Devon Kershaw is onto something so far this season, and on Saturday, the 32-year-old Canadian World Cup Team member rolled to his best individual result of the season. Teammate Alex Harvey finished 2 seconds behind him in 22nd.
Devon Kershaw is onto something so far this season, and on Saturday, the 32-year-old Canadian World Cup Team member rolled to his best individual result of the season. Teammate Alex Harvey finished 2 seconds behind him in 22nd.
Just days after WADA released a comprehensive report on its findings regarding systematic doping in Russia, FasterSkier sought out the opinions of Marty Hall, a former coach of both the U.S. and Canadian ski teams. As expected, he didn't sugarcoat his reaction.
Martin Johnsrud Sundby didn't waste any time squashing the field on Sunday in the final stage of the Ruka Triple and won the men's 15 k classic pursuit by 44.7 seconds over a late-charging Petter Northug. Canada's Alex Harvey started sixth and ended up seventh for his best finish in the Kuusamo mini tour.
Alex Harvey’s second place on Saturday remains a single drop in the bucket, but it’s a reminder that his quest for the World Cup overall is for real. With "new" legs post-surgery, the 27-year-old Canadian is now a contender in strenuous skate races as well as classic sprints and distance events.
This time last year, Ida Sargent had a career-best fifth in the first Word Cup of the season: the Ruka classic sprint in Kuusamo, Finland. She came close on Friday, finishing seventh and missing the final by 0.37 seconds. Teammate Sadie Bjornsen won her quarterfinal and placed 12th overall.
In their first race of the season, Jessie Diggins and Sophie Caldwell of the U.S. Ski Team finished first and second, respectively, in the FIS classic sprint in Gällivare, Sweden. “It’s the best I’ve seen Jessie classic sprint ever,” coach Matt Whitcomb said. “It gives us a big boost as we move into the World Cup season next week.”
Why did World Cup veterans Alex Harvey and Devon Kershaw sometimes race on what looked like antiquated Fischer skis? The duo talks about the almost-magic qualities of those boards, which belonged to a former team tech, and what life is like without them. “If I see Poltoranin on those skis, that will weird me out big time,” Kershaw says.
Head coach of the Canadian World Cup and national team, Justin Wadsworth spoke to FS at length about the team this season and how its athletes have handled summer and fall training. Bottom line: most everyone starting on the World Cup is healthy, and several are in the best shape of their lives.
The day after Kikkan Randall announced she was pregnant with her first child, FasterSkier caught up with the four-time U.S. Olympian and 2013 world champion on the phone. Listen to the full-length interview here.
World Cup and Domestic Racing Reporter, Audio Specialist, 'Nordic Nation' Host, ski-mo junkie, jason@fasterskier.com