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As the women pass the halfway point in World Cup Competition individual events, focus is now clearly on the chase for Crystal Globes. In the Overall standings—after yesterday’s Sprint—Jessie Diggins (USA) retains her lead, but her margin has slipped to 268 points over Linn Svahn (SWE). Rosie Brennan (USA) maintained third place in the Overall, but only by a scant 17 points over Emma Ribom (SWE). Diggins and Brennan are also 1-2 in the Distance category. With today’s 20 kilometer Classic mass start race, it was an opportunity for the leaders to pad their margins, and for the chasers to gain ground.
Not only would the Americans have to contend with the push from the Swedes to gain ground, but they would also have to deal with 35 year old Kerttu Niskanen (FIN), who is definitely a feature attraction whenever the words “Classic Ski” and “Distance” are used in the same sentence. After all, it was Niskanen’s performance in last year’s 20 kilometer Classic race on the last day of individual competition that allowed her to edge out Diggins for the Distance title. Niskanen has seven individual World Cup wins: they are all in Classic. Joining Niskanen as a pre-race favorite was Frida Karlsson (SWE) who was coming off her best Sprint race ever and is an excellent distance Classic skier. If Karlsson was in the mix at the end, she would be extremely difficult to beat.
With a 37 point margin separating the points earned for first and tenth place in a single race, there was the potential for a lot of shuffling in the standings. Also adding to the stakes is that today’s race had bonus point sprints, at 9.4 and 16 kilometers. The competitor going first through those time checks would gain an additional 15 points. Between bonus points and finishing points, the possible outcomes were almost too many to calculate. Diggins revealed after the race that she planned to use the bonus sections and their placement close to a downhill to her advantage.
After a tough day of Classic skiing, it was Frida Karlsson (SWE) taking the victory. Katharina Hennig (GER) gave the hometown crowd a thrill by finishing second. Niskanen took third.
Diggins was the top American finishing sixth. She was followed by Rosie Brennan in tenth place. Sophia Laukli was the next best American finishing 28th , and Julia Kern was 33rd. The top Canadian was Liliane Gagnon in 35th. Sonjaa Schmidt was 45th. Katherine Stewart-Jones did not finish.
The 20 kilometer Classic Mass Start
At the start it was Diggins, Ebba Andersson (SWE), and Victoria Carl (GER) taking the lead. Joining the leaders at the front was Karlsson who was clearly feeling good after her career-best Sprint day yesterday.
Early on in each lap, the course had a steep technical section with a couple of difficult turns which the skiers would be forced to navigate six times. This section would prove critical throughout the day.
At the end of the first lap, the pace had slowed down from the start. At 3.3 kilometers, Brennan decided to move to the front to pick up the pace. The move did spread out the field a little, and it eventually resulted in an all-Swedish group at the front. It was Andersson, Karlsson, Emma Ribom (SWE), and Svahn now pushing the tempo.
The second time the racers took the technical downhill, Diggins used it to her advantage to catapult herself to the front of the pack. It was a strategy she would employ throughout the day. Heidi Weng (NOR) joined her and also used the downhill to her advantage to make up time. Diggins has made excelling on downhills a hallmark of her career. The second descent was also the first time that the lead pack began to string out. Hennig used this timing to join the leaders at the front. The pack had quickly been reduced to 29 skiers.
At 6.6 kilometers, Margrethe Bergane (NOR) decided to break from the pack and put a gap on the field. She quickly established a four second margin, and it looked like she might try a solo breakaway. With more than half the race to go, it would have been a bold move; however, the field wouldn’t let her go and quickly reeled her in. But Bergane’s efforts did help break up the field and quicken the pace. At nine kilometers, the lead group was now down to 16 women with Diggins having moved to the front.
Diggins was pushing hard and appeared to be gunning for the bonus points at 9.4 kilometers. She was indeed first across the bonus line, and immediately after crossing it, throttled back her pace slowing to a walk after crossing the bonus line. But she had just earned an additional 15 points in the standings.
When Diggins slowed, it was Niskanen’s time to announce that she was a real threat and moved to the front with Hennig and Karlsson. Diggins had quickly slid to the back of the pack and had lost contact for a moment. But as the group continued on the lap and went downhill again, Diggins used her descending skills to again regain contact and move back into the middle of the pack. It was hard to tell whether Diggins was testing her ability to conserve energy and use the downhill to regain her place, or whether she was having trouble keeping up with the pace.
The front group of 16 had Diggins at the end of it and Karlsson and the other Swedes at the front. At the start of the fifth lap, Brennan then made a bid and again moved toward the front. Diggins was beginning to be dropped from the lead group and it looked like she was struggling. Diggins was now seven seconds off the lead. But then the large downhill came into play again and, sure enough, Diggins once more used it to slingshot her way back into the pack and go into the lead. It was an amazing and abrupt reversal in the standings.
The storyline was now clearly set. Diggins was primed to moderate her energy output and use the course topography tactically to her advantage. Only moments earlier she had seemed to be struggling and then had somehow popped into the lead with only 4.5 kilometers to go. The second bonus point section was just ahead, and Diggins strategy was now fully revealed. She pushed up a big hill just before the bonus section and again took all 15 of the bonus points. Immediately after capturing the points, she again pulled off the side of the course, slowed down, and went to the middle of the pack. Diggins had just given a master class in race tactics. By being in the lead at the right place she had gained 30 points in the standings before even crossing the finish line. This had been Diggins’ strategy all along. “My ribs have still been healing,” (from her fall in the Tour de Ski) said Diggins. “I knew this double pole finish was not going to be my strength. So going into the race I’m was going to try and ski really smart, conserve where I can, and get to the front for those bonus points, because in the big picture this is probably something that is better for me to focus on.”
I was focused on getting those bonus points and hoping to fight for a really good finish. I knew I needed to play to my strengths out there today.” Jessie Diggins
With three kilometers to go, Karlsson decided to make her decisive move. She went to the front with Niskanen, Andersson and Carl. The four leaders were able to put a gap on the rest of the field. For Diggins the question was had she spent too much energy fighting for the bonus points to put in a big enough effort to catch the leaders?
With two kilometers left, the lead pack had reconsolidated for a moment with Diggins and Brennan joining it. But Karlsson continued to push the pace, not allowing any of the chasers the slightest respite. Karlson, Hennig and Niskanen made a final push and Karlsson decided to make her break. Karlsson quickly shot away from the field into the stadium with Hennig futilely trying to catch her. Karlsson pulled away to take the victory. Hennig thrilled the German home crowd by finishing second. Niskanen ended up third. Diggins held on and finished only nine seconds behind the leaders in sixth place. Brennan was just behind her only 14 seconds back.
While Diggins didn’t find the podium, she had perhaps accomplished something even better. By amassing 30 bonus points and finishing in the top ten, she was actually able to put distance on Svahn—who finished fifth today—in the Overall standings and expanded her lead to 279 points.
20 k Classic Mass Start RESULTS
Katharina Hennig (GER), Frida Karlsson (SWE), Kerttu Niskanen (FIN), (l-r) (Photo: NordicFocus)
