Skarverennet in Norway, the unofficial international season finale, draws deep and competitive field of racers from both the biathlon and cross-country World Cup circuit. This year, it’s a pursuit: the men will chase the women for the overall title.
Lars Flora’s 2011 European campaign didn’t go the way he wanted, but at least it went out with a bang. After some disappointing races at the World Championships in Oslo, and at the World Cup Final in Falun, Sweden, Flora finally put it together on Sunday, just in time for his last start before heading back to the U.S. In the 15 k handicap start in Falun, Flora was 30th, less than two minutes behind...
The US Nordic Combined team travels around the world with the usual gear: skis, boots, poles, race suits, iPod. …And a sewing machine.
There was a Norwegian surprise result on the last day of the World Cup Final, and the 2011 World Cup season. No, Petter Northug did not suffer an epic collapse and lose his 1:28 lead in the mini-tour. Northug was never challenged – the unexpected came in the race for second, where 20-year-old Finn Haagen Krogh (NOR) took down the likes of Dario Cologna (SUI) and Daniel Rickardsson (SWE) – rising from seventh place in...
Marit Bjoergen (NOR) capped a stellar 2011 World Cup campaign, extending her lead on Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) for a clear victory in the World Cup Final mini-tour. Kowalczyk held her second position, as did Therese Johaug in third – though of the trio, she had to work the hardest. Bjoergen entered the 10km handicap start event with a 1:14 lead over Kowalczyk, making the outcome a foregone conclusion. Bjoergen’s worst result of the season in...
And…..we’re done for the season! Related posts:Race Snapshot: IBU WC 4 Mass Start Race Snapshot: IBU WC 6 Men’s Mass Start Race Snapshot: IBU WC 6 Women’s Mass Start Related posts:
Another good day for the US women; nice job ladies! Related posts:Race Snapshot: IBU WC 1 Men/Women’s Pursuit Race Snapshot: IBU WC 2 Men’s Pursuit Race Snapshot: IBU WC 2 Women’s Pursuit Related posts:
Sorry for posting these so late in the day. I had a race, then drove home, etc. Related posts:Race Snapshot: IBU WC 1 Men/Women’s Pursuit Race Snapshot: IBU WC 2 Women’s Pursuit Race Snapshot: Rybinsk 10/20km Pursuit Related posts:
US biathletes Sara Studebaker and Haley Johnson were 20th and 21st respectively in the 10K sprint Saturday. They both had four penalties, and they both qualified for the mass start on Sunday. The difference is that while Johnson shot 1-0-1-2, Studebaker was 1-0-0-3.
In the space of one minute at the World Cup Finals, Kikkan Randall (USA) went from contender to collateral damage. Randall had had a great start to Saturday’s 10 k pursuit in Falun, Sweden—the third event of the four-stage mini-tour that ends the cross-country World Cup season—and she was among the leaders, looking for another personal distance best after her 11th-place in Finland last weekend. Enter Therese Johaug. “She decided she wanted to be right...
His opponents insist he is not unbeatable, that Petter Northug (NOR) can be taken down. Marcus Hellner (SWE) proved that in the World Championship sprint. But when Northug is in top form and the event is a head-to-head distance competition, it is hard to imagine anyone else on the top of the podium. Northug did it again, sprinting away from an overmatched Giorgio DiCenta (ITA) at the end of the 20km pursuit in Falun, Sweden....
Marit Bjoergen’s slump is over. Starting with her silver medal in the World Championship 30k, Bjoergen went a whole two distance races without a victory, proving that she is in fact mortal. She was back on top today however, dominating the 10km pursuit at the World Cup Finals in Falun, Sweden. Bjoergen skied away from Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) for a clear victory, opening an insurmountable gap in the overall. Therese Johaug (NOR) battled back from...
Yesterday’s biathlon WC sprint saw a mix of results for the Americans. First, things seem to have sort of reversed themselves from early in the season with Laura Spector struggling and the other ladies skiing quite well: An excellent race from Haley Johnson and Sara Studebaker, but a pretty dismal one for Spector, who shot [...] Related posts:
Since the tail end of the 2011 Tour de Ski, Russia’s star distance skier, Alexander Legkov, has been missing in action. He fell ill with swine flu and couldn’t finish the Tour, then, with an abysmal performance in the relay at World Championships in Oslo, singlehandedly dashed his country’s hopes for a medal in that event. While the relay result stung, Legkov’s drought has been balanced by some strong performances by his teammates. There’s Maxim...
Rail hard tracks, crisp air, and extra blue – none were in evidence as the World Cup Finals continued with a 2.5-kilometer classic prologue in Falun, Sweden. It may not have been pretty, but it was a ski race. With 10-15 centimeters of snow falling into the morning, and temperatures just below freezing, it is perhaps an understatement to term the conditions a sloppy mess. Marit Bjoergen (NOR) served notice that she would not be...
Sigh. Prologues. They count for FIS points. They count for World Cup points. And yet, somehow, I just don’t really care that much about them. Still, a race is a race, so here are the requisite snapshots: Related posts:Race Snapshot: TdS Prologue Race Snapshot: TdS Pursuit Race Snapshot: TdS Final Climb Related posts:
Despite coming off of a successful World Championships in which they led the count with eight medals (including two relay golds), the Norwegian team was unable to keep their hot streak going when the World Cup landed on home turf in Oslo. At Holmenkollen Stadium on Thursday, the best the team could muster was a second-place finish by Tora Berger in the women’s 7.5 k sprint. She finished over 30 seconds behind Magdalena Neuner of...
It’s not everyday you get to see World Cup skiers battling it out with historic European architecture as the backdrop. That, however, is just what happened yesterday in Stockholm, Sweden as classical sprints were contested on the snow-c0vered streets around the Swedish palace. All photos courtesy of Kellen MacFadyen.
Kikkan Randall (USA) has three more races before her 2011 World Cup campaign comes to an end, and given her career-best distance finish of 11th last weekend, there is no reason that she couldn’t be in contention for a strong result in the World Cup Finals mini-tour. But at this point, such a performance would merely be icing on the cake. With another strong classic sprint in the Stockholm city sprint, Randall sewed up the...
Petter Northug believes he has to spend years restoring his image after crying publicly after the 30K pursuit during the 2011 World Championships in Oslo.