In a season filled with personal-bests and historic finishes for the American women, the 4 x 5 k relay in La Clusaz, France, was a reminder that not every race can be a wild success. They finished ninth out of nine teams on Sunday.
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Andy Newell got the U.S. men's relay off to a strong start Sunday, tagging off to Noah Hoffman in fourth. Hoffman rose to second, but two crashes on his last lap proved too much to overcome and the Americans finished 10th, a season best that left the team wanting more.
Stephen Finds Good Vibes in La Clusaz, Leads North Americans in 15th in 10 k Classic
Alex KochonJanuary 19, 2013
Note: This article has been updated. There’s something about La Clusaz. Liz Stephen can’t put her finger on it, but it works for her. A week after her 26th birthday, she notched another career best in the French alpine village -- this time in a classic race.
The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association named seven women and six men to its 2013 World Championships cross-country team on Saturday, which begin in Val di Fiemme, Italy, on February 20.
Fletcher Finishes Just Shy of Podium with Career-Best Fifth in Seefeld
Audrey ManganJanuary 19, 2013
The top American result to come out of Europe on Saturday? Taylor Fletcher's career-best fifth-place finish in Seefeld, Austria. With a jump that put him in 28th going onto the cross-country course, Fletcher skied within two seconds of the podium, posting the fastest course time by 18 seconds in the process.
Proving once again that he can hold his own in a distance race, Andy Newell’s led the way for the U.S. men on Saturday in La Clusaz, France, with a season-best 28th place in the 15 k classic mass start. He was the only North American in the points; teammates Noah Hoffman and Tad Elliott were 68th and 69th, respectively.
The 2013 World Championships begin on February 20th in Val di Fiemme, Italy, and if you think this has been an exciting season so far, think again. With the U.S. selection period now closed and team naming expected by the end of the week, we consider criteria, rankings and results.
Over the course of a trying Tour de Ski Holly Brooks learned what it means to overextend herself, and after a recovery period plans to take a brief step back from the World Cup circuit to regain confidence in smaller races.
Bad Luck Halts American Men in Liberec Semifinals
Audrey ManganJanuary 13, 2013
Simi Hamilton and Andy Newell began their semifinal in good position with the leaders in the Liberec team sprint, but got unlucky when a Finn fell in front of Hamilton before the last exchange. The duo finished fifth in the heat for 13th overall and did not advance to the finals.
Andy Newell was sixth in Liberec, Czech Republic, on Saturday for his third appearance in a sprint final this season. He was the only American to advance past the qualifier, but as this is the first World Cup since before the Tour for many, his teammates look forward to moving up from here on out.
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Weekly Roundup: Happy New Year!
Chelsea LittleJanuary 7, 2013
It's no exaggeration to say that this might have been the busiest week of the year to be a North American ski fan. With the Tour de Ski practically every day, U.S. Nationals, and some big NorAms used to determine junior and U23 trip rosters, plus biathlon and nordic combined, here are the highlights.
Bjornsen Gets What She Came For, Wins National Title in 20 k Classic Mass Start
Alex KochonJanuary 6, 2013
A two-time runner-up at this year's nationals, Sadie Bjornsen proved to herself that she can achieve gold, winning her second national title in three years in her first-ever 20 k. Bjornsen skied away from the pack late, beating teammate Kate Fitzgerald by nearly 13 seconds.
While Kikkan Randall slipped from seventh to 12th in the overall Tour de Ski standings, she said she was happy with her final place - but mostly "psyched" to see teammate Liz Stephen on the podium for the day. Stephen's second-fastest time on the climb moved her to 15th. Jessie Diggins was 21st and Holly Brooks 38th.
With four women starting in the top top ten spots in the 10 k classic mass start, Norway seemed to have an opportunity - albeit a slim one - to steal at least some bonus seconds from Justyna Kowalczyk. But it was to no avail as the Polish star cruised to another victory and more or less sealed her Tour title. Kikkan Randall, meanwhile, is in seventh and hoping for a better climb than she's had before.
Andy Newell will not complete the 2013 Tour de Ski, withdrawing following the 5k prologue as planned.
Kikkan Randall placed 7th in the 3.3k classic pursuit, maintaing her position in the overall Tour de Ski with just two stages remaining.
Kikkan Randall continued to ski well, finishing 8th in the Tour de Ski pursuit, just seconds out of 5th. Teammates Liz Stephen and Jessie Diggins also had strong races, moving up in the overall standings.
Holly Brooks and Liz Stephen joined Kikkan Randall in her Tour de Ski quarterfinal, which gave the U.S. star a boost; both Stephen and Brooks had career-best sprint days, placing 18th and 25th. Jessie Diggins was 17th and Andy Newell ninth, which moved him up to fourth in the World Cup sprint standings - all in all a good day for the American team.
School was in session in Switzerland, and Kikkan Randall was doing the teaching. Randall destroyed the field on her way to her second stage victory in just three races in the 2013 Tour de Ski, winning the freestyle sprint in Val Müstair over Norwegians Ingvild Flugstad Østberg and Heidi Weng.
U.S. Women Kick Off Strong Tour in Oberhof; Three in the Top 30 After Pursuit
Audrey ManganDecember 30, 2012
After the 9 k classic pursuit stage of the Tour de Ski, three American women sit in the top 30 of the overall standings. Kikkan Randall, following an impressive win in the prologue, leads the way in 14th, 1:48.3 seconds behind Tour leader Justyna Kowalczyk. Liz Stephen ranks 23rd and Holly Brooks sits just behind her in 25th. Jessie Diggins moved up 12 places to reach 50th at the end of the pursuit.