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Fast-forward to February 10, 2026—Val di Fiemme, Italy.
Day 2 of the Olympic Cross Country schedule is a Classic Sprint, with medals being awarded in both men’s and women’s events on the same day. That means this Classic Sprint takes place after two days of rest for the women (following the 2 x 10 k Skiathlon), and one day of rest for the men’s field. In a normal World Cup weekend schedule, neither the men nor the women would usually be entering Day 2 with any extra rest after races on Day 1, so the Olympic rest-schedule is actually quite a luxury. And these are some of the world’s best endurance athletes; they should all be pretty well recovered. Even so, qualifying will be nerve wracking, and racing in the heats is liable to get wild.
Men’s Classic Sprint
Klaebo is expected to win. Why wouldn’t he? He didn’t lose a Sprint competition all last season. Even on those occasions when others thought they’d found an advantage, a strategy, a chink in his armor, still Klaebo managed to win . . . with style, with ease, with room to spare. It’s just amazing that one athlete can so dominate all the best competitors in their sport. And perhaps no athlete competing today in any sport displays the same level of dominance that Klaebo enjoys in Nordic Sprinting. But the upset is certainly coming, isn’t it? He’s bound to have an off day sooner or later, right? Someone’s going to figure out the secret to beating him eventually, won’t they?
Edvin Anger (SWE) thought he had it figured out last season, winning a World Cup Classic Sprint when Klaebo was home sick in Norway. Anger even had the audacity to crow about that win, going so far as to suggest that he, himself, would’ve won even if Klaebo had been entered. Two weeks later, Klaebo rose from his sick bed and stuffed Anger into the back seat where he belonged: no “I told you so” from Klaebo, no bat-flipping at the finish line, no gloating in the post-race press conference . . . but Klaebo’s point was made loud and clear. He’s far from ready to surrender his Sprint crown, no matter what some Swedish upstart my say, think, or wish.
Among other contenders, Federico Pellegrino (ITA) could thrill the Italian crowd with a podium performance, and no one in the field has more experience. This Olympic Games will certainly be Pellegrino’s swan song; he’d love to leave Cortina having delivered a treasure for the host nation.
The French will send their best, but even those fine sprinters (Richard Jouve, Lucas Chanavat, Jules Chappaz) have never shown they understand the secret to unlocking the Klaebo puzzle. Ben Ogden (USA) has sought ways and strategies to better contest with Klaebo, but he has not yet shown that he possesses the flat-out speed or the late-heat endurance to make it happen. On the other hand, if the Russians show up, things could be different. They’ve never demonstrated any shyness about rubbing elbows in the tight confines of a Sprint course. It’s not a team endorsing dirty tactics, it’s just a team following the philosophy that “rubbing is racing.” And when quarters get close, even the most elegant skiers can find themselves getting stepped on.
Women’s Classic Sprint
Sweden has built a roster of the world’s best Nordic Sprinters, challenged consistently by only Kristine Stavaas Skistad (NOR). Among the Swedes in contention for the Sprint gold medal are former World Cup Champion, Linn Svahn; multiple World and Olympic medalist, Maja Dahlqvist; World Cup Sprint event winner, Johanna Hagstroem; and reigning World and Olympic Sprint Champion, Jonna Sundling who finished 2025 in possession of the greatest speed, the flashiest sprint, and the most tenacious mass-start racing tactics of any skier on the World Cup tour.
Jasmi Joensuu (FIN) is the 2025 World Cup Sprint Champion, but she advanced to only one Sprint final in all of last season. She’s likely to qualify high in the rankings, but unless her summer of training and her chosen selection of tactics results in some marked changes, she is not expected to be a factor in Cortina. Nadine Faehndrich (SUI) on the other hand, is always a factor. She races intelligently, she has good speed, and maintains excellent fitness. If Sweden were to stumble, Faehndrich could conceivably take it all.
Jessie Diggins delivered a wonderful revelation with a bronze medal in Beijing’s Freestyle Sprint in 2022, but she has not regularly been a factor in Sprint finals since then. Since Beijing, her best chances in Sprints have seemed to come in those Sprints where her rivals are hindered by exhaustion from recent races (like in stage-race format of the Tour de Ski). The Olympic schedule offers two days of rest after the Skiathlon (the first race of the Olympic schedule), so most of Diggins’ rivals will be fresh; therefore, she might be reluctant to employ the tactic that she has used with great success, blasting through Sprint semifinals in order to earn at least a lucky loser slot to advance to finals. At the Olympics, Diggins may be reluctant to commit so much to an event that is less likely to deliver a medal. On the other hand, Jessie Diggins rarely seems reluctant to commit . . .
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.
