January 26, 2015 (Rybinsk, Russia) – Team USA women had another fantastic day as Jessie Diggins (USA) continued her upward trajectory to finish fifth in the 15km Skiathlon FIS World Cup event in Rybinsk, Russia, followed closely by her storming teammate Liz Stephen (USA) in seventh, and two more teammates in the top 20.

(l-r) Jessica Diggins (USA) and Elisabeth Stephen (USA) celebrate strong results in Rybinsk. ©Nordic Focus

Russia’s Yulia Tschekaleva (RUS) grabbed her first World Cup victory, completing the 7.5km CL/7.5km FR race in a time of 44:16.0, 15.6s ahead of second place, Martine Ek Hagen (NOR), and 22.9s in front of third place, Riitta-Liissa Roponen (FIN).

Women's Rybinsk Skiathlon podium: (l-r) Martine Ek Hagen (NOR), Yulia Tchekaleva (RUS) and Riitta-Liisa Roponen (FIN) ©Nordic Focus

Tschekaleva made her winning move early, attacking at the end of the classic portion to finish the skate leg solo.

Yulia Tchekaleva (RUS) wins Rybinsk Skiathlon ©Nordic Focus

Diggins was pleased with her second top-five effort in as many days: “I’m super psyched to be having a great race weekend and really proud of our team – 4 in top 20 is always a sweet thing! Our techs and coaches came through with fantastic boards and I was able to keep calm and keep pushing in the classic half, and in the skate half I kept yoyo-ing off the back in a pack the was moving through the field, and somehow had just enough energy at the end to sprint it out!”

Stephen, who really started to shine during the Tour de Ski, continued to perform well in Rybinsk and had the honour of wearing the #1 bib for her first time. “I feel confident and happy at where I am going into the preparation period for World Champs and I am really excited to have some good team time next week in Davos, with great tracks, sunny weather and fun activities all together, maybe even a video!”

“The techs made great skis again, especially classic skis, and I felt, again, like I could ski as I wanted to up all the hills.  My energy was great, the hills couldn’t come fast enough and none seemed long enough, which makes me feel really good about where my fitness is right now.  The wind played a significant factor, especially in the skate race, and made it really difficult to make any breaks, though it was possible as Yulia showed today.  It was especially great to see Jessie having her form in both sprinting and distance coming back to where she knows it can be and wants it to be.  Today and yesterday were really big days for her and for our team,” said Stephen.

Sadie Bjoernsen (USA) in 15km Rybinsk Skiathlon ©Nordic Focus

Sadie Bjornsen (USA) had a strong day as well, finishing 13th: “Another great day of racing here in Russia. After a solid classic leg, I struggled for a while when I first switched to skate, but was able to pull it together by the end. Russia has some challenging courses here, but I have really enjoyed them this week! I am for sure ready for a nice break for the next couple weeks!

Really great to see Jessie skiing another incredible day, and a solid 4 girls in the top 20! Fun confidence before World Championships.”

Marina Chernousova (RUS) followed by Anouk Faivre Picon (FRA) and Rosie Brennan (USA) ©Nordic Focus

And finally, Rosie Brennan (USA) took 20th place: “I think I skied very consistently. I skied the whole race within a few places of where I started, which I am happy about. I tend to prefer classic, but the classic was a little tricky today and the hills were quite steep so I was actually happy to switch to skate. I am definitely feeling some fatigue from the last month so I didn’t feel like I had much finishing speed which was a bummer because I was skiing in a pack and would have liked to finish in the front of that pack. The conditions were solid. It’s quite humid here so the kick was a little tricky despite the hard tracks and good temperatures, but everyone was struggling a bit so it was really have keeping your calm and making it work. I thought my skis were good in both legs.

It’s inspiring and exciting to see so many girls doing really well. I am very happy for them and it gives me hope that I can continue to improve upon my own results and one day be skiing with them.”

No Canadian women competed.

Results here.