HINTERZARTEN, Germany – Billy Demong (Vermontville, NY) came back from seventh in the jumping round to finish second overall in the first of three FIS Grand Prix Nordic combined summer competitions in rainy Hinterzarten, Germany Saturday. The summer competition has athletes going head to head in dryland jumps and racing the cross country portion of the event on inline skates. “Bill finished second today after it started pouring rain 30 minutes before the start of...
The coaching staff consisted of Head Coach Ben Husaby (MBSEF), Brenna Knowles (MBSEF), Chris (Flash) Clark (Methow Valley), TJ Owens, and Janice Sibilia (JLS Sports). This was JLS Sports 7th trip out to Trout Lake and each year I think I say this, but it just gets better. The training was tough, (but the campers all came through with flying colors); the group of skiers was talented and willing to work hard and the coaches...
10x US National Champion, 2x Olympian, Kris Freeman has joined FasterSkier as a blogger. For years Kris has been the icon of American Nordic skiing and now we can keep up with his training, life and racing. Writes Kris in his blog intro: “Welcome to my blog. I skied my first race at the age of six. I have had a burning desire to ski fast ever since. I will be posting updates on my...
Kikkan Randall (Anchorage, AK) just wrapped up a session of training with the Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center on Eagle Glacier in the Chugach Mountains near Anchorage, AK. Weather would not allow for a helicopter so Randall, along with a group of APU athletes, hiked three hours to reach the glacier. “The hike in was quite exciting. You ascend 5,000 feet. We had everyone in good spirits so we kind of took our time...
Lake Placid, NY – The New York Ski Educational Foundation XC Program hosted 17 athletes from around the state at the Olympic Training Center July 8-13 in Lake Placid. The week was to be a high volume week and a chance to continue working on technique. Athletes had three focuses for the week: 1. preparation (for training and the upcoming winter) 2. focus while training 3. technique (improve efficiency) All three of these areas were...
Laura Spector – one of the top US female biathletes – has joined FasterSkier as a blogger. Laura had some impressive results last winter both domestically and in Europe, including a National Junior title. This past winter, she competed in the Youth/Junior World Championships in Ruhpolding, Germany and the next week jumped to the Senior Level at the Biathlon World Championships in Ostersund. Sweden. In her senior debut, she placed 62nd in the 15K Individual...
National kayak trainer Kjell Tore Solvang of Norway recommends Nordic skiers use paddling as an alternative training method in the summer and gives advice both on over-distance workouts, intervals, and technique in the boat. “There is more and more explosive strength in cross country ski racing, and training in the kayak can give ski racers a good alternative training method in this area,†says former Norwegian National Team Coach in paddling, Kjell Tore Solvang.
For the first time, the Ski Jumpers will receive company from their colleagues in Nordic Combined who will also stage the first competition of the Nordic Combined Summer Grand Prix in Hinterzarten this week. Following many discussions and analysis over the course of the spring months, at its meeting in Cape Town (RSA) in May, the FIS Council appointed Walter Hofer to define a strategy for modernizing the discipline of Nordic Combined. The main objective...
New Gloucester, ME July 23. Douglas Hoover (Williamsburg, PA) dominated both the Mass Start and the Pursuit competitions this past weekend, culminating in his third Summer Biathlon National Championship in a row. Stephanie Blackstone (Everett, PA) captured the Women’s National Championship after winning the Mass Start and finishing second in the Pursuit with the fastest overall time. This was Blackstone’s first Summer Biathlon National Championship. The 2008 US Summer Biathlon National Championships/ World Team Trials,...
Former elite US cross-country skier Christa Case Bryant recently published several articles on doping in the Christian Science Monitor. While these two pieces look at cycling, there are many similarities, and in light of continuing doping issues at the Tour de France, timely. The first piece is the first in a four-part featured series profiling four individuals who illustrate different aspects of the problem. The second is a news piece related to the Tour. David...
As we in the cross-country skiing community lament the steady retreat of winter, there is plenty of lambasting of government policy and bureaucracy and inertia. But in the midst of it comes a bold and mindboggling challenge, that perhaps, if enough people get behind it, could actually materialize into a promising reality. Echoing John F. Kennedy's 1961 challenge to Congress to put a man on the moon within the decade, Al Gore recently challenged Congress...
Billy Demong – one of the top Nordic Combined skiers in the world – has joined FasterSkier as a blogger. Billy finished last season ranked third overall on the World Cup, the best finish ever by a US Nordic Combined athlete. He took six World Cup podiums, including a win during the season. Writes Billy in his blog intro: “I am really excited to share my stories about life on the World Cup, and even...
Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation and US Ski Team members Noah Hoffman (Madshus) and Morgan Arritola both won the 10 mile race, with Hoffman breaking the nine-year-old course record by 35 seconds. He completed the challenging mountain course in 55:14, 2:29 better than his performance last year. Arritola literally ran away from the competition, posting a six and a half minute victory over Nicole DeYong (Fischer/Craft), finishing in a time of 1:04:35. Another SVSEF skier,...
Jorgen Aukland, last year’s Vasaloppet Champion, had a tough start to the training season. Despite being exhausted from a long racing season, the decorated marathon skier is already at a higher level now than he was at the same time of a year last season. After many races and a long season, Jorgen Aukland took almost the whole month of April off to rest. On May 1st, along with other elite skiers, he pushed his...
Fairbanks Cross Country (FXC), the year-round junior training program of the Nordic Ski Club Fairbanks seeks an energetic coach to assist with a growing group of J3-OJ athletes. The job primarily consists of coaching at regular training sessions, but also includes assisting with ski service at races both in town and out, as well as helping with various other elements of running a successful ski program. The right candidate should have a college degree, coaching...
Boulder Nordic Sport's Nathan Schultz demonstrates the basics of rollerskiing on the morning news, showing fine form and a flare for the small screen. As Nathan points out, “especially entertaining is the part where the talent forgets that they told the rollerskier to ski back down the hill during her interview of the next guest.”
Fall out from the Austrian doping scandal at the Olympics in 2006 continues as all Austrian athletes will be required to stay at the Olympic Village in Beijing. In Torino in 2006, searches of the off-site quarters of Austrian Cross-Country and Biathlon athletes led to the discovery of doping equipment, and the eventual lifetime ban of six Austrian athletes by the IOC. The Austrian Olympic Committee has announced that all Austrian athletes must live in...
The new FIS campaign entitled “Bring Children to the Snow†is making progress. This international marketing and activity campaign, the first of its kind in the Federation’s history, was approved by the FIS Council in November 2007 and presented at the 2008 Congress in Cape Town. It is designed to generate passion for snow activities among the younger generations and specifically seeks to activate and enable children and youngsters to spend time with their families...
With 22 days until the start of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Summer Games on 8th August 2008 and 576 days until the 2010 Games in Vancouver, the race for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games is also starting to take form. The first city to make its candidature for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games is official – Munich (GER) is seeking to become the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games after...