Oberhof Freestyle Sprint—Lars Heggen Proves His Point

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Some day, Norway won’t be the only force in Men’s World Cup cross-country skiing. Some day, the participation of other nations will truly matter. Other nations will hear their anthems played, other skiers will excel, other results will be cited and praised. Some day, France may figure it out, or Finland may remember its heritage, or Sweden may return to prominence. The USA may identify another Bill Koch, or Italy another Pellegrino, or Switzerland another Cologna, or Russia another Bolshunov. Some day, the podium of the Men’s Cross-Country Skiing World Cup will not be decorated exclusively in Norwegian flags. While that’s not yet the cross-country skiing world that we live in, it is this upcoming World cup weekend in Oberhof where we expect to witness a kind of “It’s A Wonderful Life” view of Nordic skiing . . . the chance to see what the world would be like without them.

France stayed home from Oberhof, presumably for national championships and team selections of their own. But everyone else is here, hoping to add to their World cup résumés with some of the scraps left on the tablecloth by absent Norwegians. Finland has sent its best (their Sprinters, anyway), and Sweden (in Norway’s absence they could make a splash), and the Italians (Federico Pellegrino and Elia Barp will see their chances to capture glory). The Czechs and the Swiss are here as well, hoping to grab World Cup distinction while the Norwegians are at home. And Team USA has sent it’s own hungry skate-sprinters, as well. Ben Ogden and Jack Young will be vying to return to the finals . . . even to imagine standing atop the podium (dare we say). JC Schoonmaker will be desperate to prove he belongs on the team that marches into Milano-Cortina. Gus Schumacher will be itching to prove that he and Ogden make a compelling Team Sprint team. There’s a lot going on . . . the same sort of drama that goes on every single week of the World Cup season, but no one really notices it because we’re so distracted by the Norwegian that tsunamis through every World cup venue.

And where’s Norway? Well, Norway has more important business to attend to. World Cup wins, World Cup podiums, World Cup points: those are every-week occurrences for ski-crazy Norway. But 2026 is an Olympic year . . . the big prizes will be awarded at the Games of Milano-Cortina. So, this weekend in Oberhof, Norway sends stand-ins while the true contenders refine their technique or taper their training, or just put their feet up for a few hours before the headlong streak toward Norwegian immortality in Milano-Cortina continues.

Norway Still Expects to Win

Lars Heggen (NOR) is 20 years old . . . and he just dominated the Sprint competitions at the recent Norwegian Nationals. Granted, a number of Norway’s very best Sprinters weren’t there (no Klaebo, no Valnes, no Amundsen), but Heggen made enough of an impression that many Norwegian ski-pundits called for his immediate elevation to the Olympic Team. We can assume that Petter Northug was not among that enthusiastic group of pundits . . . especially since a 20-year-old Northug dominated 2006 Norwegian Nationals in an even more commanding manner than Heggen did in 2026. And Northug was unceremoniously denied an Olympic berth because of the selection committee’s assertion that, at only 20, he was too young for the pressures of Olympic competition, that Northug would benefit from more development time before being tossed into the Olympic maelstrom. Northug’s career turned out all right in the end, but it may have been even better if he’d collected another Olympic medal or two at the 2006 Games in Torino.

Northug’s little brother, Even, competes for Norway in the World Cup Sprint this weekend in Oberhof. Like his brother 20 years ago, Even Northug has already been told that no spot is reserved for him on the Norwegian Team at the upcoming Olympic Games. Well, he’s still a world class Sprinter . . . it will be interesting to see how the younger Northug uses this weekend’s Sprint opportunity to comment on his being the second Northug to have been ignored in his efforts to make a Norwegian Olympic Team.

But first, you need to qualify . . .

Qualifying

We don’t know exactly why, but it’s been reported that top 30 in today’s Sprint qualifying will be rewarded with increased FIS World Cup points (nearly double when compared to normal World Cups, or to races in tour de Ski that received only 50% points). It’s a good reason to be at your best in this particular qualifying event . . . and a pretty good way to continue shuffling the deck for numerous nations that are still choosing their Olympic Teams. And while a number of Norway’s best sprinters decided to sit this one out, Norway still manages to dominate most men’s Wold Cup racing. Case in point: six of Norways seven entries qualified for the heats, with Lars Heggen doing the job he was sent to do—winning the qualifier by 1.5 seconds.

Americans took advantage of this diluted World Cup field with JC Schoonmaker finishing 13th, Jack Young 22nd, Zanden McMullen 28th, Michael Earnhart 35th, Kevin Bolger 44th, Owen Young 54th.

“The heat selection strategy was definitely a bit different today with a lot of normal World Cup guys not being here,” said Schoonmaker. “I went for heat 1 because that felt like a good one to move on from and it was a better option than usual with  Klaebo not here. Other than heat selection the strategy didn’t differ at all for me, just trying to race my best!”

McMullen is better known as a Distance skier, but his strong qualifying effort proved his versatility. “I do actually like using sprint races as a bit of a warm up,” said McMullen. “It puts my mind and body into a race mentality that I can’t really achieve on a race prep day. Sprints also typically feel lower stakes to me, so it’s just a nice way to go out and have some fun!”

Sprint Heats—New Cast, New Strategies

Skiing can be such a strange sport. Oberhof is a famed biathlon venue; if this were a weekend of biathlon races the grandstands would be packed. As it is, this was a cross-country weekend, and the stadium stood all but empty. The German fans who could’ve been here definitely missed a good show, and a fair indication of what the future of what World Cup Sprint events may look like in the near future. Even with a number of bright stars missing from the days entry list, the racing proved fast and furious.

There was a lot going on in Quarterfinal 1: Lars Heggen wearing the green U23 World Cup leaders bib, alongside JC Schoonmaker, Zanden McMullen, and Even Northug. Everybody with something to prove, everybody with something to gain, and only two minutes of Heat 1 in which to do it. Schoonmaker led through the early parts of the course, but faded by mid-race. Heggen accelerated up the hill before the finish, sufficiently gapping his rivals and easing up before the finish line which he was followed across by a scrambling Even Northug. McMullen would finish fourth in the heat, followed by Schoonmaker in fifth. On the day, McMullen and Schoonmaker would finish 20th and 23rd, respectively.

Pellegrino advanced out of Quarterfinal 2 in which Jack Young’s day would end with a fifth place heat finish. Young had led early in the quarterfinal, evidently hoping to press the pace in the hopes of advancing as a lucky loser. His strategy was bold, but it left him one place short. Young would finish 24th on the day.

“I wanted to get to the front and control the race,” said Young. “Sadly, I wasn’t able to hold my position into the big climb—this wasn’t part of the plan. I then made up sole ground, but I didn’t have the energy to hold my position through the working finish.”

Semifinal 1 included Heggen, Pellegrino, and Northug who all came in together at the bottom of the final climb. Heggen would V2 the entire climb, while Pellegrino switched to a high-tempo V1 to scoot past into the hole-shot. Northug faded as Lauri Vuorinen (FIN) edged into the top three. Pellegrino would coast across for the heat win, followed by Heggen’s lunge for second ahead of Vuorinen in third and Northug fourth. Those lucky losers would sit and wait for the results of the second semifinal.

That second semifinal included one well known Sprinter—Switzerland’s Valerio Grond—who was joined by a cast of names we’re less accustomed to hearing: Filip Skari (NOR), Jaume Pueyo (ESP), Emil Liekari (FIN), Jiri Tuz (CZE), and Martino Carollo (ITA). Grond would finish second in the heat behind Liekari to advance to the final. Vuroinen and Northug—lucky losers from Semifinal 1—would advance as well.

Plenty at Stake in the Final

In the absence of truly dominant skiers, no one really knows what to do. The Sprint Final would become a bit of a curiosity as Heggen hoped to solidify his Olympic credentials . . . but Northug would be harboring similar plans of his own, and they’d both need to figure out how to deal with the cagey veteran, Pellegrino. In the final, Heggen and Pellegrino went to the front to control things, but neither looked eager to really drive the pace. Both the leaders chose the far-right line up the first climb as Liekari spun his wheels in the loose snow on the inside line. That was the point at which Grond took control, charging over the top of the climb. But Heggen’s fast skis could not be contained onthe subsequent downhill. He coasted easily into the lead, followed to the base of the final climb by Pellegrino and Northug. The final hill had offered a contrast in styles all day: Heggen’s V2 power vs. Pellegrino’s V1 tempo. This time up the hill, it was Heggen’s strategy that proved strongest, fending off Pellegrino’s V1 charge and holding on across the finish line for his first World Cup win. Northug would cross the line in third, a fine World Cup finish that was likely to be overlooked in Norway’s construction of its Olympic roster.

The 20 year old upstart bested the 35 year old veteran. The question that remained was this: was the Norwegian Olympic Team Selection Committee watching?

Oberhof World Cup Men’s Freestyle Sprint RESULTS

Oberhof World Cup Men’s Freestyle Sprint QUALIFYING

 

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