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Gus Schumacher has won races before—but never a race like this. World Junior Champion in two relays, World Junior Champion in an individual race, sometime podium contender in a number of World Cup events, but he’s never had a race end like this one . . . with Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo (NOR) giving him a congratulatory hug at the foot of the World Cup race-leaders chair. Cross-country skiing aficionados would admit that the race format of Minneapolis’ Stifel Loppet Cup was devised to give an American skier the best possible chance of victory on American soil; it’s just that Gus Schumacher was not the American skier for whom that strategy was devised. Today’s result was one of the stories every American ski fan may wish for, but a result that none really would have anticipated. Regardless of any such likelihoods or expectations—and riding waves of energy and emotion springing from the chants, the clapping mittens, and the clanging cowbells of American fans—Schumacher won the day, orchestrating an historic victory in the World Cup 10 k Freestyle Individual Start. He’s never won a race like this before . . .
All around Theodore Wirth Park—and all across the country—American ski fans went crazy. And the rest of the skiing world seemed to go crazy for the Americans:
“Here in the US? How can this be better?” Klaebo said of Schumacher’s victory. “I mean, it’s HUGE!”
“It’s insane!” smiled race second-place finisher, Harald Oestberg Amundsen (NOR). “I’d thought before the race that Jessie is the one who’s going to win this race—and I thought I had a really good race and a strong finish—but Gus was even stronger than me. So, hats off to him!”
Schumacher orchestrated his unlikely victory through bold strategy, consistent pacing, and the energy received from 15,000 cheering, bell-ringing American fans.
“I felt pretty unstoppable out there,” Schumacher said. “The ‘USA!’ chants in the last couple of hills were really crazy.”
It was thrilling. It was epic, it was historic as Schumacher joined a short and exclusive list of American male cross country skiers who have stood on a World Cup podium (and we apologize for any names this accelerated search may have overlooked):
- Bill Koch, World Cup Overall Champion in 1982, winner of five World Cup distance events that year, and another in 1983.
- Tim Caldwell, second on a World Cup podium (ahead of third place, Bill Koch) in Alaska, March 1983.
- Dan Simoneau, second in a World Cup (behind Koch), Falun Sweden, 1982.
- Andy Newell, three Sprint podium performances in 2006, 2008, and 2010.
- Torin Koos, third in a World Cup Sprint, Estonia 2007
- Noah Hoffman, fastest time-of-day in a World Cup Freestyle Pursuit in Finland in December of 2013.
- Simi Hamilton, four career World Cup podiums, including a win in Lenzerheide, Switzerland in December of 2013.
In the Stifel Loppet Cup 10 k Freestyle in Minneapolis, Schumacher achieved his own historic victory by defeating the current World Cup Overall leader, Amundsen (second) , 2023 World Cup Distance Champion, Paal Golberg (NOR) (third), and Klaebo—perhaps the best there has ever been—in fourth. An American winning a World Cup cross-country ski race in America: an entire skiing nation had hoped for just such a result, and Gus Schumacher delivered it.
10 k Individual Start Freestyle
For the second day, Minneapolis played host to the FIS World Cup of cross-country skiing. The Wirth Park course was still challenging, the snow was still firm and consistent, the temperatures remained steady, the sun continued to shine. The skyscrapers of Minneapolis soared in the background, v-boards were placed, sponsor placards were erected, timing systems were powered up . . . and the crowd came back again. And on this second day, the crowd’s energy and the crowd’s loyalty were rewarded with a race for the ages.
In any 10 k Freestyle Individual Start, there are usually only a few interesting stories to tell: it’s a time trial, and individual test, a way of revealing who is strongest, fastest, best. The cast of characters on the podium really doesn’t change al that often. Temperatures were relatively warm (not a day for cutting legs and arms off of racing skin suits, but comfortably warm), and conditions were fair. It wasn’t the kind of day that would likely produce surprising results from lesser-known skiers. In such warm conditions, ski speed would be the result (primarily) of ski construction and base structure, so the skiers who are blessed with the fastest skis would be likely to enjoy the best results. Few surprises were expected. Klaebo had taken back the Sprint Leader’s red bib after Saturday’s Sprint Qualifier. Amundsen (NOR) entered the day wearing the World Cup Overall Leader’s yellow bib. Norway’s other distance stars were on the race roster and appeared poised to produce another Norwegian podium-sweep. With the stage thusly set, a field of 76 individual starters set off on a three-lap course (roughly seven minutes/lap) covering ten kilometers. Of course there were other finishers and other stories out on the race course today—other Americans and other Canadians, too—but today really is about just this one, enormous, glorious result: Gus Schumacher won a World Cup.
Schumacher led at the 5.8 kilometer mark (among starters at the time), and was the fastest finisher with roughly half the field having completed the course. When it comes to a World Cup event leader’s chair, most young Americans know that if they’re fortunate enough ever to sit in it, they’re not likely to sit there for long. “I heard that I went into the leader’s chair,” said Schumacher. “And I was like ‘sweet! I gotta get on that thing!”
Schumacher continued to sit in what appeared to be the least-comfortable leader’s chair of the World Cup season; he waited in the chair longer than anticipated. Schumacher’s split times continued holding up alongside those of Amundsen, and American fans began to sense that Schumacher had created something special on this sunny Sunday morning. Then the other contenders began finishing. Schumacher’s time held up as William Poromaa (SWE) came across eight seconds behind. Schumacher’s time continued to hold up ahead of Federico Pellegrino (FRA), then Hugo Lapalus (FRA), then Paal Golberg (NOR), then Andrew Musgrave (GBR), then Friderich Moch (GER), then Calle Halfvarsson (SWE), then Amundsen!
Late starter and pre-race favorite—Simen Hegstad Krueger (NOR)—trailed Schumacher by just five seconds with 1500 meters to go. But Schumacher was not to be denied, and Krueger gained back less than one second in that final section. When Krueger crossed the finish line in eighth place, Schumacher’s teammates rushed the leader’s chair, hoisted him onto their shoulders, and danced an impromptu victory lap across the finish area. History had been made, though it would take Schumacher a bit longer for the truth to sink in.
“I’m just so grateful, and thankful, and happy,” he said. “It means a lot to me to have my best race here—with my grandma here, and so many other people who would never be able to watch otherwise.”
And if the Minneapolis World Cup was envisioned as a way to inspire young American skiers for the future, then Schumacher had some words for them, as well:
“Trust yourself,” he said. “Be patient. Take the time and love the sport . . . “A LOT of us can do this . . . maybe that’s what this means.”
Men’s 10 k Freestyle Individual Start RESULTS
John Teaford
John Teaford—the Managing Editor of FasterSkier — has been the coach of Olympians, World Champions, and World Record Holders in six sports: Nordic skiing, speedskating, road cycling, track cycling, mountain biking, triathlon. In his long career as a writer/filmmaker, he spent many seasons as Director of Warren Miller’s annual feature film, and Producer of adventure documentary films for Discovery, ESPN, Disney, National Geographic, and NBC Sports.
