For anyone who thinks that the U.S. got a raw deal with the introduction of a new Olympic quota system, you’re right. According to FIS Cross-Country Race Director Jürg Capol, just two nations had their quotas significantly affected by the switch-the U.S. and Kazakhstan. For the rest, he wrote in an e-mail, their quotas are more or less the same as they would have been under the Torino guidelines from 2006. Those numbers should rise...
As the sports world gears up for the Vancouver Olympics in February, the faltering economy has forced the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) to make cuts to its programs and staff. According to USSA Nordic Director John Farra, the American athletes with a chance at medaling at the Olympics have been insulated from the cuts. But both employees of the organization and some of the athletes who depend on it for financial backing have...
FasterSkier is pleased to announce the first podcast in The Road to Whistler series, which we hope to continue every few weeks. To listen, just click the play button below (you will need a recent version of Adobe Flash installed to access the player). We are still working on our podcasting system, so there may be a few hiccups. Please email us at
According to media reports, three Russian cross-country skiers have tested positive for EPO. Two of the skiers were stars—Julia Tchepalova and Yevgeni Dementiev both have Olympic golds. According to Reuters, both of them had written to the president of the Russian cross country skiing federation announcing their retirement. The third skier, Nina Rysina, was requesting that her b-sample be analyzed. She is the reigning U-23 world champion in the sprint. Media outlets were reporting that...
Brayton Osgood currently skis for the XC Oregon team. A two-time All-American while attending Dartmouth College, Osgood has had five seventh-place finishes at Senior Nationals, including one last year in the 10 k skate in Anchorage, where he also finished eighth in the sprint. We caught up with him in the middle of a visit to the east coast. Note-Osgood was even more articulate and thoughtful than he comes across as during the interview, but...
Lindsey Dehlin is already a veteran of two Olympic Games, having been selected to the U.S. teams in 2002 and 2006. In 2008, Dehlin won her first national championship, in the team sprint with Lindsay Williams. Last year, Dehlin took third place in the sprint at the U.S. National Championships in Anchorage, and eighth in the five k skate. FasterSkier: You went to Northern Michigan University for four years, and now you’re back training with...
Professional cross country skiers are not usually preoccupied with environmental concerns like invasive aquatic species, composting, or even remembering to turn off the lights in their houses. Nor do they spend a whole lot of time doing trail work. Instead, for the most part, skiers tend to take for granted the negative environmental impact of their sport, with elite competitors criss-crossing the country for races, fleets of groomers guzzling gas, and the voracious appetites of...
Finals for the downhill and four-cross at Bromont took place Saturday afternoon and evening. The downhill was won by Sabrina Jonnier of France on the women’s side, and South African Greg Minnaar for the men. In the four-cross, it was Dutchman Joost Wichman and Fionn Griffiths of Great Britain who took victories. Photos of the events are in the slide show, below.
Individual qualifying for the World Cup Four-Cross event in Bromont took place last night, and it was won by American Jill Kintner (unaffiliated) and France’s Romain Saladini (Team Sunn). Riders started individually and did a quick time trial down the course (the Quebecois announcer called it “contre-la-montre,” French for “against the watch”). Times ranged from 51 seconds for the top men to about a minute for the women. The course is very exciting and spectator-friendly–there...
Matt Liebsch enters the 2009-2010 season coming off of a killer season. Last year, he was third place at U.S. Nationals in Anchorage in the 15-kilometer skate, and he dropped the field on his way to nearly a 45-second victory in the American Birkebeiner. Liebsch currently trains with CXC, and he was able to take a few minutes to talk with FasterSkier after his kids had finished their lunch. FasterSkier: Last year was a pretty good...
Over the next three days, FasterSkier will be bringing you coverage from the mountain biking World Cup in Bromont, Quebec. We hope that our reporting will give a good perspective of another endurance and sprint sport at the elite level. The World Cup consists of three events: cross-country, which is a typical long-distance race; downhill, in which riders bomb down alpine ski trails; and four-cross, where four racers go head-to-head-to-head-to-head on a short (less than...
Mike Sinnott is in his third year out of Dartmouth College, skiing for Salomon and the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation. Last year, he was fourth in the sprint at U.S. Nationals in Anchorage, participated in the team sprint and classic sprint at the Whistler World Cups, and took a victory in the Noquemanon Ski Marathon. FasterSkier: Before we talk about the Olympics, stuff like that, I remember back to the winter of 2006-2007 when...
As a freshman at the University of Anchorage, Amy Glen skied to a fourth place finish in the skate sprint at the 2009 U.S. National Championships. She only raced two other sprint races that whole winter: one at the World Junior Championships, and the other at a local race series in Alaska. Her story is a common one at the college level—with most programs focused on the distance races that will qualify their racers for...
At just 19 years old, Noah Hoffman is brimming with potential. He followed 2008’s 12th place in the 10k classic at the World Junior Championships with a 17th and a 14th this year, but then emerged from a month off to take a solid fourth place (second American) at Distance Nationals in Fairbanks. Hoffman is currently training with the U.S. Ski Team in Park City, Utah. FasterSkier: Before we start talking about what you’re doing...
FIS announced Wednesday that the American Birkebeiner will return to its Marathon Cup circuit for 2009-2010. According to Birkebeiner Director of Race Operations Shellie Milford, the inclusion of the race in the circuit will bring additional elite skiers from Europe to compete for more prize money. Milford said that the decision to participate in the circuit is made by the Birkebeiner, rather than FIS. “It’s kind of a year-by-year decision,” she said. “We consider...
Tim Burke is a member of the U.S. Biathlon A Team, and has already qualified for the 2010 Olympics based on his results from last year. In 2008-2009, he finished 25th overall in the World Cup standings, with two top-ten finishes: eighth in the pursuit in Khanty-Mansijsk, Russia, and ninth in the sprint in Trondheim, Norway. He competed in the Olympics in Torino in 2006, placing 37th in the sprint. FasterSkier: You’re currently at a...
Junior coaches may shy away from sprint and speed training for fear of pigeonholing their skiers or limiting their aerobic development. But many of the country’s top sprint coaches and athletes say that these kinds of training can be useful for budding distance skiers as well. In an interview with FasterSkier, U.S. Ski Team Sprint Coach Chris Grover outlined three areas where juniors or young skiers could benefit from sprint-style training without detracting from their...
A three-time participant at World Championships, David Chamberlain is currently training and racing with the Maine Winter Sports Center (MWSC). Last year, Chamberlain was on the podium at three different Super Tours: he won the 10 kilometer classic race at Mt. Itasca, MN and placed second at both the 10 kilometer classic in Telemark, WI, and the classic sprint in Rumford, ME. FasterSkier: You’re currently living up in Aroostook County in northern Maine, right? How...
Inspired by the new Center of Excellence, U.S. Cross Country Ski Team Coaches Peter Vordenberg, Matt Whitcomb and Pat Casey are spearheading a select development training program this summer for young cross country skiers. The National Training Group (NTG), which is comprised of a group of rising athletes, allows the cross country coaches to use these exceptional resources to provide real exposure and superior training to the next group of future Olympians. Through this...
At just twenty years old, Canadian Alex Harvey had a breakout year in 2008-2009 with two World Cup podium finishes: third in the team sprint in Whistler, and another third in the 50 kilometer classic in Trondheim, Norway. FasterSkier caught up with him just after he finished his afternoon massage at a National Team camp in Canmore. FS: You’re out in Canmore right now training with the National Team. It seems like you have a...