FasterSkier coverage of US Nationals is <sponsored by Atomic skis.
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The 2004 US Cross-Country Championship starts this coming weekend, on Saturday January 3rd at the Black Mountain Venue in Rumford, Maine. Fasterskier.com covered last week <Click here who we consider the men’s favorites and medal candidates. On the women’s side it is a smaller field that will fight for the very top positions.
Women’s race favorites:
So far in the season there are two US skiers clearly ahead of the rest of the field, Rebecca Dussault and Wendy Wagner.
Rebecca Dussault is in a clear overall lead in the US NorAm SuperTour, after winning six out of the last seven races. Despite her young age (23), she is on comeback mission after having taken a few years off to start her family. She is our favorite in any of the skate races at US Nationals, but can also easily be victorious in the classical technique competitions.
Wendy Wagner will however give anyone a run for the top spot next week, especially in the classical technique competitions. Her upper body and double pole strength can enable her to pull ahead in the flat sections of the courses.
 in Olympic company.</font><BR></p>
<p><B>Kikkan Randall</B>, the 2002 Olympian from Anchorage, Alaska, has the last seasons been the fastest short distance/sprint skier in the US, and will undoubtedly pick up the pace in Rumford. Her results at high altitude during the Soldier Hollow SuperTour were encouraging. Look for Kikkan in especially the Sprint and the shorter races.</p>
<p><B>Katja Ivanova</B> was last year’s overall best skier at the US Nationals, also held at Rumford. If she is back in shape this year, she will be a contender in any race.</p>
<p>Other candidates: </p>
<p><B>Canadians Milaine Theriault, Dasha Gaiazova, and Chandra Crawford</B> have showed great skiing in the Canadian Continental Cup races in December, and could easily take up several of the top spots on the result list in any of the races. </p>
<p>US Development Team skiers <B>Aubrey Smith and Melissa Oram</B> together with 2002 Olympian <B>Lindsey Weir</B> will also likely contend for the spots around top-5.</p>
<p><B>The 30-km mass-start race:</B><br />
The last race of the US Nationals’ Week is the mass-start 30-km race. Being at the end of the week, a mass-start skate race may create an opportunity for new skiers to advance towards the front of the pack. Strong long-distance skiers, such as <B>Sarah Conrad</B> (medal last year), will likely be in the lead group.</p>
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