Kris “Bird†Freeman Age: 25 Personal Coach: Peter Vordenberg, Zach Caldwell Kris leading the 10km field up the final climb in a SoHo time trial, with his brother and rival Justin in the background. www.icicleinn.com ) BioSports NorthWest Physical Therapy (
BY DEVON O'NEIL SUMMIT DAILY NEWS May 30, 2006 BRECKENRIDGE – Pete Swenson ponders the question, a simple, to-the-point, can't-mess-this-one-up “How old are you?” “Thirty-seven,” he says confidently. “No you're not,” the man sitting next to him says. “You're 38.” Taken aback, Swenson turns toward the disputer. It's his brother Carl. “Yeah, you're gonna be 39 in October,” Carl reiterates. Pete realizes and admits his error all in one long groan: “Nooooooo.” So begins an...
There are no more races left that suits Norwegian Havard Skorstad. He is now retiring from elite level racing, but isn’t quite able to quit working out. Source: Langrenn.com
Jens Arne Svartedal lost confidence in his sprinting ability after the 2005 Oberstdorf Worlds, and considered down prioritizing the sprint, but then won the Drammen World Cup sprint. Source: Langrenn.com Svartedal was a couple years ago unbeatable in classic sprint. No one was able to keep up when he accelerated to top speed diagonal technique in the uphills. He was for that reason the favorite when it for the first time was going to be...
Final Part of Three Part Series Trond, we’re centered so much on developing top racers, so what constitutes a talent in skiing to you? Talent is so complex it’s hard to define. I think of talent like a puzzle. Some people have parts of one piece, might be lacking one piece, or some having a more of this type. Obviously talent has to do with physical capacity. But it comes down to having the mental,...
Part Two of Three Part Series Torin Koos is a member of the National A Team for the United States. A World Cup, World Championship and Olympic competitor, Koos brings this experience to the FasterSkier sportscasting arena for the 2005/2006 season. Equipment: Rossignol Skis, Boots and Bindings, Toko gloves and wax, Marwe, Exel poles, Rudy Project Eyewear, Powerbar Home Ski Club: Leavenworth Winter Sports Club ( skileavenworth.com ) Headgear Sponsor: USA Pears ( usapears.com )
Part One of Three Part Series For the four years since Salt Lake 2002 Trond has been at the reigns of the U.S. Ski Team. On his last day on the job Mr. Nystad sat down for a conversation — about where he hoped to lead American skiing years ago, to where he sees it headed in the years to come. Torin Koos is a member of the National A Team for the United States....
Source: Unni Odegard, Langrenn.com — Translated by Torbjorn Karlsen Junior skier Petter Northug won his first World Cup victory in Falun, Sweden on Wednesday and answered to not being selected to race in the Olympics.
Chris Cook skied in both the Team Sprint and Individual Sprint at the Olympics. In the individual sprint, he qualified 16th in the prelim. With the games over, we caught up with him to ask a few questions. What was your goal heading into the individual sprint? My goal for the sprint was to qualify in the top 15, advance in the first heat, then fight for the final. Tell us about your quarterfinal heat....
Lars Flora had a tough Olympic Games. But that is only fueling his fire for the future. We asked him about it on the last weekend of the games. Lars you are the current National 50K Champion, so I thought we'd see you in the Olympic 50K. Why didn't you race? “I have been looking forward to competing in the 50 for two years. It was the race at the Olympics I wanted to perform...
We asked Kikkan Randall a few questions about her history-making performance in the Olympic sprint. First of all, congratulations! Top ten finish at the Olympics. How does it feel? It hasn’t really sunk in yet! I’m just feeling psyched and I can’t wait to sprint again! Tell us a little bit about your quarterfinal race. What was your strategy? My usual strategy is to lead it out. However, given the level of competition, I decided...
First of all, congratulations on your sprint race. I know you were hoping for more, but your result is still impressive. You finished second in the prelim. Did your prelim finish affect your approach to the heats? Does it give you more confidence, or add more pressure, or not change anything? For me, having a fast prelim only adds confidence for the heats. It makes you know that you can ski faster than the guys...
Kikkan Randall answered a few questions for us after her 10K classic race on Thursday. She is now preparing for the relay and the individual sprint. Can you tell us what its like to be an Olympic sprint final? Were you and Wendy pleased with your result? It was very exciting to be in the sprint final, although very tough! We had never done back to back races like this and it was a big...
Rebecca Dussault has raced in two Olympic races so far and will start in Saturday's women's relay. We asked her about her Olympic experience. You were the top American in the pursuit race. How did that race go for you? This was a great feeling race if you know what I mean. I always plan to hang on the best I can in the classic portion and then reel women back in in the skate...
Kris Freeman skipped the Olympic Pursuit race in order to prepare for the 15K classic. We asked him how he is feeling and how he is preparing for that race. Is it a struggle to properly prepare for your races with the Olympic 'circus' going on, or are you isolated from that? I always isolate myself as best as possbile at big events. Unfortunatley due to limited budget we had to live in the olympic...
US Olympic skier Justin Freeman will start his first Olympic race in Friday's 15K classic. We asked Justin about his preparation for this race. I am assuming that you will be racing the 15K classic. How are you preparing for your first Olympic race? I am racing the 15 km. I did hard intervals on Monday, and other than that I have been skiing really easy and testing skis. Does the Olympic 'circus' interfere with...
How did the pursuit go for you? You and Carl were pretty close. Did you work together at all? The pursuit was okay. It started really well…I was with the leaders through 7.5 K which was good. But then I faded for the second half of the classic and lost contact with the lead group which, in these mass start races, pretty much ensures that you're going to be minutes off the pace – the...
NPR seems to be doing its part to raise awareness for the US Cross Country Ski Team prior to the Olympics Games. Last weekend, NPR featured a piece on USST's Carl Swenson. This weekend, Tom Goldman did a segment on Kris Freeman for the program “Weekend Edition.” A number of our readers said that they caught the interview while in their car on their way to or from skiing on Sunday morning. Most ski fans...
We asked Kris Freeman about racing and his preparations for the Olympics.
Canadian Chandra Crawford was 8th in the recent Oberstdorf World Cup classic sprint. She is now racing at the U-23 Worlds and we got a chance to ask her about training, Worlds and the upcoming Olympics.