1. Olga Zaitseva, RUS, (0+1), 20:36.6
2. Darya Domracheva, BLR, (1+1), 20:50.5
3. Helena Ekholm, SWE, (1+0), 21:06.8
4. Magdalena Neuner, GER, (1+1), 21:21.5
5. Vita Semerenko, UKR, (0+1), 21:32.2.
December 16, 2011 – The exciting new season continues! First off a skate sprint weekend along the Rhein river in Düsseldorf, Germany. In the individual sprint, I started off the day with a 10th in qualifying and then battled my way through the rounds on the narrow course to make the final. In the final, there was some bumping early on in the race, but I was able to stay on my feet and make a free-skating charge at the end to take the win.
In the next day’s team sprint, I lined up with my APU teammate Sadie Bjornsen and made it through to the finals. On the first lap we had some bad luck and got stuck behind a fall, dropping us to last. We never lost faith however, kept charging and on the last lap I was able to make up a few spots and get us into the silver medal position. The first ever team sprint podium for a US sprint team!
The next weekend took us to Davos, Switzerland where the snow finally arrived and we got to contest a 15km skate on a 7.5km loop (a rarity on WC these days), and a skate sprint.
In the 15km, I had a good start early but then faded through the race, just managing to stay in the points at 27th place. It proved to be a great warm-up for the sprint however, and I was able to qualify 1st and lead through the quarters and semis to make the final.
In the final I took the lead midway through and made an aggressive acceleration over the top of the hill to break up the pack. I ended up breaking away for the win. I also got to wear the red Sprint Leaders jersey through the day, which was pretty fun!
Now we’re on to Rogla, Slovenia for the last weekend of Period 1. There’s not much snow here but the organizers are working hard to put on some good races. We’ve got a 10km classic mass-start and a skate sprint coming up!
Quote of the Day
“We all shared in the success and it made it so incredibly special! ”
What’s Coming Up
– Dec. 17/11 – 11 Rogla WC – 10km C Mass-start
– Dec. 18/11 – Rogla WC – Sprint F
– Dec. 29/11 – Tour de Ski – Oberhof Prologue
– Dec. 30/11 – Tour de Ski – Oberhof 10k C H
– Dec. 31/11 – Tour de Ski – Oberstdorf Sprint C
– Jan. 1/12 – Tour de Ski – Oberstdorf 10k Skiathlon
The Full Report
Hello everyone! It’s been another couple of exciting weeks! I have to admit that I’ve been having so much fun celebrating the good races and hanging out with my teammates that I’ve been a little delinquent in getting my Race Tails out. Here is a quick recap of the last two weekends.
Following the mini-tour in Ruka, Finland, we headed down to Central Europe to the sun! Winter had not arrived yet here either, and the first few days of training were confined to 1-3km loops of man-made snow on top of green grass!
Düsseldorf Sprint Weekend
Once in Düsseldorf, the scene was pretty much the same as the previous years. Except, this time in the giant stadium attached to our hotel, the soccer field was covered with a car racing track. We got to watch the drivers test out their cars and I have to admit it was pretty fun to see them sliding the corners and revving their engines.
On Saturday morning we awoke to pouring rain. Luckily I had all my stuff this year and packed my bag with just about every piece of ski clothing I had brought! The most exciting thing was that I had female teammates this year, three of them, which meant that we could actually ski in the team sprint for the first time!
Individual Skate Sprint
For the qualifying round I was given bib #1 for the 2nd week in a row, so with a fresh course before me, I set off around the 750m loop! I came around the first corner so fast that I almost lost my balance. Luckily, I stayed on my feet and made it around the course in less than two minutes. It was a solid burn but over so fast! I ended up qualifying in 10th position.
Thankfully the rain stopped in time for the heats. In the quarters and semis, I had decent starts, worked my way up through the pack on the back stretch and used strong finishes each time to advance.
In the final, I did not get a good start and ended up bumping skis with a couple competitors down the first straight away. After a few more bumps coming up to the first turn with fellow NA racer Chandra Crawford, I decided to settle back in the pack. As we approached Mt. Düsseldorf I noticed a narrow opening in between Chandra and the Russian, Matveeva. I went for it. A few more bumps. Over the top I managed to get myself into 2nd position. As we came off the final turn, I worked an aggressive free skate and swung wide into the outside lane. Skating low and without poles, I managed to sneak into the finish lanes just ahead of Matveeva and secured the win at the line. I let out an ecstatic yell!
Düsseldorf has one of the most fun awards presentations after the race, up on a big stage next to the course. They blasted techno music while they called up the top ten and I couldn’t help but do a little dance. After the awards were presented, they played the US National anthem and it was incredibly special to hear it out loud. I sang every word.
Right away we had another important race to focus on, the team sprint. It was decided that Sadie Bjornsen and I would team up on the first team, and Holly and Ida would team up for our second team. We were all pretty excited to get in the mix!
Team Sprint
The next day we awoke to clearer skies and less wind. While the snow was much dirtier than the day before, the course was holding up well. We did some jogging to warm-up and then hit the course for a short window of ski testing before the race. I found my legs to be quite tired from the full day before.
In the semis, Sadie skied our lead off leg. Over the first few laps, we just hung contently in the pack and tried to avoid all the chaos. The exchange zones were war fields every time but we managed to make it through unscathed and in good position going into the final lap. I was able to pass a couple teams in the finish stretch to automatically advance us to the final. The pace had been fast and furious and we both hoped we had more left in the tank for the finals.
Sadie and I hung out together in the wax trailer during the short break between rounds. Sadie played it pretty calm, but disclosed to me later that she was really nervous. The funny thing is, I was too. Although, I did manage to drift off to sleep for a few minutes and dream about Santa Claus of all things.
For the finals Sadie again skied the lead off leg. She got off to a fantastic start and was near the front when suddenly, just past the exchange zone, she got caught up behind a fall and dropped to the back. Not panicking, I chased hard once I got the tag and over the next couple laps we just tried to get back in contention. Sadie skied a fantastic last leg and got us back on to the back of the lead group, we were in 9th.
Once I got the final tag, I decided to go for it. I went wide up the first rise and around the corner and made up a couple places. While everyone seemed to relax a bit on the back stretch, I again worked the wide lane and by the time I got over Mt. Düsseldorf, I was in 4th. When we came off the final turn, I free skated like crazy again and headed for the far wide lane. This time I did manage to use a couple of pole plants and somehow managed to get us into 2nd place by the time I hit the line. Podium #2!
Sadie immediately ran over and gave me the biggest hug. A wave of emotion surged over me. We jumped up and down together and then our other teammates and coaches, who had been yelling like crazy for us, came over and we had a big group hug. We all shared in the success and it made it so incredibly special!
We got to go up on stage for the awards ceremony and dance some more. We did a special tribute dance to our teammates back in the US and took in all the atmosphere. It was pretty fun to be watching Sadie do all this for the first time!
On Monday we packed up and headed back to Davos, Switzerland. A little bit of natural snow had started falling and through the week, it would start to look more and more like winter.
I was pretty bagged for the first couple days and took it nice and easy to recover. Davos is one of my favorite places in Europe. Not only is the skiing (usually) amazing, but the town is really welcoming and cozy, and there is an incredible coffee shop called ‘Kafe Klatsch’ that is great for meeting up with our international friends.
Midweek activities included a Secret Santa poem night with our team, where we all had drawn a collegue’s name out of a hat and then wrote a poem about that person and gave them a small gift. It was good for a plethora of laughs and team bonding!
The other highlight of the week was getting a fika (coffee date) with our Swedish friends Anna Haag and Charlotte Kalla. We were discussing the early season success of the Norwegian women’s team and decided that if we were able to displace some of them from a podium spot during the weekend, we would spray champagne at the flower ceremony to celebrate.
15km Individual Freestyle
The first race of the weekend was the 15km skate individual start. Earlier in the week when it looked like there wouldn’t be enough snow, the race was going to be shortened to 10km. But the organizers did an amazing job and got the 7.5km loop ready in time for the longer distance. Over the past few distance starts here in Davos I have really struggled. So I was hoping a longer event on a slightly different course might help me break my Davos distance curse.
My plan was to start aggressive, which had worked well in Sjusjoen, and then try to maintain a steady but solid pace through the race. Without really noticing, I managed to hit this strategy right on and at the first split at 2km, I was leading the race with 49 racers through. The pace felt reasonable and I was feeling confident that I could build speed through the race. But then, only a kilometer later, as I made my way to the high point at 4km, I began to unravel. My body felt stiff and my focus started to waiver.
I kept fighting, reminding myself to work the gradual terrain, bend my legs and keep my tempo up, but I was really struggling to kick myself into the next gear. Skiing totally alone, I had to keep trying to coax myself to stay on pace and dig deeper. When I crossed the finish line, I was definitely exhausted, yet didn’t have that flop-on-the-ground, totally dead feeling I had wanted to achieve. In the end I had to settle for 27th place.
While it was my worst race of the season so far, it was still a big improvement over my other distance results here in Davos, it was still in the points and only 13 seconds out of the top 20, and I had great results from my teammates (Holly in 13th and Liz in 21st) to celebrate. I crossed it off as a successful day and turned my attention to the next day’s sprint.
Individual Skate Sprint
This time, I did not draw bib #1 for the qualifier. But I did get to wear the red Sprint Leader’s jersey for the first time this season. The sprint course would be two laps of a 600m loop and required the right pacing.
During the warm-up my legs felt pretty heavy and I was anxious about the 15km’s effects on my energy reserves. Once I started the qualifier however, I could tell the feelings were good and I set off on an aggressive first lap. As I came through the stadium for the lap, I could feel the burn setting in. I dug down and pushed hard through every transition, not letting up until I slid my foot across the line. The announcer immediately called out, “And now Randall has the new best time.”
When all the racers had finished, I had managed to stay atop the leader board by 0.11 seconds! This was the first time that I had ever qualified first and it almost made me a little more nervous than usual. I finished my cool down and then made my way into the athlete’s tent. Many of the other teams had their massage tables out with therapists working on their athletes. Meanwhile, I laid on a foam stretching mat on the floor, covered myself in jackets and fought off shivers for the next 45 minutes.
Thankfully I was able to warm myself back up again pretty quickly in time for the quarterfinals. I got off to a good start and controlled the pace from the front. I put in a little extra push over the top of the last hill and stayed in the lead to advance to the semis. The effort was hard however, and I wondered if I could handle such a pace for two more rounds!
In the semis I got off to a good start again and led the race. This time I was able to relax a little bit more on the flats and then put in another good push over the top of the climb to keep my lead and advance to the final.
The sun was just setting as we lined up for the final introductions. Just happy to be back in the final again, I gave an excited double wave to the camera and to the crowd. Then we crouched…set…BANG!
I had a decent start and came out pretty even with the other girls. We all spread out and I gradually worked my way up towards the front, but then let Matveeva take the lead around the first corner. I followed her up and over the hill. My skis were fast and I glided up next to her as we came back into the lap lane. For a second, I thought I would try and tuck in behind her, but then I got the urge to take the lead. I V2’d powerfully up alongside and as we approached the hairpin turn, I got into the lead. I took one more second to relax and then accelerated coming out of the turn. I jump skated like crazy and made sure to push over the top.
As we glided back down into the stadium, I took a quick glance over at the jumbo tron. I saw three dark figures coming down the hill together and figured that was the other skiers right on my tail. So I kept hammering, determined to stay in front.
When I burst onto the homestretch I opened up into a tall V2 and imagined the others shadows coming up beside me at any second. Finally, when I got a few meters from the line I realized there was no one coming up and got to raise my arms in celebration across the line. Another thrilling day!
I was immediately just so happy to have put together such a solid day, feeling strong through four rounds. Once I caught my breath, I did a quick interview for the TV cameras and then got to exchange hugs and high fives with my team. Suddenly I remembered that I had made that bet with Anna and Charlotte about champagne on the podium. I asked Grover if he could try and find some at the last minute and he set off on a mission.
Just before the flower ceremony, Grover reappeared with a bottle of champagne. So after they presented the flowers and the medals and our official photos were snapped, Grover snuck the bottle (slightly shaken and the cork poised) to me on the podium and I popped the cork and sprayed the champagne around. I had always seen the alpine skiers do this on the podium and I was proud to show that the cross-country skiers can celebrate a good day too!
That evening I got to share another champagne toast with my team. They really did a fantastic job of making sure all I had to think about was racing fast. I’m so grateful to have such a hard working team behind me and it is the best thing to celebrate all together! Later I got to share another toast with my Swedish friends, Anna Haag and Emil Joensson (who was also on the podium) and their families over dinner. It was a great night.
All of the hard racing and emotion caught up with me the next couple days however and I was pretty bagged again. So I just took it easy, enjoyed the good skiing, took long naps and did some Christmas shopping.
One little thing I decided to do, in celebration of the team’s great results so far this season, was to buy a small espresso machine for the team. Already it’s getting a lot of use and makes us feel a little more at home in our hotel rooms!
Yesterday we said goodbye to Davos after a very delightful early morning ski and headed on to Rogla, Slovenia for the final stop of Period I. Upon arrival, it feels like we’ve gone back to September again. It was pouring rain here today and there was even thunder and lightning this afternoon. The organizers are busy trying to piece together a course and we’re hoping the temperature will drop back below freezing!
We’ve got a 10km classic mass-start on Saturday and another (third in a row!!) skate sprint on Sunday.
More reports to come in a few days!!
I’m posting daily updates of my training on my SkiTrax Daily training rap which can be viewed here: Kikkan’s Daily Training Rap
December 10, 2011 (Hochfilzen, Austria) – It was a Norwegian showdown in the men’s 12.5km pursuit in Hochfilzen this morning in the men’s 15km IBU WCup pursuit, with Emil Hegle Svendsen besting fellow countryman Tarjei Boe in a final sprint to line with a time of 33:09.0 and a winning margin of only 0.1s. It was a nailbiter, with Svendsen racking up two shooting penalties and Boe only holding one. Switzerland’s Benjamin Weger claimed third place at 4.9 seconds back and only one penalty.
The top North American result was logged by USA’s Lowell Bailey, who finished 17th. He trailed by +57.4 and amassed two penalties. Canada’s Brendan Green finished 33rd at +2:00.5 back with three penalties. Jay Hakkinen (USA) landed 45th spot with four penalties.
In the 10km women’s pursuit, Darya Domracheva (BLR) showed an impressive display of determination to snag her victory over second place, Olga Zaitseva (RUS), and third place, Magdalena Neuner (GER). Domracheva came from behind, trailing by 55s after the third shooting stage, to claim the victory on the final round. She finished her race in 29:34.4 with two penalties, while Zaitseva finished only +0.3 back with a single penalty.
Zina Kocher (CAN) scored the best North American result with a solid 23rd place, trailing by 3:09.5 and logging two penalties. Susan Dunklee (USA) finished 43rd, followed by team mate Sara Studebaker (USA) in 44th.
December 08, 2011 (Davos, Switzerland) – Thanks to positive snow conditions and heavy snowfall yesterday, the Organizing Committee of Davos together with FIS has made the decision to return to the original distances 15 km ladies and 30 km men on Saturday. A course of 7.5 km will be prepared from tomorrow on.
“We are pleased that we finally could decide to have the individual races over the long distances of 30 km and 15 km on Saturday,” said Jürg Capol, FIS Race Director Cross-Country. “The OC and TV showed a great flexibility this morning to change the plannings and we will be back on the old traditional course.”
Check out this video about the announcement. It features interviews with some of the world’s top skiers, including Canada’s Devon Kershaw.
December 07, 2011 (Davos, Switzerland) – I just returned to “home away from home” Hotel Kulm from an exciting, high-paced World Cup weekend in Dusseldorf, Germany. While the weekend’s racing format didn’t explicitly compliment my skill set it was a great experience and more importantly, I was there to witness my teammates stand on a World Cup podium.
If you’ve been living under a rock (or perhaps you aren’t a ski news junkie and that’s perfectly okay) Kikkan and Sadie won a silver medal in the team sprint yesterday on the city streets of Dusseldorf, Germany. Ida Sargent and I teamed up for the sprint as well and unfortunately we were 2 seconds from making it through to the finals as “lucky losers.” Although I was disappointed, it provided us with great viewing and cheering opportunities for the other girls. Funny thing was, amongst the crowds, Sadie and Kikkan both said they could hear us screaming for them on course!!!!
Yesterday was an incredible day for my teammates and for all of US Skiing. Once again, we have shown the Euros that WE can be in there. That we are competitors, and even though we live out of a suitcase for months on end to do it, they should not discount our fitness, courage or tenacity.
I have to admit, when it comes to taking pictures, I have no problem pushing to the front of crowds and getting my canon “powershot SD1300” out there amongst the 3-foot long lenses. Also, perhaps I’m a horrible person for doing this but I may or may not have stepped in front of a small child to get some great shots! I couldn’t help it – how often do the girls you roller ski in the rain with (while everyone else is still sleeping off hangovers) stand on World Cup podiums? I mean, really?! Can you say Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center ROCKS?! I can!
While it’s easy to give all the congratulations to Kikkan and Sadie – and of course they deserve every ounce of it….. I’d like to acknowledge the coaches and particularly one person, Erik Flora for helping make this happen. As a competitor that’s also been a coach and a wax tech, my perspective stems from all angles. While there were only two people standing on the podium yesterday in D-dorf, Erik Flora has gone above and beyond to make that silver medal possible, not to mention, my success over here too….
I don’t know anyone else in the world that loves skiing more than Erik does. The guy could literally inspire a rock to get up off the ground and do some burpees. (A really hard exercise that combines a push up and a jump.) He is a student of the sport spending his night-time hours watching the latest video, corresponding with other coaches from around the world on theories, testing our skis by headlamp once everyone else has gone home….. some may say he’s crazy but isn’t there some kind of saying that says something like, “Great things happen when people break the norm” or something to that effect?
In 2006, the APU program was in transition. Erik saw the opportunity to create a World-class ski team in a setting where the time was right. He seized the opportunity. Since then, everyday for the last five years he’s been working 12-23 hours a day to make us fast. To make us competitive. To give us every advantage he possibly can.
Erik turns any hardship into an opportunity (it may be white-out fog and blowing wind but THIS could be CHAMPIONSHIP conditions one day!) and exudes the excitement of a 6-year old on Christmas morning on a DAILY basis. His work ethic and his dedication to the betterment of the sport and to the athletes he coaches is impressive and admirable. When times are tough and confidence is low he has a special ability to find the bright side of any situation. He never underestimates anyone or tells them they can’t or they won’t or they shouldn’t.
Yesterday, when I was standing in the crowd looking up at my teammates on the podium I was envisioning three people up there: leg one and two of the team sprint relay along with their coach who had the biggest grin from ear to ear that you’ve ever seen.
Thanks to Erik Flora for his dedication and to all the coaches and support stuff out there that help athletes realize their dreams and inspire others to do so as well.
Oh – and here are a couple of other shots from D-Dorf…. the Germany Christmas bazaar was amazing! I wish I had more than 1/2 hour to check it out.
Thanks for reading and thanks again for the words of support and encouragement!
November 25, 2011 (Kuusamo, Finland) – Teodor Peterson (SWE) and Marit Bjeorgen (NOR) were victorious in today’s classic sprint races in Kuusamo, Finland, the first of three days of racing in the first Viessman FIS World Cup mini-tour event of the season. North Americans had a decent day, with a handful qualifying for the heats and the USA’s Kikkan Randall and Canada’s Lenny Valjas making it into the finals. Norway’s Petter Northug, a threat in any race, was a surprise 16th, after failing to make it out of his quarter final.
Racing in icy conditions with fresh snow falling in the tracks as the finals got underway, Peterson notched his first World Cup victory with a convincing win over Russia’s Nikita Kriukov and Norway’s Oeystein Pettersen. Canada’s Valjas recorded a career best World Cup result, placing 5th in the closely contested final. Finland’s Anssi Pentsinen, something of a surprise winner in the morning’s qualifier, delighted the stadium crowd by making it into the final, in which he placed 6th.
Bjoergen, who qualified 5th, once again demonstrated her power, taking control of the women’s final at the halfway mark and never looked back. Sweden’s Charlotte Kalla was second, with Vibeke Skofterud finishing third, just holding off the hard-charging Randall, who established a career-best in classic sprint result claiming 4th, and making her first World Cup final in the discipline.
A number of other North Americans qualified for the heats today in Kuusamo. Canada’s Chandra Crawford earned her way into the heats for the first time in five tries in Kuusamo, qualifying 10th, showing that her classic sprinting has come a long way. Crawford was eliminated in the quarters and finished 22nd. Her teammate, Dasha Gaiazova, shook off the jet lag from her recent arrival in Scandinavia to qualify in 12th overall before also being knocked out in the quarter-finals and finishing 14th on the day.
The USA’s Andy Newell qualified 19th and Canada’s Alex Harvey was 29th. Both were eliminated in the quarter finals, with Newell holding at 19th and Harvey moving up to 24th.
It was a tough day for Canada’s Perianne Jones and Devon Kershaw, both of whom failed to qualify. Jones finished 44th and Kershaw 56th in qualification.
Results
Women
1. Marit Bjoergen (NOR)
2. Charlotte Kalla (SWE)
3. Vibeke Skofterud (NOR)
November 24, 2011 – Tommorow, the Czech Republic’s top Cross-Country Skier, Lukas Bauer, will kick off his FIS Cross-Country World Cup season, while Finland’s Matti Heikkinen will sit out the second round of the series due to injury.
Friday will feature the classical 1.4 km sprint, Bauer’s favourite event: “Yes, my favorite classical sprint,” Lukas Bauer said with a smile.
Bonus seconds will be distributed to the top 30, with the winner of tomorrow’s race receiving 60 bonus seconds, while 30th place gains 1 second. Stage 2 of the “Mini-Tour” takes place on Saturday with 5/10 km Free technique individual start. The 10/15 km Classic Pursuit race on Sunday will determine winners of the second edition of Ruka Triple. The overall winner takes 200 points and 33 750 CHF, winner of the day will be awarded with 50 points.
“I’m not setting for myself any goals not only for the sprint but for not the Mini-Tour either. I can only surprise after the training drop-out. On the other hand be sure I’d like to confirm good feelings from trainings also in the race,” Bauer is warning his competitors.
The Czech skier started last year’s Ruka Triple with 104th position in the opening sprint. His fastest time in the third day brought him to a decent 9th place overall. Bauer sit out the opening FIS Cross-Country World Cup season in Norway and has been catching up after the training drop-out earlier in November.
“I’ve increased the training load step by step. At first I did only one hour skiing in the morning, in the afternoon I was walking around with ski poles and excercised some light strength training. The following day I did two 90 minutes skiing training sessions and the third day it was two times two hours of skiing and quality strength training,” Lukas Bauer describes. During the recovery Bauer was under the thorough surveillance of the team coach Martin Koldovsky.
“I did not want to do the come back with too much haste. I trained four days in the row having followed the training plan from Janko Neuber,” Bauer adds up.
FIS Cross-Country World Cup overall winner from the 2007/08 season has been aiming to prepare a good training base and to carry out quality fast workouts. “In spite of having been shortly after the training drop-out, the feeling from skiing was good. I was happy about that,” Bauer says.
Matti Heikkinen to Skip Ruka Triple Due to Injury
Finland’s World Champion from Oslo Matti Heikkinen has been forced to withdraw from the home World Cup in Kuusamo and will not be starting in Ruka Triple.
Heikkinen should have led the Finnish squad in the three-day Mini-Tour in Kuusamo but unfortunately will not appear at the start of tomorrow’s stage 1, classical sprint. Heikkinen injured his eye when he jumped over the fence and fell down afterwards. Heikkinen is to leave Kuusamo and is returning home.
“I’m naturally disappointed. I’ve been in Kuusamo since Monday and have been preparing for the competition. Now, I’m going home and have to rest for 3-4 days so that no sweat gets in my eye,” Heikkinen said at the Finnish press conference in hotel Rantassipi, Ruka.
Finnish national coach Magnar Dahlen revealed he would step in instead of injured Heikkinen. “Mikko Koutaniemi will be in the World Cup team and Teemu Harkönen will start within the national quota,” the coach explained.
The first stage of Ruka Triple starts tomorrow at 9:45 (CET) with qualification and 11:30 with quarterfinals.
November 24, 2011 (Canmore, AB) – Check out this breathtaking, heart pumping video that gives fans and racers alike a glimpse of the upcoming cross country skiing Alberta World Cup scheduled for December 2012.
November 23, 2011 (Sjusjoen, Norway) – Check out the gallery of photos below from this past weekend’s World Cup opening races in Sjusjoen, Norway, courtesy of the USST’s Holly Brooks. The women of the USST had a historic weekend, with personal best results in individual distances races by Kikkan Randall (8th) and Liz Stephen (18th), and a historic ninth place in the women’s 4x5km relay (anchored by Brooks), equaling their performance in the World Championships in Oslo last year. While the US men couldn’t match the success of the women’s team, they put in some good hard efforts, including finishing 11th in the men’s 4x10km relay, and will be looking to move up the results in Kuusamo, Finland this weekend.
For Women’s Relay coverage, click HERE.
For Women’s 10km Free coverage, click HERE.
November 21, 2011 (Sjusjoen, Norway) – Without a doubt, one of the most stressful weekends for a cross-country ski racer is the first meaningful race weekend of the year. All of the skiers have trained for six or more months and it is not until you race these first races that you know even a little bit about where you stand in relation to your competitors.
This is the nature of cross-country ski racing. There are no personal best times or world record times in this sport. You can do all the testing you want, and compete in roller ski racers or early season time trials, but the only way that you can really measure yourself is racing against your peers.
This is true at every level right up to the World Cup and if you read the quotes from the skiers from Saturday (link to this article) you will see that a common theme is that they didn’t know how they would do before the start and that made them nervous.
Here are some of my thoughts after the first weekend in Sjusjoen, Norway:
– I think that the Norwegian women are going to dominate all year long. They had seven of the top nine on Saturday and their relay teams finished 1st and 2nd in the relay on Sunday. Only Charlotte Kalla of Sweden and Kikkan Randall of the US were able to break into the top 9 – it looked like a Norwegian championship race.
– Marit Bjoergen has lost nothing since last year. She won by almost 30 seconds in a 24-minute race. If they had been racing a track and field event she would have almost lapped the whole field. Last year Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) won the overall World Cup because Bjoergen was concentrating on winning at the World Championships in Oslo. This year is going to be different.
– it’s clear that the USA’s Kikkan Randall is better than last year – 8th in a distance race is a fantastic result. Watch out!
– I also think that the US women’s team is really improving. With Liz Stephen placing 18th on Saturday and then having a decent relay on Sunday – and Randall’s and Brooks’ strong legs – the team is now showing just how much they have improved.
– Johan Olsson is one of the best technical skaters in the world and when he’s healthy he’s certainly one of the best. He had a tough year last year after two bronze medals in Vancouver but it looks like he is back now.
– I think that NO ONE – and I mean no one seems to be able to beat Petter Northug (NOR) in a sprint. It was sad watching the last leg of the relay on Sunday. None of the lead skiers was willing to put it on the line and go for the win except for another Norwegian Sjur Roethe. The lead group was going SO slow that he was able to come from 45 seconds back to pass all of them and take the lead in only 5km. It looked like Northug was just playing with those guys. He has an almost unbeatable formula now for distance races. All he has to do is hang around the leaders, never leading and then in the last km he moves to the front and wins the sprint.
– but Northug IS beatable in the individual start races, despite the fact that he’s getting better in these events as well. He was second on Saturday and is having a much better start to his season than last year when he over-trained and did not have any good results until after Xmas at the Tour de Ski. I also think that he is pretty well a lock to win the World Cup this year unless someone can figure out how to beat him in a sprint.
– that being said Canada’s Alex Harvey may be the one to beat Northug. His 5th place showed that he is in great shape and his sprint win in Oslo over Ole Vigen Hattestad to win the Team Sprint gold at the Nordic Worlds have shown that he has the fitness and the sprint speed to win. He has beaten Northug in a sprint in the past and even Petter has acknowledged that Harvey can beat him. I think that if Canada wants to do anything in relays they have to have Alex on the team as the anchor skier. This is the second relay in a row including the relay in Olso that Harvey did not race.
Next weekend the World Cup moves to Kuusamo, Finland for a three day mini-tour de ski. The skiers will likely have to race on icy, man-made snow again, but it will be colder and darker and the hills will be bigger and steeper. It will be the first chance for the sprinters to come out and play as well as the classic skiers. Should be a lot of fun to watch.
November 18, 2011 – Wow, another race season is roaring into action already! With one race under my belt and my first World Cup start of the year just over a week away, it’s high time that I update you on what the heck I’ve been up to all summer! I apologize in advance for the lack of detail but in lieu of a novel, I figured it’d be best to just give you the Coles Notes…
As it seems to be the case with most summers of training, the time flew by. I regret not writing an update sooner but my website was being held hostage by my previous web hosting company (long story) and I have finally completed the arduous task of moving my website to a new host. I hope you enjoy the newly designed drewgoldsack.ca, check back often for updates throughout the winter!
As is the case with most years, I started off the spring pretty much living at the ski hill. Sunshine Village near Canmore is generous enough to comp NST members lift tickets, so come April I’m a full time hill rat. Springtime in the Rockies almost always brings big dumps of snow and I enjoyed some incredible steep and deep days this spring!
From the majestic snow covered peaks of the Rockies, I headed across the prairies to Eastern Manitoba and the rugged terrain of the Canadian Shield to try my hand at ranching. For a guy who grew up in the prairies, I am embarrassingly green when it comes to anything ranch.
However, it didn’t take long to tune into the cowboy blood that, as it turns out, has been coursing untapped through this Alberta boy’s veins…well at least that’s how I saw it anyway! I spent an incredible week horseback riding, crust skiing, sauna-ing, being entertained by newborn lambs, eating freshly laid eggs and relaxing next to a wood-fired stove.
Three lambs were born just before my arrival, which was good news as delivering lambs may have been just a little outside of my abilities. Plus, I got to experience all the fluffy cuteness and none of the gooey sponginess! After being repeatedly stared down and stomped at by the mama sheep, one thing’s for certain: “The older they get, the cuter they aint!” to steal a classic line from The Simpsons.
Though it was hard to leave the serenity of ranch life behind, the beach was calling, and I soon headed off to Miami for some sun and last bit of non-athlete fun before starting up with training for yet another season. Elated to find out that I had been named to the National Team for another year, I was also really looking forward to building on a great season of training with the Alberta World Cup Academy. This year’s training kicked off with the AWCA at an on snow camp in Silver Star in May, followed by a great road bike camp in Kaslo, BC in June.
From there, I made a quick trip up to the Haig Glacier (the best kind of trip to The Haig imho) with the National Team that was actually delayed for a week by TOO MUCH snow, so much snow in fact that they couldn’t find the buried Pisten Bulley on the glacier! The glacier camp was followed by a great month spent training at home in Canmore and a quick trip to the eastern beaches of Cape Breton Island for a friend’s wedding.
The late summer brought a training camp in Whistler with the Academy and then an incredible high altitude camp in Park City, UT with the National Team. From there, I headed back to Whistler with the NST for an intensity block which included four hard intensity sessions in six days and a week of torrential rain… luckily, spending the week shacked up at the Four Seasons Whistler offset the lousy weather!
With fall in the air and more leaves on the ground in Canmore than feral bunnies, I returned home for some much needed rest. It wasn’t long before Frozen Thunder (Snow stored under sawdust from the previous winter… I know, it sounds crazy but it actually works!) was rolled out at the Canmore Nordic Centre (October 15th) and before I knew it the ski season was under way! The last two weeks of October delivered outstanding ski conditions in Canmore and I was able to log a lot of hours on snow before taking off for Europe and the start of the World Cup season….
It’s shaping up to be a great year of racing, see you out there!
– Drew Goldsack
Overheard:
‘I’m going to log out of Facebook, Seriously.’ – Alex Harvey
In the Tape Deck:
Artist: Ben Howard, Album: Every Kingdom
Artist: Bon Iver, Track: Calgary (Cillo Remix)
Artist: Devil Makes Three, Track: Chained to the Couch
Artist: Active Child, Track: When Your Love is Safe
November 17, 2011 (Toronto, ON) – The final deadline to register your team for the annual SkiTraxFIS Fantasy World Cup 2011/12 Contest is on Friday, Nov. 18 at 10 pm EST – the day before the first FIS World Cup race in Sjusjoen, Norway.
We are excited to announce that over 300 teams have registered. The SkiTrax Fantasy Contests are the only ones of their kind worldwide, so don’t miss your chance to enjoy top level xc ski racing and win great prizes – good luck to all contestants.
SkiTrax Fantasy FIS World Cup 2011/12 Contest Prizes * 1st Prize – Fischer 11/12 Carbonlite Hole Skis, Xcelerator Bindings, Carbonlite Poles (value $1,100) * 2nd Prize – SkiGo Carbon 780 Roller Skis (value $580)
* 3rd Prize – Alpina ESK Ski Boots (value $449) * 4th Prize – Bjorn Daehlie Exclusive US XC Ski Suit (value $300) * 5th Prize – Sporthill XC Pants/Tights and Glacier Top (value $220) * 6th Prize – Fresh Air Experience or High Peaks Cyclery Gift Certificate (value $150) * 7th Prize – Rottefella Xcelerator Skate/Classic Bindings (value $130) * 8th Prize – Bliz Proflip Visor (value $129)
* 9th Prize – Concept2 Goodie Duffle Bag (value $100) * 10th Prize – Auclair Micro Mountain Olympic Gloves + Earbags (value $65) * WCup Breaks – Buff Headware (value $22) to top 3 contest leaders before the Tour de Ski
Thanks to all of our great sponsors, including Fischer, SkiGo, Alpina, Bjorn Daehlie Clothing, Sporthill, Fresh Air Experience, High Peaks Cyclery, Rottefella, Bliz, Concept 2, Auclair, and Buff.
SkiTrax is North America’s leading Nordic skiing publication and the official magazine of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) and Cross Country Canada (CCC).
February 22, 2012 (Erzurum, Turkey) – Canada’s Dahria Beatty and Janelle Greer, both of Whitehorse, cracked the top 30 in Wednesday’s women’s 5km classic race at the Junior World Championships in Erzurum, Turkey. Beatty finished the race in 25th and just over a minute back of the winner, Russia’s Natalia Zhukova. Greer was close behind Beatty in 28th. Also racing for Canada were Anne-Marie Comeau (39th) and Emilie Stewart-Jones (42).
![Olga Vilukhina (RUS) [P] Nordic Focus](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Vilukhina01132012cm103.2.jpg)
![Olga Zaitseva (RUS) [P] Heinz Ruckemann file photo](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Olga-Zaitseva-RUS.jpg)
![Magdalena Neuner (GER) [P] Nordic Focus](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Neuner01132012cm101.2.jpg)
![Tora Berger (NOR) [P] Nordic Focus](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Berger01132012cm111.2.jpg)
![Magdalena Neuner (GER) [P] Nordic Focus](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Neuner01132012cm075.2.jpg)
![(l-r) Tora Berger, Olga Zaitseva and Magdalena Neuner [P] Nordic Focus](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Podium01132012cm052.2.jpg)
![Arriving at Sjusjoen, not sure what to expect [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Arriving-at-Sjusjoen-not-sure-what-to-expect.jpg)
![Icy roads in Lillehammer made running treacherous [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Icy-roads-in-Lillehammer-made-running-treacherous.jpg)
![Marit Bjoergen and the Norwegian paparazzi [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Marit-Bjoergen-and-the-Norwegian-paparazzi.jpg)
![Canada’s team van [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Canadas-team-van.jpg)
![Tad Elliot, my Salomon Complete buddy [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Tad-Elliot-my-Salomon-Complete-buddy.jpg)
![Celebrating Graham Nishikawa’s birthday [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Celebrating-Graham-Nishikawas-birthday.jpg)
![Sadie and Ida with crustaceans [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Sadie-and-Ida-with-crustaceans.jpg)
![The ornate hotel buffet [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/The-ornate-hotel-buffet.jpg)
![Pre-race face-painting [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Pre-race-face-painting.jpg)
![APU girls, Holly, Kikkan and Sadie [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/APU-girls-Holly-Kikkan-and-Sadie.jpg)
![Start of men’s relay race [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Start-of-mens-relay-race.jpg)
![Bird, followed by the Russians [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Bird-followed-by-the-Russians.jpg)
![Tad Elliot (middle) skiing a great 3rd leg for the USA [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Tad-Elliot-middle-skiing-a-great-3rd-leg-for-the-USA.jpg)
![Men’s lead pack in the 3rd leg [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Mens-lead-pack-in-the-3rd-leg.jpg)
![The whole men’s team [P] Holly Brooks](https://null-skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/The-whole-mens-team.jpg)
