Damn. What a weekend for the U.S. Ski Team, with three podiums in three days of racing at the World Cup opener in Finland. Erik Bråten, a Norwegian who coaches the Swiss ski team, joins Devon and Nat to recap and share his experiences across a range of international ski cultures. Send us questions, feedback and anti-vax screeds to: devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com — we’ve already got some questions stacking up for a mailbag episode in...
We’re off. The 2023-2024 winter kicks off with season opening races across Scandinavia, and the World Cup launches next week. Devon and Nat go old-school, no guests to recap a bevy of interesting results so far. Send us your comments, questions and criticisms: devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com. We’ll be back next week.
A couple of years ago, Swedish Olympic medalist cross-country skier Maja Dahlqvist matched with U.S. sprinter Kevin Bolger on Tinder. They’ve since become one of their sport’s highest-profile couples. The two of them, during an altitude camp in Utah last month, joined Nat for a joint interview. We’ll be back as the World Cup season kicks off in a few weeks. Send your questions, comments and hate mail to devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com.
PARK CITY, UTAH — Megan Rowlands Stowe was mostly retired from her career as a physical therapist when Johannes Høsflot Klæbo came to her Utah home for dinner last year. Klæbo, 26, is from Norway — where, as a seven-time Olympic medalist in cross-country skiing, he’s a superstar. But for weeks, he’d been training in Utah, where a lingering hamstring injury was bothering him when he arrived at Stowe’s house. Stowe, 57, has her own...
A few weeks ago, Nat got a Facebook message from one Haakon Klæbo — father of Johannes Klæbo, also known as one of the greatest skiers of all time. What followed was a visit by Nat to Klæbo’s training camp in Park City, Utah, where he and Johannes taped this episode of the Devon Kershaw Show. Join us to hear an interview with the five-time Olympic champion from Norway about his time in the U.S.,...
PARK CITY, UTAH — Five-time Olympic champion Johannes Høsflot Klæbo could be cross-country skiing’s answer to Michael Jordan — a bona fide sports superstar in his home nation of Norway, where photographers and fans tail him after events. But to the up-and-coming ski racers in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, and their parents? Klæbo is just another dude on the local trails. “The novelty has, sort of, worn off,” said Silvester Williams, a junior...
We know, we know…we’re way overdue for the promised summer content. Is it even summer any more? Anyway: We’re excited to bring you this episode with Jostein Vinjerui, one of the coaches with Team Aker Daehlie, the international squad that boasts athletes from Great Britain, Latvia and, for the first time this upcoming season, the U.S., in Sophia Laukli. We actually will be back soon, with at least one episode on our schedule for recording...
Oh, you thought we were done? Nat had the chance to interview Norwegian cross-country skiing legend Petter Northug Jr. for his story for the New York Times about the Holmenkollen ski marathons. Rather than leave the audio on the cutting room floor, we thought we’d share it with you. Sorry about the audio quality and the frequent interjections from Nat, but this was not originally intended as podcast-quality material — turn it off if you must. And:...
This is the end. Of the 2023 racing season. Devon and Nat go without guests and are here to take you through the last three events of the winter in Lahti, Finland. And we cover a couple of retirement announcements from U.S. skiers. We’re taking a little break after this but, we promise: We won’t leave you hanging for the whole off-season. Stay tuned for more regular episodes over the course of the spring and...
Estonia put on one heck of a show at a city sprint in the nation’s capital, Tallinn, this week. We give you a full recap with the help of an on-site expert, Vahur Teppan, and break down some complaints about a new system designed to level the waxing playing field — which may not have worked. We’ll be back for one more recap after the Lahti Ski Games in Finland this weekend. Devon is at...
The World Cup’s penultimate weekend of the year took us to Falun, Sweden for a trio of races, including two more fun 10 ks and a mixed relay. Canada’s Katherine Stewart-Jones joins us to recap her sensational season and what’s ahead for her next year. We’ll be back after Tuesday’s city sprint in Tallinn, Estonia. Get at us at devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com.
No rest for the weary (except those who skipped Holmenkollen): We’re back with recaps of, objectively, the most lit series of races on the World Cup circuit, in Norway. We’ve got the goods from the Holmenkollen 50 k races, including the first-ever for women, and the always satisfying Drammen sprints. We’ll be back next week. Reach us at devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com.
PLANICA, SLOVENIA — Anyone who knows Rosie Brennan, and the ups and downs of her professional cross-country ski racing career, can relate to her mother’s experience at the World Championships here. Walking among the crowds in U.S.-themed clothing, Wiggy Brennan heard the same thing, over and over, from European fans: “We love Jessie Diggins!” — a reference to Rosie Brennan’s gold-medal winning teammate. “And I say, ‘Okay. But what about Rosie?’” Wiggy said. That question...
We’ve made 10 podcasts in 11 days and I have no juice left to come up with snappy episode titles or show notes. So this is what you get. Click play and listen to us talk. It was a cool 50 k. Get at us at devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com. We’ll be back after the first-ever women’s 50 k, with both Devon and Nat on scene in Oslo.
Dear Readers, I’m writing this from my desk at the media center in Slovenia, where I’m surrounded by journalists all over the world: Japan, Estonia, Scandinavia. I am, literally, the only writer here from North America — the U.S. or Canada. In the past week, I’ve helped the FasterSkier team bring you an array of work: in-depth coverage of the American medal-winning performances, podcasts breaking down each race, and features on athletes and family...
This race had it all — a solo breakaway, chase packs and a nail-biting performance from America’s Rosie Brennan. Devon and Nat ditch the guests to break down the race themselves. We’ll be back tomorrow with a last World Championships episode. Thanks for your support. Reach us at devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com.
Canada threw down an impressive fifth place finish in Friday’s men’s 4×10 k relay, finishing just seconds from the medals. We caught up with the team afterwards in the mixed zone — here are our interviews with, in order, Tony Cyr, Graham Ritchie and Olivier Leveille. (We interviewed scramble leg skier Xavier McKeever earlier in the day, which is why he’s not featured in this clip.) We’ll be back tonight with a recap of the...
Yeah, Norway smoked everyone in the men’s 4×10 k relay at World Championships in Planica, Slovenia. But the race for silver and bronze was a thriller, with Canada delivering an electrifying performance. Chris Jeffries, the Canadians’ high performance director, joins us from on site to break the race down. Get at us at devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com. Ten races down, two to go.
This World Cup coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and 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. PLANICA, SLOVENIA — Rita White, Oumar Cherif and Anna Dehler arrived in Slovenia from Minnesota on Monday. The next day, they headed up to the World Ski Championships competition venue at Planica,...
We’ve got guests. Former FasterSkier Managing Editor Rachel Perkins and U.S. Olympian and World Cup podium finisher Sophie Caldwell join us to recap an epic women’s relay from World Championships in Planica. Nine races down, three to go. You can reach us at devon@fasterskier.com and nat@fasterskier.com.