Over the weekend in Östersund, Sweden the IBU World Cup held its traditional 4 x 7 .5-kilometer for the men, and 4 x 5 k relays for the women. Saturday, Norway’s team of Johannes Dale, Erlend Øvereng Bjøntegaard, Tarjei Bø, and Johannes Thingnes Bø won the men’s race in 1:10:30.4 hours. In total, the team […]
Canmore NorAm / SuperTour / Nationals Weekend Wrap-up (Updated)
Updated with more quotes. The first three race days of both the NorAm and SuperTour series are complete and the athletes and coaches are digesting the lessons. It was free sprints Friday, classic distance Saturday, and interval start free technique distance on Sunday. The men started the Sunday with a four lap 15km followed by […]
WADA Declares Four Year Ban on Russia
In an unanimous vote Monday in Lausanne, Switzerland, WADA’s Executive Committee imposed a four year ban on Russian participation in major international sporting events. This blanket ban includes the 2020 Tokyo and 2022 Beijing Olympics. The list of Russian transgressions is long. According to a press release from WADA on Monday, the tipping point was […]
The Devon Kershaw Show: Lovely Lillehammer
First off, The Devon Kershaw show is live on iTunes and Google Play. And for that matter, Spotify. So you’ve got a few ways to subscribe and listen. Press the subscribe button on the player below for a direct link. Second, lots to breakdown after this weekend. Yup, Johaug crushed, but so did Diggins, […]
Ustiugov Closes with a Fury as Russia Goes 1-2 in Lillehammer Relay
Call it what you want: national pride, national bias, flag-waving: the team relays elicit nationalistic tendencies. In Lillehammer, Norway, you might think and maybe expect it’s your birthright to see the hometeam crush. That’s been the recent norm almost without exception. Here’s the quick stats to either dispel or reinforce those tendencies: Norway has won […]
Twelfth Consecutive Relay Win for Norway; USA Comes Back for Second
Athletes warmed up amidst fat falling snowflakes as a storm blanketed Lillehammer, Norway. The gun fired, and a flurry of this snow clouded the boots, poles, and relay socks as a wave of skiers strode their way up and out of the Birkebeiner Stadium for the first leg of the women’s 4 x 5-kilometer relay. […]
Canmore NorAm/SuperTour/Nationals Classic Distance
Day two of the first NorAm and SuperTour weekend was interval start classic, with 10km for the men and 5km for the women. The US SuperTour athletes took the chance to show their depth today, packing the top ten of the open categories. The 154 men raced first, with the U.S. Ski Team’s Zak Ketterson […]
Bolshunov Rebounds for 30 k Skiathlon Win with Holund Driving the Pace
Norwegian countryside just as you imagine: farms, pine trees, a deep snow-blanket, and fast skiing. All this was on display under a bluebird sky in Lillehammer, Norway for the men’s World Cup 30-kilometer skiathlon. Amidst this legacy-backdrop, the beauty of a dual technique race with enough grinding Ks to string out and decimate an impressive field […]
Therese Johaug Notches Seventh Skiathlon Victory; Diggins Charges to 2nd
This week’s episode of the Therese Johaug show featured a clinic in her signature event, the 15-kilometer mass start skiathlon in Lillehammer, Norway. Before today, the two-time World Championship gold medalist had made the podium in 13 of her 14 World Cup skiathlon starts (six of those were wins), failing only in Oberstdorf, Germany during […]
Canmore NorAm/SuperTour/Nationals Sprints
The NorAm series fully lived up to the North American Cup label in Canmore Friday with 1.3km free technique sprints to kick off a combined NorAm, SuperTour, and Mexican National Championships weekend. Full results for the weekend are on zone4, including live results every day. Friday featured sprints for the older age groups only (282 […]
Breaking New Ground: Noel Keeffe
This article was originally published on November 11, 2019 in Steamboat Magazine. It is reposted with permission. By: Tiia Libin Being a “first-ever” is rare, especially in a town filled with Olympians. Noel Keeffe is one of them. Born and raised in Steamboat Springs, Keeffe is the first Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club cross-country athlete to […]
IBU World Cup: France takes the win in Östersund’s 15 k Indivudual, Egan in 35th
The women contested the 15-kilometer individual race in Östersund, Sweden on Thursday. As the IBU World Cup gets into gear, the French are proving to be podium top-step magnets. (Martin Fourcade won the men’s 20 k individual race on Wednesday.) Justine Braisaz won in 42:35.1 minutes while missing two targets in her first shooting stage, otherwise […]
Gear Review: Salomon S/LAB SENSE ULTRA 5 SET Running Vest
If you are still running with a traditional drink belt strapped to your waist — listen here: It’s time to give up the drink belt for running excursions. The fight is over and the running vest is miles ahead of you, already sipping a refreshing recovery drink at the parking lot––heck they might have […]
Juggling Work, Life, and Training for the Birkie: A How-To Guide
At some point in the past seven months you signed up for the American Birkebeiner. Maybe you’ve done it before, maybe you haven’t. Either way, you’re now committed to skiing the American Birkebeiner, excited to experience “Birkie Fever,” whether for the first time or the 20th time. No matter your level of skiing or your […]
Gear Review: Skida Hats, Headbands, and Neck Warmers
Over the last eleven years, Skida has taken off from its humble beginning as cross-country skier Corinne Prevot’s side hustle. Prevot began sewing hats and headbands for her teammates and friends in 2008 while attending Burke Mountain Academy. While at Middlebury, she continued to squeeze in production around her classes and ski training, with some […]
Fourcade Wins in Östersund as the French take a Podium Sweep
In Östersund, Sweden on Wednesday, the IBU World Cup picked up again with the men racing the 20-kilometer individual. The depth of the French team was evident as they swept the top-for spots. Martin Fourcade won in a time of 53:11.9 minutes — and shooting clean until his final bout, when he missed a single […]
Tara Geraghty-Moats on Finding Speed
Tara Geraghty-Moats won the Nordic Combined Continental Cup in the previous season and is set to be a podium contender for the overall standings in this year’s cup as well. Now she finds herself in Lillehammer ready to jump in this weekend’s World Cup. FasterSkier met up with her to hear her thoughts on training, […]
Biathlon: IBU World Cup Opening Weekend in Ӧstersund
The IBU World Cup season opened Saturday, November 30th on a windy day in Ӧstersund, Sweden with a pair of mixed relays: a single mixed relay, and a 4 x 6-kilometer mixed relay. The following day, athletes competed in a sprint, 10 k for the men and 7.5 k for the women. In the single […]
Gear Review: A Trio of Trail Running Goods from Black Diamond
Black Diamond has been around in several iterations for decades. First, there was Chouinard Equipment. Yup, that Chouinard. The emerging alpine climbing gear powerhouse was sold to employees and became Black Diamond Equipment. A few bumps on the proverbial road to growth and prosperity and now Black Diamond is traded on the New York Stock […]
Rebuilding Canada: Less Europe, More North America
Canada is moving into a new era in skiing. An era with less World Cup podiums and more emphasis on developing future podium athletes. “Train at what you want to be good at. If its climbing, climb. If it is chess, play chess. Ski training has many elements of course, but in the end […]