World Cup – Page 26 – FasterSkier.com

Three In A Row, Johaug Wins the Hill Sprint Showdown in Åre; Diggins 11th, Caldwell 12th

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 18, 2020

When Therese Johaug wins a sprint qualifier by 4.5 seconds and Sophie Caldwell qualifies in 23rd, you know it is not your average course. Held at the Swedish national alpine ski area in Åre, today’s event seemed to blend the infamous climb up the Alpe Cermis in the final stage of the Tour de Ski with skier cross on perhaps the shortest but toughest sprint on the World Cup. A gradual uphill start led skiers...

Racing World Cup

Johaug Takes the Stage 2 Win: Brennan in 10th, Diggins 11th

Jason AlbertFebruary 16, 2020

The early evening show, under the lights of Östersund, Sweden’s ski stadium, Stage 2 of the Ski Tour 2020 – a 10-kilometer classic pursuit – got underway as the plentiful moisture falling from the sky transitioned from steady rain to big snowflakes. This was a 10 k race with three discrete tales. First, the story with the least tension. That would be Norway’s Therese Johuag’s 10 k effort. Which, despite the pursuit format, was a...

Racing World Cup

Down to the Wire, Golberg Out Sprints Bolshunov for the Pursuit Win

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 16, 2020

Picking up where we left off in Östersund, Sweden: a pursuit start 15-kilometer classic. Unlike the women’s field where Therese Johaug “administered a beatdown”, creating a large time gap for herself, the margins for the men were much smaller. A glance at Final Results | Time of Day Results

Racing World Cup

Perfect Pacing: Sjur Røthe Claims Ski Tour 2020 Stage 1 Win

Jason AlbertFebruary 15, 2020

The six-stage Ski Tour 2020, which runs from Sweden to Norway over the next week, began Saturday in Östersund, Sweden with the men’s 15-kilometer individual start skate. The race began with twilight immersing Östersund with the sky eventually morphing into black as the seeded group of skiers looped around on what FIS called a 4.71 k course. This much can be concluded after a single day of what will be a hotly contested tour: the...

Racing World Cup

Johaug Tops an All-Norwegian Podium; Diggins 8th, Brennan 9th

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 15, 2020

Here we go again. A new Scandinavian Ski Tour takes the spot of a World Championship or Olympic Games during this off-cycle year. Six stages working east from Östersund, Sweden to Trondheim, Norway, beginning with today’s 10-kilometer individual start freestyle event. Under clear skies, light fading and shadows lengthening as the sunset looms just a few hours away, the women time trialed through the tall conifers to set the tone of the overall tour standings....

World Cup

Ski Tour 2020: The Basics

Jason AlbertFebruary 13, 2020

New on the World Cup this season is the Ski Tour 2020: a six-stage tour beginning in Östersund, Sweden on February 15, and concluding in Trondheim, Norway on February 23rd. (To view the map as a stand-alone web page, click here.) As the interactive map illustrates, races will be held at venues along a similar latitude in Sweden and Norway, with the World Cup entourage traveling East to West. The Ski Tour 2020 is organized...

Racing World Cup

Johaug Pounces in Closing K to Win in Falun; Diggins 14th

Jason AlbertFebruary 9, 2020

As always, it was a reset: a new day at the start of a World Cup race. On Sunday, the ribbon of snow in Falun, Sweden offered an opportunity for a sixty-six women field to race head to head in a 10 k mass start freestyle race. With a course that some noted was softened in difficulty by eliminating the infamous Moderbakken climb — which has become a feared incline on the World Cup circuit...

Racing US Ski Team World Cup

Bolshunov Four for Four in Distance Wins; Norris Earns Season Best Result in 24th

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 9, 2020

Around and around they go. Due to lack of snow in Falun, Sweden, the men again wheeled their way around a manmade ribbon of snow, skating six icy 2.5-kilometer laps. Reduced from 30 to the 15 k distance and without the long, steep climb for which the course is usually known, how athletes would fare was yet to be determined. Along the way, two sets of 15 bonus points were available for the top ten...

Racing World Cup

Sweden’s Svahn Takes the Win on Home Soil; Caldwell 7th in Seven Person Final

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 8, 2020

Not the backdrop one might expect from Scandiavia in mid-winter, rather, green grass, bare ski jumps, and a ribbon of snow were found in Falun, Sweden. However, what was lacking in snow was made up for by a densely packed crowd of cheering fans, erupting as athletes flew by in the women’s classic sprint. An occurrence that might meet our expectations is that the Swedish women showed up on home turf. Johanna Hagström won the...

Racing World Cup

Norway’s Golberg and Valnes Go 1-2 in Falun Classic Sprint: Bolshunov Third

Jason AlbertFebruary 8, 2020

Thousands of spectators, slate skies, and a manmade loop of snow laid down in the otherwise green-brown Falun, Sweden ski stadium greeted the World Cup on Saturday. After a weekend hiatus last week, racers contested a 1.4-kilometer classic sprint in one of Sweden’s skiing epicenters. The main World Cup sprint star, Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, was absent. The twenty-three-year-old Klæbo broke two fingers last week. According to Norwegian broadcaster NRK, he will be reevaluated on Feb....

Racing World Cup

Statistical Skier: Unusual WC Sprint Qualifying Time Gaps

FasterSkierFebruary 4, 2020

This piece was originally was published on

Racing World Cup

Klæbo Runs Away with Oberstdorf Classic Sprint Win

Jason AlbertJanuary 26, 2020

Sunday’s men’s 1.5-kilometer classic sprint course in Oberstdorf, Germany deserves some recognition. Site of the 2021 FIS Nordic Ski World Championships, racers were offered a glimpse into how the world’s foremost sprinter, Johannes Høsflot Klæbo of Norway, would navigate it’s kicker climbs, steep descents, and roughly three minute and thirty-second effort. The sprint course offered three distinct climbs, one at 0.2 k, the largest at 0.52 k, and the third starting at 1.1 k. The...

Racing World Cup

Rebounding From the Skiathlon, Three Americans Sprint to Top-10 Results (Updated)

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 26, 2020

Onward and upward. Day two in Oberstdorf, Germany featured a 1.5-kilometer classic sprint with three sharp toothlike climbs. Seemingly riding the edge of their capability inside the tracks, athletes pumped their way up each pitch before wrapping around a bend and descending an equal grade back toward the stadium. After what Matt Whitcomb called an “off day”, the Americans demonstrated their ability to rebound. To not let the sensations or disappointment from one day percolate...

Racing World Cup

With Arms Raised: It’s a Johaug Win in Oberstdorf – Brennan in 17th, Diggins 22nd

Jason AlbertJanuary 25, 2020

Here at FasterSkier, we do not play the odds. Some contributors we know play Noah Hoffman’s Fantasy League – but we steer clear of rolling the dice on cross-country skiing. But the women’s skiathlon events on the World Cup may not be the biggest payouts since in recent history they have been a lock. Oberstdorf in Oberstdorf, Germany — the site of next year’s Nordic Ski World Championships — required no crystal ball of an...

Racing US Ski Team World Cup

Third Consecutive Distance Win for Bolshunov in Oberstdorf; Norris 28th

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 25, 2020

And the World Cup beat goes on. Nearly 70 men lined up in Oberstdorf, Germany for a 15/15-kilometer skiathlon, battling across techniques in front of a Bavarian Alp backdrop. The venue will be the home of the 2021 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. The 3.75 k course in Oberstdorf featured a variety of terrain, with the Burgstall hill climb bringing athletes to the high point of the course. To increase the pulse in the long...

Racing World Cup

Nové Město Pursuit: Bolshunov in Command

Jason AlbertJanuary 19, 2020

More snow. More fans. On Sunday in Nové Město, Czech Republic, day two of a pursuit weekend unfolded amidst trees draped in snow and a 5 k course with portions lined with fans. With snow falling, the men raced a 15-kilometer classic pursuit. Rewind to yesterday’s first portion of the pursuit format, a 15 k interval start skate, which established the time-back start positions for Sunday. Russia’s Alexander Bolshunov won that race by a margin of...

Racing World Cup

Johaug Sweeps the Pursuit in Nové Město; Diggins 10th

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 19, 2020

Yesterday’s snow coated Nové Město, Czech Republic, clinging to the tall pines and masking the unsettling contrast of the man made ribbon of snow. Though wintry precipitation continued to fall, cheering crowds filled the stadium, ringing bells and sounding horns as racers passed through. Picking up where they left off after the skate stage, athletes set out onto the arduous tracks for a 10-kilometer classic pursuit. Steep climbs, sharp curves, and gentler though rippling terrain...

Racing World Cup

Bolshunov Dominates in Nové Město; Norris in 27th

Jason AlbertJanuary 18, 2020

The overall and distance specialist were back it Saturday in Nové Město, Czech Republic. After the grind of the Tour de Ski (TdS), which finished atop the Alpe Cermis on January 5th, all but the core roster of sprinters took last weekend’s stop in Dresden, Germany off. Period III began for those chasing more than sprint points and podiums on a snowy day in Nové Město. Saturday’s race, a 15-kilometer freestyle individual start, set racers...

Racing World Cup

Johaug Takes the Lead in Nové Město Pursuit; Diggins 4th

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 18, 2020

“It has everything,” Sweden’s Charlotte Kalla told FIS before the start of the 10-kilometer interval start skate in Nové Město, Czech Republic. Though she was describing the steep uphills and working downhills, found along the 5 k track, it might have also been an apt description for what the weather had in store. As athletes headed out on course, the light icy precipitation transitioned into chunky white flakes accumulating on the deteriorating ribbon of man...

Racing World Cup

Dresden Team Sprint Rundown

FasterSkierJanuary 12, 2020

It was dizzying in Dresden for the skate team sprints. The man-made loop of lightning-fast snow had skiers going literally round and round for a total of 11 exchanges between teammates. Each skier skated a single 0.7-kilometer lap, for a total of 7.8 k. Each skier raced six laps. Turn your head dizzy. The Women’s Final The finals consisted of ten teams. Sweden I animated the race with its display of pull ahead speed late...

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