Emma Lunder placed 30th in her World Cup debut last season. The Canadian biathlete has since gained funding, training partners, and motivation: "Anytime I'm doing a really brutal workout, I just think to myself, if you can get through this, you're one step closer to racing in Pokljuka again!"
With the help of U.S. Ski Team head coach Chris Grover and Canadian National Team Head Coach Justin Wadsworth, Tor-Arne Hetland and the Canadian World Cup Team ended up in Vermont last month. "Andy Newell can train here for many years … That’s the reason we are here," Hetland explained.
FasterSkier tagged along with the Canadian World Cup Team and Stratton Mountain School T2 squad for a morning over-distance rollerski on Aug. 15 in Stratton, Vt.
The Canadian World Cup Team and about 23 training-centre skiers ventured south to Bend, Ore., in late June for a 12-day camp that was more about finding good pavement than snow. "We felt like it was the best place for an all-around camp with a big group," coach Justin Wadsworth says.
Nous avons joint Bilodeau à sa demeure savoyarde, battue derechef par une forte pluie contraignant le passionné de pêche à délaisser temporairement le Rhône. L’homme revient avec humour sur ses débuts en 1995, nous présente ses compagnons d’armes oeuvrant au sein de l’équipe canadienne et se prononce sans détour sur les déconvenues de Sochi.
Dasha Gaiazova was on the fence about continuing her ski career after the 2014 Olympics.The Russian-born Canadian had competed at back-to-back home Olympics, and in May, she wasn't named to Canada's World Cup or senior development teams. "I felt like I wanted to keep racing," she recalled. “The team got announced and I didn't get on the team, and I was like, I gotta think about some things.”
In his first week as president/chair of Cross Country Canada, Jamie Coatsworth -- a longtime financial supporter of Canadian nordic skiing -- talks about the position and how he ended up filling the vacancy left by Richard Lemoine. "Sort of looking up around the room, I spoke to some of the other board members," Coatsworth said. "And I said somebody’s gotta do it."
Chandra Crawford stuck with skiing long after winning gold as a U23 at the 2006 Olympics because she remembered when Beckie Scott and Sara Renner explained "it would take ten years to get good." She committed, and after three Olympics, Crawford, 30, retired from the sport to pursue higher education -- cutting right to the chase with an MBA to better serve Fast and Female.
Tor-Arne Hetland is officially part of the Canadian crew after wrapping up his first training camp with the Canadian World Cup Team in May. Onboard since April, he says he's eager to give the perspective and stability that Cross Country Canada wants. "It is asked for new ideas into the team and I’m ready to give this," Hetland says. "And also more stability in the World Cup."
In an interview on Friday, Canadian head coach Justin Wadsworth discussed how he will work with Tor Arne Hetland in the coming year for Canmore-based World Cup athletes - "I’ve already had fun talking training with him" - and the other part of his new job, getting the national training centers aligned with the World Cup team to improve the development pipeline.
Cross-Country Ski de Fond Canada (CCC) has changed its leadership structure in an effort to ramp up for the 2018 Winter Olympics, with Justin Wadsworth overseeing all national-team programs and training centres, and Louis Bouchard and Tor-Arne Hetland as World Cup Team coaches.
Justin Wadsworth's not sure how it got out there, but he said incorrect information reached the press on Tuesday regarding the Canadian World Cup Team's coaching and waxing staff for the 2014/2015 season.
Canadian Women's World Cup Coach Eric de Nys is in the process of starting a new junior-training program in Canmore after parting ways with the national team. “With the World Cup team being what it will be next year, it just can't justify having that many coaches there,” he says. “We had to do some restructuring and part of that was eliminating a job.”
Canadian Nationals came to a close last Saturday, with Ivan Babikov rolling to a 41-second victory over Kevin Sandau in the 50 k classic and Amanda Ammar notching a coveted senior title with a 54-second win over Emily Nishikawa in the 30 k at Blow Me Down Trails.
Dasha Gaiazova beat out fellow Canadian World Cup teammate Perianne Jones to the line to win Thursday's freestyle sprint A-final for her first victory of the week at Canadian Nationals. Paralympic guide Graham Nishikawa overcame jet lag for his first senior-national title.
At Canadian Nationals on Tuesday, Ivan Babikov pulled out an 18.4-second victory of Paralympic gold medalist Graham Nishikawa, both of which were fresh off the plane from Europe and Russia, respectively. Heidi Widmer notched another national title as well.
Zeke Williams of the Alberta World Cup Academy reports from 2014 Canadian Nationals in Newfoundland, interviewing the winners of Sunday's short-distance classic men's and women's races.
Alex Harvey started Sunday’s 15-kilometer freestyle pursuit in Falun, Sweden, with one thing on his mind: a first- or second-place finish would put him on the overall World Cup podium. “I’m super stoked,” said Harvey of his podium. “That was a super-nice way to end the season."
Chris Klebl earned his first Paralympic medal in impressive fashion, winning gold in Sunday's cross-country 10 k sit-ski race on the last day of the Sochi Games. Brian McKeever took his third gold of the week, 10th total, the most of any winter athlete in Paralympic history.
Alex Harvey rocked the 30 k skiathlon, executing a tried-and-tested strategy to a 'T' and staying out of the way of trouble. The Canadian won the penultimate race of World Cup Finals to put himself in podium contention for the overall World Cup, which would be the icing on his most successful season to date. Devon Kershaw placed 12th, and Ivan Babikov finished 23rd for Canada.