May 06, 2013 – Here are the final USSA SuperTour standings and Grand National Champions for the 2012/13 season. Rosie Brennan (APUNSC) and Michael Sinnott (Sun Valley SEF) are the women’s and men’s overall SuperTour winners. Brennan also secured the women’s sprint and distance standings. On the men’s side, Sinnott scored top spot in the sprint rankings, while Erik Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) cleaned up in the distance rankings. The Grand National Champion title went to Sadie Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) for the women, while Torin Koos (Bridger Ski Foundation/Rossignol) earned the crown in the men’s contest.

Women’s Overall Leader
1. Rosie Brennan (APUNSC) 654 points
2. Sadie Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) 507 points
3. Kate Fitzgerald (APUNSC) 362 points

Women’s Sprint Leader
1. Rosie Brennan (APUNSC) 232 points
2. Sadie Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) 207 points
2. Jennie Bender (CXC) 207 points

Women’s Distance Leaders
1. Rosie Brennan (APUNSC) 422 points
2. Sadie Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) 300 points
3. Caitlin Gregg (CXC) 254 points

Women’s Grand National Champion
1. Sadie Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST)
2. Rosie Brennan (APUNSC)
3. Kate Fitzgerald (APUNSC)

Men’s Overall Leaders
1. Michael Sinnott (Sun Valley SEF) 474 points
2. Erik Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) 445 points
3. Torin Koos (Bridger Ski Foundation/Rossignol) 334 points

Men’s Sprint Leaders
1. Michael Sinnott (Sun Valley SEF) 200 points
2. Dakota Blackhorse (Bend Endurance Academy) 167 points
3. Erik Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) 138 points

Men’s Distance Leaders
1. Erik Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST) 307 points
2. Michael Sinnott (Sun Valley SEF) 274 points
3. Brian Gregg (CXC) 249 points

Men’s Grand National Champion
1. Torin Koos (Bridger Ski Foundation/Rossignol)
2. Erik Bjornsen (APUNSC/USST)
3. Tad Elliott (SSC Vail/USST)

Women’s Final USSA SuperTour Rankings HERE.

Men’s Final USSA SuperTour Rankings HERE.

USSA Grand National Champion Rankings HERE.

*The tie on the Grand Nationals Champion document is denoted in yellow and tie breaker in blue.

February 27, 2013 (Val di Fiemme, Italy) – Norwegian Petter Northug set a devastating pace out of the start in the 15km individual start and created a gap large enough to hold on to his first gold of the 2013 FIS Nordic World Championships. At the 6.8km mark he was more than 23 seconds up on the silver medalist, Sweden’s Johan Olsson. While Olsson was faster than Northug over the final kilometers of the course, it wasn’t enough to take the title from the Norweigan great, and he had to settle for the second spot on the podium.

Canada’s Ivan Babikov hung on to Alexander Legkov (RUS), who skied the first half of the 15km slow enough for Babikov to catch up, but the Russian picked up the pace in the final stages of the race allowing Babikov a great slipstream.

Yet the Canadian bulldog was just pushed out of the medals by the aviator-sunglass-wearing Tord Asle Gjerdalen (NOR). Gjerdalen, who is the alternate for the Norwegian relay team, tied his best-ever individual result at the World Championships as he won bronze in the 50km in Oslo in 2011.

“It isn’t a medal, but I’m pretty happy for sure,” said Babikov, who has enjoyed the best season of his career – crediting his strong results to a new training program set out by himself and Canadian head coach Justin Wadsworth last summer. His performance is the best result by a Canadian male in the 15 kilometre individual start skate-ski race at Worlds.

“I have not been feeling great last week, and was pretty down after the pursuit. To get my body and legs back is really good. Our team worked amazingly well today. My skis were awesome, and it was really important for my confidence to have this race today.”

American Noah Hoffman also had an incredible day in 15th. Hoffman went out slow, and picked his way through the ranks on each subsequent split time.

“My plan was to go out under control. I was able to do that today. I felt very under control in the 40s at 1.8k which was exactly where I wanted to be,” said Hoffman. “Late in the race I got on (Lukas) Bauer. I was struggling to stay with him but he was a good ride for me. With a lap to go I was 20th and following him I moved up to 15th.

Other North Americans included Devon Kershaw in 33rd, Tad Elliot in 34th, Graham Nishikawa in 39th, and Erik Bjornsen in 48th.

Full results HERE.

January 24, 2013 (Liberec, Czech Republic) – On Day 4 of the 2013  U23/Junior Nordic World Ski Championships, Ragnhild Haga took home  the first gold medal for the ambitious Norwegian team winning the women’s 10km FR race. The men’s 15km FR competition was clearly dominated by the Russians as they won gold and silver.

Team USA’s Caitlin Patterson and Erik Bjornsen led the North Americans, placing 14th and 15th in the women’s and men’s competitions, respectively.

Kazakhstan also celebrated their first medal of the championships winning silver in the women’s 10km thanks to Anastasia Slonova, while the bronze medal went to Italy, courtesy of Debora Agreiter.

USA’s Sophie Caldwell finished 17th in the women’s race, with teammates Annie Pokorny and Elizabeth Guiney in 29th and 42nd, respectively. Heidi Widmer posted the top Canadian women’s result in 28th place, while Annika Hicks finished 37th, Andrea Lee placed 40th, and Marlis Kromm took 43rd.

Bjornsen’s men’s teammate Sam Tarling finished 39th in the 15km event, followed by David Norris in 50th and Eric Packer in 54th. Top Canadian man was Colin Abbott in 63rd. Patrick Stewart-Jones (CAN) finished 71st.

Women’s 10km Individual Free – Haga Scores First Gold for Norway
Fifty one women set off on the demanding course in Vesec on Thursday morning. The conditions were worsened by thickly falling snow and hard frost. Nevertheless, only two skiers failed to reach the finish.

“I am really satisfied. Today, it was a real exhausting race; I could not afford to relax. Two years ago, I triumphed at the junior world championship so I am happy that I managed to pick up on this success,” said winner Ragnhild Haga.

Haga literally flew through the course and left second-placed Slonova half a minute behind. She was especially strong in the second half of the race. It was the young Kazakh, however, who performed admirably after the unsuccessful first third of the race when she overtook seven competitors and got a well-deserved silver.

Anastasia Slonova: “I feel good after the race. I am really pleased with the result. We watched the weather carefully, so we were able to prepare the skis very well. It is a great achievement for us, indeed. We picked up on the successful performances during the World Cup competition which took place in Liberec few days ago.”

Debora Agreiter: “I do not know what I lacked for being the second placed. I guess I did not have enough strength at the end; after all, it was a difficult race. But I am still excited about the third place.”

Men’s 15km Individual Free – Russian Dominance
The strong Russians again confirmed their role as favourites of the cross-country competitions. The 15km freestyle was won by Sergey Ustiugov ahead of Evgeniy Belov. The bronze medal goes to Germany thanks to Thomas Bing.

Just before noon on Thursday, 84 competitors set off on an extremely demanding course in Vesec. Conditions were really difficult, as the skiers were slowed down by freshly fallen snow.

Ustiugov dominated the whole race and was the fastest at all split times. In the end he triumphed with a lead of nineteen seconds. The twenty-year-old Russian followed his great performance of last year at the WC in Turkey, where he won four gold medals. His countryman Belov won his second medal at these championships. On Tuesday, it was silver in the sprint.

“It is fantastic! I feel really wonderful. I achieved my goal: I was in first position for the whole race. I feel really happy,” rejoiced the confident winner Sergey Ustiugov from Russia after the finish.

Evgeniy Belov: “I am really satisfied with the result of the race. Today´s race was just a training for the next month – I will started at the FIS Nordic World Ski in Val di Fiemme in Italy, so I did not expect medal. That pleased me more.“

Thomas Bing: “I am incredibly happy. Today, it was a really tough race. I did not want to overvalue the start; I saved my energy for the end. And it was worth it: as time went on, I worked my way to the fourth place – thanks to the cooperation with Clementini from Italy, as well. And then, I got enough strength in the finish.”

Women’s 10km Free results HERE.
Men’s 15km Free results HERE.

Complete results are available at www.liberec2013.cz.

December 20, 2012 (Mazama, WA) – The Methow Valley’s elite skiers, Sadie and Erik Bjornsen, are home for Christmas with huge wins in the Super Tour. Both brother and sister came away from the competitions in Canmore, Canada, last week, as the US Nordic Ski Team’s 2012 Super Tour Leaders. The Bjornsens are determined to represent the U.S. in the 2014 Olympics and will be competing internationally this ski season with the hope of continuing their winning streak.

The Bjornsen siblings are hosting the Cascade Challenge Ski Camp, a free Nordic ski clinic, for members of the Methow Valley Nordic Ski Team ages 6 thru 13. 50 kids have registered in advance for this fun-filled morning with our local Nordic champions.

The camp will run from noon to 3 PM on Sunday, Dec. 23, at the Mazama Community Center (at the junction of Lost River Road and Goat Creek Road). The center will be open by 11:30 a.m. for those who are registered.

“Sadie and I are super excited to be hosting our annual kids ski camp at the Mazama Community Center this Sunday,” said Erik. “As of this morning the camp is full with 50 young skiers signed up.” “This is our way of giving back to the Methow Valley Nordic community that has encouraged and supported us since we first began skiing,” said Sadie.

Sadie keeps an active blog about her ski activities at www.sadiebjornsen.blogspot.com, as does Erik at www.erikbjornsen.com.

The Methow Valley Nordic Ski Educational Foundation (MVNSEF), a 501(c)(3) organization, has created the Elite Opportunity Fund to provide financial support to eligible graduates of the Methow Valley Junior Nordic Team program who have been selected by a “national governing body” in one of the Nordic disciplines (USST, USBA) to compete in sanctioned international events or training camps. The MVNSEF recognizes the considerable financial difficulties faced by promising post-junior team skiers in their efforts to compete and succeed at the international level, and the very limited support provided by the USSA.

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.

January 28, 2011 (Otepaa, Estonia) – Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov won the gold medal in the Junior men’s 1.4km classic sprint over Norwegian Sondre Turvoll Fossli, while Russia took third place with Gleb Retivykh winning the bronze.

American Erik Bjornsen of the Methow Valley, WA, lead the way for the North Americans as the lone qualifier with a strong 10th place. Canada’s Andy Shields in 31st narrowly missed advancing to the quarter finals by .19s as the two skiers ahead of him tied in 29th. Bjornsen was 4th in his quarterfinal heat and did not advance as a lucky loser finishing 14th overall.

The men’s final told the story featuring only Russians and Norwegians. In the qualifying round Fossli was the class of the field but in the end Ustiugov had more power.  It was a great battle between the pair as Fossli was leading from the start but Ustiugov was close behind with epic doubling poling and made his move to pass the Norwegian. Fossli was unable to counter and down the final stretch the Russian won by about a ski length.

Ustiugov was thrilled with his race, telling the FIS News Service, “This was a special day for me, because this is the first time I have beaten Gleb. This track was very difficult for me. I saw the race where the Russian girl crashed and I was really disappointed about it. It added strength to me because now, I had to bring the medals to the team.”

Fossli, was gracious and looked at things with perspective saying, “I felt pretty good out there today, but Sergey was just faster than me. I am not disappointed at all, because this is my first year at the junior championships. I am very satisfied.”

Other North American men who did not advance included Skyler Davis (USA) in 35th, Patrick Stewart-Jones (CAN) in 36th, Tyler Kornfield (USA in 38th, George Cartwright (USA) in 49th and Canada’s Jordan Cascagnette who was 73rd.

Qualifications HERE.
Final Results HERE.

January 26, 2011 (Otepaa, Estonia) – While it was a mixed nation podium today in the men’s junior 10km free race, the top step again belonged to Norway. On a cool day with powdery snow conditions the winner delivered a world cup worthy performance. The victor was Sindre Bjoernestad Skar of Norway with a time of 24:05.2. Second place went to Markus Weeger of Germany, who was back 16 seconds while third went to Perttu Hyvarinen (FIN) at 17.5 seconds.

While the course is getting positive reviews, it is a tough one. Following the event Skar said, “I knew this race was my best chance at Otepaa to be the champion. I knew I had to fight from the very first 100 meters to the end. It am very happy to be the champion. That’s amazing,”.

Weeger was not disappointed by winning the silver medal. “I began this race slowly (and built into it)….My skis were very fast. I didn’t expect to be on the podium,” he commented.

The top American was Alaska skier, Scott Patterson, now racing for UVM, in 28th. Head coach of the US Junior Ski Team squad in Estonia, Matt Whitcomb, described Patterson’s race to SkiTrax in a phone interview. “I just talked with him,” said Whitcomb, “Scott said he felt off the mark in today’s race. He said he went out poorly, it was cold and that he felt flat. But, I’ll tell you, to be flat and off the mark and still finish in the top thirty is pretty good. He can be in the top ten in this event.”

Denver’s Andrew Dougherty placed 49th, Erik Bjornsen from Mazama, WA was 57th and George Cartwright (NMU) was tied in 76th.

Andy Shields from Waterloo lead the Canadian men in 49th with a time of 26:20.3, followed by Canmore Nordic’s Russ Kennedy in 50th, Jordan Cascagnette (Team Hardwood) in 64th, and Adam Gillmor from Rocky Mountain Racers in 68th.

“Overall, I think our men had an average day,” Canadian coach Eric de Nys told SkiTrax by email. “There are tough shoes to fill with our last crop of juniors and the likes of Alex Harvey and Fred Touchette. Our target is still the podium but we’re not at that point yet.

“Andy started very fast but just couldn’t maintain the pace. After skiing the 17th fastest on the first lap, he started to fade and ended up 49th and wasn’t happy with his effort. His favourite race is the pursuit and he’s looking forward to it. Russell skied consistently  and overall was happy with his effort while Jordan said he felt okay about his race. Aaron wasn’t overly pleased with his day and feels he can do better. The focus now is the upcoming races.”

Thirty-five nations are taking part in the FIS World Junior and U-23 World Nordic Championships. This year’s championships mark the first time they have live television coverage on EuroSport 2.

Full results HERE.