February 06, 2012 – Wow! What else can I say after the week that Devon Kershaw just had – 3rd in Otepaa, then 3rd in Moscow, followed by a 1st in Rybinsk, Russia on Saturday and a 6th on Sunday. At the end of the week he had moved up to 3rd overall in the Men’s World Cup standings – the highest ranking ever by a Canadian male.

His 1st place in Rybinsk in the 15km skate mass start was also the first time a Canadian male had finished first in a distance World Cup since Pierre Harvey did it in 1988 at the Holmenkollen in Norway. I was the Canadian Team Leader at that 50km race in Oslo and I can remember it as if it was yesterday. I am sure that everyone who was with the team this weekend will remember this race for a long time.

Earlier in the year I wrote that Devon was the kind of skier who needs good results to get confidence and he re-iterated this himself after the race on Saturday. His confidence is so high that he knew that he was going to win the race at the top of the last uphill. Imagine being able to say that to yourself in the last km of a World Cup race. He knew he had a great sprint in him and he put himself in a position to use that sprint to win the race.

Wow again!

What else can you say after the two weeks that Jessie Diggins has had since she joined the World Cup in Europe for the first time. She was 2nd in the team sprint with Kikkan Randall in Milan, fastest qualifier in the sprint in Moscow (eventually finishing 6th ), 5th in 10km mass start in Rybinsk followed by 12th in the 15km pursuit. She is only 20 years old! This woman is a superstar in the making.

Before Xmas many were wondering why she was skiing at home rather than being on the World Cup. I believe that it was good for her to stay in North America and race and learn how to win and do well in her first year as a senior skier. She has carried her great attitude to the World Cup and it shows. She is not afraid of racing and doing well and she is not afraid of the other women.

It also sounds like she is not afraid to fail. She says that she knows that she can have bad races, but that it really doesn’t matter. What a great attitude.

As always in Russia the field was very small as many skiers chose to miss these races. Some use travel as an excuse, some don’t like to go to Russia, some use the excuse of the cold. What this means is that the men’s field is dominated by Russian skiers. They had 8 men in the top 12 in the 30km on Sunday. (the same cannot be said for the Russian women – their best result on Sunday was 13th).

One Russian skier of note who returned to the World Cup to finish 4th in the 30km was Eugeniy Dementiev. You remember him, don’t you? He won the 30km at the Olympics in Torino. In 2009 he was banned for 2 years for doping. He is back now and he has picked up where he left off. Things that make you go hmmmmmm.

Meanwhile the women’s World Cup picture changes daily. Marit Bjoergen (NOR) regained her lead from Justina Kowalczyk (POL) by winning on Saturday and then lost it again by finishing 3rd on Sunday. Kowalczyk could only manage a 7th on Saturday but her 2nd place in Sunday’s Skiathlon moved her back ahead by only 2 points. This is going to be a race that goes right down to the last race of the season in March.

While Kershaw moved up to 3rd and Alex Harvey moved up to 6th, the top two skiers – Dario Cologna (SUI) and Petter Northug (NOR) remained where they were despite not racing in Russia. Cologna has 1,474 points, Northug has 1,181 – 300 more that Kershaw. This also looks to be a two person race to the end of the year, but with Northug spending some time racing on the marathon circuit it is going to be hard for him to catch Cologna.

It was nice to see Kris Freeman pull off a good result in the 30km on Sunday. This has not been his best distance over the years so his 13th place is a bright spot in an otherwise dull year. He has said that he has had some personal issues to deal with this winter so I hope that this result shows that he has put them behind him and he can start to ski to his real level. With all of the other positive results this winter from North American skiers it would be great if Freeman could join the party on a regular basis.

Next week the “White Circus” moves to Nove Mesto in the Czech Republic for 15 and 30km mass start races on Saturday followed by team relays on Sunday. I sure hope that the Canadian men field a team for the men’s relay – they need the practice having dropped out of the relay in November and not fielding the A team in Olso for the World Championships last year. Other nations see these races as important, so should Canada.