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 […]
About Aleks Tangen
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 […]
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, […]
Day Three in Beitostølen: Women’s 10 k Freestyle
Sunday in Beitostølen, Norway the nation’s opening national races concluded with a women’s 10-kilometer freestyle race. The conditions remained as they have for the past few days — near freezing. The top-three spots were secured by the same skiers who took first through third in Saturday’s 10 k classic: Therese Johaug won in 21:48.0, Heidi Weng […]
Day Three in Beitostølen: Men’s 15 k Freestyle (Updated with Audio Interviews)
The third and final day of the Norweigan opening races Beitostølen, Norway — during which the conditions hovered around freezin — saw Simen Hegstad Krüger win the 15-kilometer freestyle in 30:16.4. Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget of Norway placed second (+3.7), and Hans Christer Holund was third (+8.7). Martin Johnsrud Sundby, having a rough reentry to the […]
Beitostølen 15 k Classic: Tønseth, Klæbo, Krüger go 1-2-3
A national race in Norway, dare we say, may at times be at least as competitive as some World Cups: the field is deep. Today in Beitostølen, Norway the men contested a 15-kilometer classic in tricky waxing conditions. With fine classic technique on display, Didrik Tønseth of Norway won in 34:56.7. Teammates Johannes Høsflot Klæbo placed […]
Beitostølen 10 k Classic: Diggins Fourth Bjornsen Fifth
FasterSkier reporter Aleks Tangen was in Beitostølen to report. As a new feature we are posting his interviews from the mixed zone in the report below. With temps hovering around zero degree celsius in a mid-winter looking Beitostølen, Norway day two of the opening national races played out. The women raced a 10 k interval start […]
Norway’s National Sprint Opener in Beitostølen: Caldwell in Third
FasterSkier reporter Aleks Tangen was in Beitostølen to report. As a new feature we are posting interviews from the mixed zone in the report below. The opening Norwegian national races began in Beitostølen, Norway today with a 1.2-kilometer women’s classic sprint and a 1.7 k classic sprint for the men. Beyond featuring a loaded field of seasoned […]
Wednesday Workout: A Flashback to 2016 and Midweek Race Prep with the U.S. Ski Team
We hear a lot about the details of a cross-country ski racer’s day on race day, but what about those four or five days in between? What do World Cup racers do then, in the middle of the week? FasterSkier Norwegian contributor Aleks Tangen ventured to Lillehammer back in late November 2016 to find out. *** LILLEHAMMER, […]
World Cup Preview: #1 Norway
Welcome to FasterSkier’s World Cup Preview, where we check in with the top-10 teams from last year’s FIS Cross Country World Cup tour before the season starts. The World Cup begins with a classic sprint in Ruka, Finland on Nov. 24th *** Norway Overall in Nations Cup Last Year: 1 Women’s Ranking 2017/2018: 1 Men’s […]
Bjørgen, Krüger Top Distance Skate Races in Beito; Hart 19th
In one weekend of racing, Anne Hart has already learned a lot, the types of things you can only learn from careful observation and reflection. And for Hart, a 25-year-old member of the Stratton Mountain School (SMS) Elite Team, the season doesn’t truly begin until Dec. 2. After racing to 19th in the women’s 10-kilometer […]
Klæbo, Falla Defend Beito Sprint Titles; Newell 16th, Hart 31st for U.S.
BEITOSTØLEN, Norway — A year ago, 20-year-old Johannes Høsflot Klæbo leapt onto the scene with a season-opening skate-sprint win in Beitostølen. Before that, he made waves at 2016 U23 World Championships, winning gold in the skate sprint, 10-kilometer classic and 4 x 5 k relay. But until last season, Klæbo, a member of Norway’s national […]
Bjørgen, Sundby Win Big in Beito Opening 10/15 k; Hoffman 29th
(Note: This article has been updated to include comments from Nichole Bathe.) BEITOSTØLEN, Norway — The question of whether Bjørgen or Weng will be the bigger name this season went in the favor of the former on Friday at Norway’s first big matchup of the season. Marit Bjørgen, now 37 and in her 20th World […]
Halfvarsson on Win Streak; Harvey Repeats in 10th in Lillehammer Mini Tour
LILLEHAMMER, Norway — The men’s 10-kilometer freestyle on Day 2 of the Lillehammer mini tour turned out to be a nail biter and a win-win situation for Swedish fans on Saturday. Calle Halfvarsson, who won Friday’s classic sprint, started 42nd, 6 minutes behind his teammate Marcus Hellner in bib 30. Both are Swedish national team […]
Bjornsen ‘Fastest in the World’ in Qualifier; Weng Tops Lillehammer Sprint Final
LILLEHAMMER, Norway — If anything’s consistent after two days of classic sprinting on the Cross-Country World Cup this year, it’s that nothing is a given — especially on the women’s side of World Cup sprinting. No more Maiken Caspersen Falla dominating every World Cup sprint. However, Norway’s defending Sprint World Cup champion is no slouch, placing second in both […]
Leading Up to Lillehammer, U.S. Team Talks Midweek Race Prep
We hear a lot about the details of a cross-country ski racer’s day on race day, but what about those four or five days in between? What do World Cup racers do then, in the middle of the week? FasterSkier Norwegian contributor Aleks Tangen ventured to Lillehammer on Wednesday and Thursday to find out. *** LILLEHAMMER, Norway […]
Falla Doesn’t Miss a Beat in Beito Sprint Opener
BEITOSTØLEN, Norway — For the reigning Sprint World Cup champion who never lost a classic sprint last season (and placed first or second in all but one World Cup skate sprint), Sunday’s 1.2-kilometer freestyle sprint was about starting where she left off. Norway’s Maiken Caspersen Falla did just that, qualifying first then cruising through the heats to win […]
Junior World Champ Johannes Klæbo Pulls Beito Upset
BEITOSTØLEN, Norway — On the final day of International Ski Federation (FIS) preseason racing in Beitostølen, one 20 year old stood above the rest of the nearly 90-man field. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, who won three gold medals at the 2016 Junior World Championships in Rasnov, Romania, held off several household Norwegian names in the men’s freestyle sprint final. Klæbo, a Norwegian U23 […]
Bjørgen Wastes No Time With Beito Comeback; Tønseth Wins Again
BEITOSTØLEN, Norway — Saturday’s 10-kilometer freestyle individual start was, from the start, all about Marit Bjørgen. Her previous race was 603 days earlier on March 27, 2015 in Harstad, Norway, but that didn’t seem to affect Norway’s six-time Olympic gold medalist one bit. “I’ll admit that I have had my doubts,” she told Dagbladet about returning to competition. “And I’ve been tired, but I […]
With Biggest Names Out, Østberg & Tønseth Top Beito Opener
Norway’s Ingvild Flugstad Østberg and Didrik Tønseth opened their seasons with a bang at home in Beitostølen on Friday, beating out large fields in the women’s and men’s 10 and 15 k classic races. Several Canadian juniors and developing skiers raced, too, as well as American and recent MSU grad Cambria McDermott, who’s living and training in Norway.