By: Greg Poduska
Eighteen American U18 male and female Nordic athletes from Ski Clubs and Teams sprinkled throughout the United States qualified for and then recently traveled to Gjoevik, Norway, to compete in the Equinor Norgecup Norwegian Junior Nationals Championships (AKA the Nordic Nations Cup). On their way to the race venue, they quickly traveled from the airport in Oslo to train on the famed Lillehammer Nordic trails and finally made their way to Gjoevik to settle in for training, rest, and then their series of races.
Shorter daylight hours and the demands of international ski training and preparations got them ready for some of the toughest junior ski races in the world. Remember, this is the Norwegian Junior Nationals we’re talking about! The nation has had podium after podium this season at the World Cup level. And, of course, podiums in every recent and distant year that can be remembered.
Those male athletes qualifying for the trip: William Bentley (Vail), Noa Kam-Magruder, Jack Leveque, and Vebjorn Flagstad (all three from the Alaska Winter Stars), Nate Streubel (Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club), Quinten Koch (Plain Valley Nordic), Oskar Flora (APU Nordic), Callahan Waters (Bridger Ski Foundation) , and Logan Drevlow (Loppet Nordic).
And on the female side: Lena Poduska (Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club), Ally Wheeler (Casper Nordic), Tula Higman (Bridger Ski Foundation), Annelies Hanna (Ford Sayre Nordic), Niki Johnson (Tahoe Endurance), Linnea Ousdigian (Loppet Nordic), Ruth Krebs (Craftsbury Nordic), Mia Stiassny (APU Nordic), and Britta Johnson (Tahoe Endurance).
While many young U.S. racers competed in each of the three events of the Championships (Interval Start Classic- 3km, Sprint Free- 1.2km, and Mass Start Free 7.5km), some of the most notable performances were on the women’s side of the series in the Mass Start Free 7.5km finale race.
There were separate races for both U17 Females and U18 racers. In the U17 field of 80 racers, the lone two U.S. athletes both had exceptionally strong performances. Mia Stiassny, an APU Team racer, earned a silver medal spot, flying through the course in 21:14.6, just 3.8 seconds out of the Norwegian Junior National U17 leaders spot. Tula Higman, a BSF Team racer, finished a strong 5th place, just 19 seconds behind Stiassny.
On the U18 7.5km free side, Lena Poduska (Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club racer) skied to a bronze 3rd place podium out of the 79 racer field, with a time of 21:06; 10.4 seconds shy of the Norwegian leader. Less than 3 seconds behind Poduska was a fast 6th place result by Ally Wheeler (Casper Nordic), followed by Niki Johnson in 11th place (21:37.3) of the Tahoe Endurance Club.
Based on the performances of these 5 young U.S. female racers, one can only imagine the level of excitement they created for Greta Anderson, the Development Team Coach for the U.S. Ski Team. Who knows what the athletes’ futures will be? But if they all continue to pull off finishes like what they showed the Norwegians at their own Norgecup Junior Nationals this February, watch out!!!
And for all the eighteen athletes who attended this Nordic cup race series, whether sidelined for some of the races due to illness or for those skiing through the fog and wet weather Norway threw at them, these young athletes grew as skiers and as young international athletes. Hopefully, we’ll see many of them at future international races in the years to come.
