VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – The hill today, and the races, were epic. Here are FasterSkier’s images from the way up. Enjoy.
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The cream of the crop. The best in the world compete all winter long on the World Cup. We follow them at every stop with article and results. We also post occasional reports from North America’s best as they travel the globe.
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Tour de Ski winners are all alike; every Tour de Ski loser is a loser in his own way. Petter Northug (NOR), Marcus Hellner (SWE), Devon Kershaw (CAN), Lukas Bauer (CZE)—each had his own problem that torpedoed his hopes for a Tour victory, whether it was bad skis, a broken pole, a weak discipline, or an uncooperative body. Dario Cologna, on the other hand, had nothing go wrong. The Swiss...
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – If an instant can last a lifetime, Marit Bjørgen (NOR) had more than enough time to watch the 2012 Tour de Ski slip away. Locked in a battle with rival Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) for eight races, Bjørgen matched the Pole stride for stride on the lower part of the final climb up the Alpe Cermis. An then, in that interminable moment, Kowalczyk was gone. The two-time defending Tour champion accelerated,...
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Kris Freeman (USA) raced to a poor result yesterday, consistent with his highly variable season, finishing the day in 55th place, and losing his hopes of a respectable Tour de Ski finish. He vowed, however to finish the event, completing the 9th stage and crossing the finish line on the Alpe de Cermis. “Yesterday, any sensible person would’ve dropped out, but I wanted to race today. ” He did just...
Randall Mixes it Up in Stage 8; The Alpe is Next
Nathaniel HerzJanuary 8, 2012
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – If anyone wanted a preview of how next season’s World Championships here might unfold for American skier Kikkan Randall, they had to look no further than the women’s lead pack in Stage 8 of the Tour de Ski on Saturday. For half of the race, a 9 k mass start classic competition, Randall skied at the front with big names like Marit Bjoergen (NOR) and Justyna Kowalczyk (POL)—and even led...
As described in the race report, the German town of Oberhof finally got some much-needed snow on Thursday – it just happened to come as a blizzard during the World Cup men’s relay held that evening. With both significant snow accumulation and huge gusts of wind hitting the course, the biathletes struggled through with an unusually high number of spare rounds and penalty loops. Italy eventually took the win, with Russia and Sweden rounding out...
Eight Down, One to Go, as Kershaw Guns for Podium
Nathaniel HerzJanuary 7, 2012
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – For Canadian Devon Kershaw, the toughest thing about the nine-stage Tour de Ski may not actually be physical pain of racing. It might, instead, be keeping his head screwed on straight. “I overanalyze a lot,” he said Saturday. “I’ve been pretty nervous the last few days, and just trying to tick [the stages] off one by one.” For the last two stages of the Tour, though, Kershaw has kept it...
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – The bell lap of the 2012 Tour de Ski kicks off on Sunday with the famed climb up the Alpe Cermis, and after a decisive victory over Marit Bjørgen (NOR), Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) will start with an eleven second lead. Kowalczyk demonstrated that she may have been down for a few days, as Bjørgen won four consecutive stages, but she was certainly not out. Back in her preferred classic technique...
Harvey Powers to Podium in Val di Fiemme, With Help from Secret Weapon
Nathaniel HerzJanuary 7, 2012
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Before Stage 8 of the Tour de Ski, a secret weapon arrived at the Canadian hotel here. It didn’t come in a box; it wasn’t a hi-tech ski wax, or special food or drink. And it wasn’t
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Kris Freeman (USA) started off stage 8 of the 2012 Tour de Ski, a 20k classic mass start in Val di Fiemme, with a bang. He was skiing at the back of the tight lead group. He looked strong and smooth. He reported that “I didn’t…feel like I was going out too fast…the first lap felt easy.” But then something happened, and he was gone. Each lap he fell farther...
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Eldar Roenning (NOR) spent much of the eighth stage of the Tour de Ski working for Petter Northug (NOR), but as the final kilometer rolled around, he submitted his resignation, packed up his skis and poles, and headed out on his own. Roenning attacked on the final climb of the unforgiving Val di Fiemme 4.5 kilometer loop, opening a 10 meter gap entering the stadium, a lead he never relinquished...
Hills, Hills and More Hills: Tour de Ski Stage 8
FasterSkierJanuary 7, 2012
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – The course today for Stage 8 of the 2011/2012 Tour de Ski was tough! There was not much in the way of flat, and those poor World Cup souls who did not have perfect kick – amazing athletes every one of them – fell back quickly. Here are FasterSkier’s pictures on the day.
TOBLACH, Italy – Stage 7 of the Tour de Ski, which took place Thursday, is the event’s crown jewel: a 35-kilometer point-to-point race that sent competitors up an over a mountain pass, with the craggy Dolomites as a stunning backdrop. Or, to be more precise, it sent male competitors up and over a mountain pass, with the craggy Dolomites as a stunning backdrop. The women, meanwhile, skied three laps of a standard five-kilometer course on...
TOBLACH, Italy – In all the confusion of travel, race coverage, and eating delicious Italian cheese, we failed to post the Tour Day 5 A to Zeller. While slightly dated, here it is in all its glory…Ranging from ‘A’ for Alexander Legkov to ‘Z’ for…well you should know by now. A – Alexander Leglov: Victorious today. B – Benzene: This is not diesel. Don’t put this in your vehicle over here. Ooops! C – Cappucino: ...
Neuner Bounces Back to Win Oberhof Sprint; U.S. Women Struggle In First Race Back from Break
Chelsea LittleJanuary 6, 2012
After an extreme and unexpected implosion in Wednesday’s relay, Magdalena Neuner of Germany scooted out of the stadium without talking to the press. On Friday, she was able to hold her head high after hitting all of her targets and skiing to a 37-second win over Darya Domracheva of Belarus in the 7.5 k World Cup sprint in Oberhof, Germany. “It was important for me to delete that last race,” she said in the post-race...
TOBLACH, Italy – Another day, yet another top-10 for Kikkan Randall. Randall skied to fifth place in Stage 7 of the Tour de Ski on Thursday—her sixth time in the top 10 in seven stages, and a result that leaves her in fifth place in the overall Tour. There was a time when a top 10 on the World Cup by an American would be cause for great rejoicing back home. But Randall has...
TdS Freestyle Sprint Recap
JoranJanuary 6, 2012
Once again, a bit after the fact…the heat times analysis for the freestyle sprint the other day. Men Starting with the finals: That was decidedly slow, tactical final. Interesting that David Hofer had such fast times in the quarters and semis. Semifinal 2 was slightly faster, but not by a ton. Women As for the [...] Related posts:
After Rainy, Warm Weekend, Oberhof Finally Blasted With Snow During Men’s Relay; “Hurricane On The Range”, Says Bailey
Chelsea LittleJanuary 6, 2012
When Thursday’s men’s relay in Oberhof, Germany kicked off, the television cameras could barely even show the start. After days of rain and warm conditions, the snow gods of Thuringia finally decided to let the World Cup biathletes see their worst. The snow was falling so thickly that zoomed shots from the cameras could barely pick out the skiers. “That was one of the hardest relays during my coaching career,” said U.S. Head Coach...
TOBLACH, Italy – Cross-country skiing has plenty of unlikely alliances, from Norwegians running the Swiss national team to an American heading up the Canadian coaching staff. But few alliances were more curious than the one forged on Thursday between Marit Bjoergen (NOR) and Justyna Kowalczyk (POL). In Thursday’s Stage 7 of the Tour de Ski, Bjoergen outsprinted Kowalczyk on the homestretch here to win by two seconds, taking her fourth straight victory and her third...
TOBLACH, Italy – A year ago Devon Kershaw (CAN) entered the 35-kilometer point-to-point Tour de Ski pursuit sitting in second, and primed for a run at the top-5. Just under an hour later, he was struggling to hold onto the large chase pack that had gobbled him up at the 20k mark. Ever since that day this event has been on his mind—through summer training camps, early fall racing, and right up until the start...