December 20, 2015 (Toblach, Italy) – Sadie Bjornsen led the U.S. team with a 19th-place finish in the women’s 10km CL in Toblach, Italy, while her teammate Jessie Diggins followed closely behind in 20th at just 5.6 seconds behind. Norway’s Therese Johaug was unstoppable winning her fifth consecutive World Cup race this year.

Sadie Bjornsen (USA) © Nordic Focus

Johaug proved herself once again as a powerhouse in distance races, finishing first with a 28.2-second lead over Finland’s Krista Parmakoski, with teammate Ingvild Oestberg (NOR) in third at 40.1 seconds behind the winner.

W podium © Nordic Focus

“Today was an incredibly challenging day due to conditions and the track. I gave it 110 percent, but unfortunately the result didn’t show what I believe I was capable of today,” said Bjorsen post-race. “I went out there trying to win, but the ducks didn’t all align today. It’s OK – one day they will, and I’ll fight for a classic podium.”

Diggins echoed her sentinments on the challenging course. “Toblach is tough because there’s a lot of gradual climbing (which I love because it feels like real classic skiing out there – long kicking and gliding) but also not a lot of rest! The corners and downhill sections are ones that demand to be worked well, and you can make up a lot of time on them by staying focused and working every inch.

Jessie Diggins in action © Michael Renström, Imega Promotion

“I’ve been working so hard for years to improve my classic skiing, so it feels really good to finally have that hard work come across in World Cup races. I was happy with my effort today. I felt like after racing every single race in period 1, plus the pre-season Gallivare races, my body is a little tired and I’m really looking forward to a nice relaxing week of training in Davos with my teammates,” she added.

Canada’s Emily Nishikawa was back in action on Sunday after sitting out yesterday’s sprint race to prepare for the 10km CL, her specialty, which paid off as the young Whitehorse skier turned in her best performance of the season finishing 39th (tie) with a time of 30:32.5.

Emily Nishikawa (CAN) © Nordic Focus

“This was a good result for Emily. She is in better shape now than she has been in years past. We are hoping for Emily to get into that top-30 so we need to keep working and progressing towards that goal,” said Justin Wadsworth, head coach, Canadian Cross-Country Ski Team.

The World Cup will now take a break until the 10th annual Tour de Ski gets underway Jan. 1-10, in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.

Full results here.