When Justyna Kowalczyk stood at the head of the chevron before the 10 k pursuit Friday morning in Rybinsk, Russia, she must have felt a little bit lonely. That’s because no less than 20 of the top 30 women in the current overall World Cup rankings were missing. Kowalczyk’s biggest rival, Marit Bjoergen (NOR) opted to take the weekend off, as did fourth ranked Petra Majdic (SLO), and 6th through 9th, Therese Johaug (NOR), Charlotte...
Canadian Graham Nishikawa’s three-win weekend may not bring him up to the same number of wins as Norway’s Marit Bjoergen, but on Sunday the dominating domestic racer put on a skiing display worthy of the legendary Norwegian woman. Nishikawa, a member of the Alberta World Cup Academy (AWCA), finished the 15 k freestyle handicap start event with a whopping 2 minute 38.8 second lead over his nearest competitor, Drew Goldsack (AWCA/CNST), while Stefan Kuhn (CNST)...
A snowy day at the Haywood NorAm mini-tour in Orford, Quebec, made the tracks a little bit slippery for the 7.5/10 k classic individual start races, but Graham Nishikawa of the Alberta World Cup Academy (AWCA) didn’t let the precipitation get in the way of his second NorAm victory in two days. After a big fifteen second win during Friday’s 4 k classic prologue, Nishikawa upped the ante on Saturday, winning the 10 k classic...
One name you should recognize; the other may be new to you. Alberta World Cup Academy’s Graham Nishikawa, who has been a fixture on the North American domestic racing scene for several years, collected another win for his trophy case Friday, winning the 4 k classic prologue. While you may be familiar with Nishikawa, the winner of the women’s 2.5 k classic prologue may be slightly less prominent – that’s because Michelle Workun-Hill of the...
The Canadians will field an experienced 11-person roster for the World Championships in Oslo, Norway at the end of February, and all 11 will also ski the World Cup in Drammen, Norway, the week before. The roster is almost identical to the Olympic roster from last year – 9 of the 11 skiers competed in Vancouver, and all 11 have at least one World Cup start. According to Cross Country Canada (CCC)’s selection criteria, the...
When Len Valjas departed for Europe this past fall, he was looking for experience, and to ski well. Instead, the 22-year-old Canadian recorded his first World Cup points by finishing 29th in the sprint in the Kuusamo mini-tour, and 34th in Dusseldorf, narrowly missing a berth in the heats. Then, he punched himself a ticket to the 2011 World Championships in Oslo by finishing 17th in the skate sprint at the World Cup in Davos,...
Kikkan Randall has now recorded three medals in five skate sprints. But if the enigmatic American sprint star is tired, she sure isn’t showing it, as she blasted to her first World Cup victory of the season Saturday, in a skate sprint in rainy Liberec, Czech Republic. Randall took advantage of fast skis, an advantageous situation, and a strong finishing kick to secure the win, crossing the line 0.5 seconds ahead of her closest competitor...
In a men’s field missing several top guns, including Tour de Ski winner Dario Cologna (SUI) and runner-up Petter Northug (NOR), the men’s skate sprint Saturday in Liberec, Czech Republic was awash with new faces. But at the end of the day, it was a very familiar one standing atop the podium. Ola Vigen Hattestad (NOR) crushed the men’s final by a full second, but if you just looked at the results sheet, it wouldn’t...
Nothing comes for free on the Tour de Ski. After six stages, attrition is becoming a major factor for the competing athletes. The difficult 10-day event can have that effect – every year, dozens of skiers drop out as illness, injury, or just plain fatigue take a steep toll. For the men, 30 have already retired. This year, the Germans have been especially hard-hit – a whopping nine of their men have pulled out of the event....
If you still had any doubts about Canadian Devon Kershaw’s ability to ski with the best in the world, they should now be put to rest. In a talent-packed final in the 1.4 k skate sprint during Stage 5 of the Tour de Ski, Kershaw not only skied with fastest men on the circuit, but blew them away on route to the stage victory, the first of his career. “I’m more than happy,” said Kershaw...
After putting on a dominating performance at Canadian National Championships last March, including two wins, Canadian Graham Killick was named to the Canadian National Ski Team’s Development Team, and spent much of his summer training with the World Cup team, including Devon Kershaw and Ivan Babikov, in Canmore, Alberta. While the World Cup team departed for Europe and the biggest cross country skiing stage in the world, Killick remained in North America, picking up right...
In Monday’s 20 k pursuit, in Oberhof, Germany, instead of Petter Northug (NOR) turing heads with an impressive sprint finish, it was Finland’s Matti Heikkinen who displayed remarkable finishing speed to secure victory in the fifth stage of the 2011 Tour de Ski. The Finn, who has had difficulty on the World Cup so far this season, put on a massive attack on the final steep uphill, surprising the field. Heikkinen had been very quiet...
The Tour de Ski is a hellishly difficult event for the teams that take part. Ten days, eight races, and five different venues in two countries make for a schedule that often results in massive fatigue, illness, and injury. However, the Canadian National Ski Team (CNST) has come up with an innovative way to deal with those demands – this year, the Canucks have equipped themselves with a huge tour bus. Emblazoned with the Cross...
Marcus Hellner (SWE) has ended 2010 on the top step of the podium. The Swede used his powerful skating to capture the stage victory in the 3.75 k prologue in Oberhof, Germany, on the opening day of the 2010-2011 Tour de Ski. Hellner beat out Alexei Petukhov (RUS) by 2 seconds for the win over the short distance. While Petukhov has never competed in the Tour before, he is no slouch – the Russian is...
The 2010-2011 Tour de Ski is underway in Oberhof, Germany, and defending champion Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) seems to have picked up right where she left off. Kowalczyk took just 6 minutes and 39 seconds to complete the 2.8 k freestyle prologue, .5 of a second ahead of Charlotte Kalla (SWE), while Astrid Jacobsen (NOR) was third, 4.8 seconds back. As a result of the win, Kowalczyk receives a 15 second time bonus, while Kalla receives...
The 2010/2011 Veissmann Tour de Ski is nothing if not draining. Consisting of eight events in ten days in two countries, the fifth edition begins December 31st and runs until January 9th. The Tour begins with a freestyle prologue in Oberhof, Germany, on December 31st, followed by a classic pursuit start on January 1st. The Tour then moves to Oberstorf, Germany, for a sprint on January 2nd, and a pursuit on the 3rd. After a...
While Canadian Ivan Babikov has recorded only one top-30 finish on the World Cup circuit so far this season, the man who has been billed by his teammates as one of the toughest skiers on the circuit remains undaunted. “I’m always a bit slower than other guys in early season,” Babikov said in an e-mail to FasterSkier. “Usually, I need at least a good month of skiing and racing to feel fast.” As a result,...
No matter how you slice it, George Grey has struggled on the World Cup to start the season. While his Canadian team members Devon Kershaw and Alex Harvey have stormed out of the gate, taking points in several events, Grey has placed 78th, 84th, 79th, and 32nd, a far cry from his stellar Olympic record. But when Grey was first planning his season, he wasn’t even considering heading to Europe to race. He recognized that...
Drew Goldsack has proven conclusively that he is the fastest sprinter in North America. The former Canadian National Ski Team (CNST) member and current Alberta World Cup Academy (AWCA) has won every domestic sprint race he has entered, and heads into the NorAm mini-tour this weekend in Rossland B.C. as a legitimate threat to win the entire event. While Goldsack seems to have a leg up on the Americans in the sprint arena, he has...
While the SuperTour kicked off two weeks ago, the Canadian domestic series, the Haywood NorAm/Teck Sprints begin this weekend at Sovereign Lake Nordic Center, in Vernon, British Columbia. This year the series opens with a classic sprint, and a 10/15 k freestyle race. Home to some of the best and most consistent early season skiing in the country, Sovereign Lake is a regular on the Haywood NorAm series. According to National Development Center (NDC) Thunder...