Skiing has been used as a way for people in cold climates to get around for thousands of years. Preserved skis and rock paintings show that skis were used by hunters and trappers in pre-historic times in Asia’s Altai region. Slowly, the use of skis migrated to Eurasian arctic regions and then to Scandinavian regions. In 1938 the Winter Olympics featured ski competitions for the first time. Later, during WWII, the Finns’ expertise in moving...
This World Cup coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and the A Hall Mark of Excellence Award. To learn more about A Hall Mark of Excellence Award or to learn how you can support FasterSkier’s coverage please contact info@fasterskier.com. By Rachel Bachman Perkins and Ian Tovell During a brief reprieve from racing, the top tier of international racing made its way from the high desert of Zhangjiakou, China...
The Alpine Insurance Alberta World Cup Academy (AIAWCA) is growing and has current openings for a Head Coach and a Development Coach for the 2022/23 training and competition year. The Coaches would work with a dynamic team of coaches, administrative and technical staff to oversee and accomplish the goals of the AIAWCA. The AIAWCA is a designated National Team Development Center, and is part of Nordiq Canada’s national network of training centers. Our goal is...
The following was submitted by reader Ivy Spiegel Ostrom in response to the New York Times coverage of Jessie Diggins earning an Olympic bronze medal in the individual freestyle sprint. FasterSkier published a story expressing some of the early reactions to the NY Times piece here, along with an opinion piece by our contributor Ben Theyerl here. The viewpoints expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect that of FasterSkier’s staff or sponsors. We fully...
Cendrine Browne set a new Canadian Olympic record by finishing 16th in the women’s 30-kilometre cross-country ski race in the free technique in Beijing. Browne, of Prévost, Que., wrapped up her second Olympics by having the race of her life on one of the most challenging Nordic courses in the world, clocking a time of 1:31:21.6. “This feels amazing to finish the Olympics on such a high note. I’m beyond happy,” beamed Browne following her...
Canada’s Olivier Léveillé wrapped up his first Olympic Games with his second top-30 finish of the week, finishing 27th in the men’s 30-kilometre free technique race. The Sherbrooke, Que. resident persevered through a broken ski and heavy winds that shortened the scheduled 5- kilometre race to 30 kilometres at the Zhangjiakou National Cross-Country Skiing Centre near Beijing. Léveillé completed the course with a time of 1:15:54.3. “I’m very proud of my first Olympic Games. It...
BEIJING, China (Feb. 18, 2022) – Competing in the first mass start of her career on the Olympic stage, Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, Wis./ National Guard Biathlon & USBA) went toe-to-toe with the world’s best biathletes to finish 23rd in the elite field of 30 on Friday as the Beijing 2022 Winter Games’ biathlon competition came to a close at the Zhangjiakou National Biathlon Center. Irwin was 3 minutes, 24.1 seconds back with six penalties. “This has just been...
Nakkertok Nordic is a community ski club in Gatineau, Quebec, the Ottawa-Gatineau region with 1800 members. We have been the Canadian National Club Champions for 10 years in a row. Among others we have developed notable skiers to Training Centre and College programs, such as Katherine Stewart-Jones who is in Beijing with the Canadian team, Pierre Grall-Johnson who will represent Canada at the U23 World Champs (17th in 2021), and 2 skiers that are obtaining...
In the final Olympic race of their careers, Susan Dunklee (Craftsbury, Vt./Craftsbury Green Racing Project & USBA) and Clare Egan (Cape Elizabeth, Maine/Craftsbury Green Racing Project & USBA) helped guide the U.S. women to an 11th-place finish in Wednesday’s 4×6-kilometer relay at the Beijing 2022 Winter Games. Three-time Olympian Dunklee was first out of the shooting range after prone, having cleaned all five targets. She also cleaned from the standing position but admittedly was sluggish on the skis and made...
Graham Ritchie and Antoine Cyr combined to deliver Canada’s best-ever team sprint result in the classic-skiing discipline at an Olympic Winter Games when they finished fifth on Wednesday near Beijing. The 23-year-olds, who were seventh at their first Nordic World Ski Championships last year in the skate-ski format, matched strides with the fastest cross-country skiers on the planet for the historic result. “This is so incredible to pull this off and throw down such a...
The U.S. men’s team wrapped up their biathlon competition at the Beijing 2022 Winter Games on Tuesday with a 13th-place finish in the 4×7.5-kilometer relay. The lineup of Sean Doherty (Center Conway, N.H./National Guard Biathlon & USBA), Jake Brown (St. Paul, Minn./Craftsbury Green Racing Project & USBA), Paul Schommer (Appleton, Wis./Team Crosscut & USBA) and Leif Nordgren (Hinesburg, Vt./National Guard Biathlon & USBA) crossed the line 5 minutes, 42.8 seconds back with three penalties and 13 spares. The start of the relay...
After a great showing in their first competition, Men’s Nordic Combined was able to have three top 25 finishers in the Individual Large Hill/10km event on Tuesday at the Zhangjiakou National Cross-Country Centre. Jared Shumate led the pack, as he was able to post another top 20 finish, placing 17th overall. On the Large Hill, Shumate placed 19th overall with a 127.5 meter jump, putting him +2:34 behind the leader to start the 10km. He then climbed...
Jake Brown (St. Paul, Minn./Craftsbury Green Racing Project & USABA) and Sean Doherty (Center Conway, N.H./National Guard Biathlon & USBA) qualified for the first Olympic pursuit of their careers Saturday at the Beijing 2022 Winter Games. Brown, competing in his first Olympic Games, and Doherty, racing in his third Games, both finished in the top-60 of the men’s 10-kilometer sprint at the Zhangjiakou National Biathlon Center to achieve pursuit qualification. Brown shot clean from prone and had two...
Canucks celebrate best Olympic relay result since 2002 BEIJING, Chn—The Canadian women’s relay squad skied to its best result Olympic result in two decades, finishing ninth on Saturday at the Zhangjiakou National Cross-Country Ski Centre. Skiing on a mission for eighth spot, the women’s team of Katherine Stewart-Jones, Dahria Beatty, Cendrine Browne and Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt mixed together their best relay result on the sport’s ultimate stage since the 2002 Games, skiing into the top-10...
Susan Dunklee (Craftsbury, Vt./Craftsbury Green Racing Project & USBA) set the pace for the rest of the U.S. women’s team during Friday’s 7.5-kilometer sprint at the Beijing 2022 Winter Games. Dunklee’s top-30 performance at the Zhangjiakou National Biathlon Center led the way for all four American women to qualify for Sunday’s 10km pursuit, the first time that has happened in U.S. Biathlon Olympic history. She used clean shooting to finish 27th in the field of 89,...
The youngest member on Canada’s Olympic cross-country ski team, Olivier Léveillé, battled to a 29th-place finish at the Beijing Olympics on Friday. The 20-year-old from Sherbrooke, Que. found his groove while steadily working his way around the 15-kilomtetre course to finish in the elite group of 30 with a time of 40:52.0. “It is always hard to ski at altitude, but I felt good today,” said Léveillé. “Sometimes you feel like you are stuck in a gear,...
Canada’s Dahria Beatty was beaming after cracking the top-20 for the first time in her two trips to the Olympic Winter Games, finishing the women’s individual start 10-kilometre classic cross-country skiing event in 18th spot. Feeding off career-best Olympic performances in her first two starts, the 27-year-old put down a memorable performance, skiing twice around the demanding five-kilometre loop in a time of 30:00.2. “I definitely feel like I am in the best shape of...
Skiing is a competitive, adrenaline-fueled sport. Anyone that competes, trains or watches from the sidelines knows this. However, for those that don’t, it’s often seen, at best, as a sport that’s only relevant every four years or, at worst, a novelty. Indeed, for all the skill, talent, and entertainment all types of competitive skiing provide, it’s not considered to be a mainstream sport. Casual viewers will tune in during the Winter Olympics, but they probably...
Dahria Beatty turned in another Olympic best result with a 25th-place finish in Tuesday’s free technique cross-country skiing sprint race. The two-time Olympian was the lone Canadian to qualify for the head-to-head heats with the quickest 30 athletes. The 27-year-old clocked the 28th fastest time around the challenging 1.5-kilometre course that spirals throughout the Zhangjiakou National Cross-Country Ski Centre. Beatty, who hails from Whitehorse, had her day come to a halt after a photo finish...
Registration is Open at https://www.skireg.com/stowederby The Mount Mansfield Academy’s annual Stowe Derby is fast approaching on February 13. As it has since its beginning in 1945, the race will run from the top of Mansfield’s Toll Road and finish 20km later in the Stowe Village. The event, which is in its 77th year, benefits Mount Mansfield Academy’s commitment to educating and training its student-athletes. This year’s event is presented by MVP Healthcare. “MVP Health Care...