Astrid Jacobsen – FasterSkier

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

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 Tour de Ski

Back On Form, Johaug Climbs to the Overall Tour Victory; Diggins 6th, Brennan 7th in Stage (Updated)

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 5, 2020

The fateful Alpe Cermis. The 10-kilometer capstone of the Tour de Ski, athletes complete the 1.5 k sprint loop before following the river valley down to the base of the alpine hill, climbing steeply for nearly 400 vertical meters to the finish. Bodies aching with the cumulative fatigue of the tour, racers are totally spent at the finish of the event. Crossing the line, they collapse with their faces pressed into the snow gasping for...

Racing World Cup

Twelfth Consecutive Relay Win for Norway; USA Comes Back for Second

Rachel PerkinsDecember 8, 2019

Athletes warmed up amidst fat falling snowflakes as a storm blanketed Lillehammer, Norway. The gun fired, and a flurry of this snow clouded the boots, poles, and relay socks as a wave of skiers strode their way up and out of the Birkebeiner Stadium for the first leg of the women’s 4 x 5-kilometer relay. With outstanding performances in the first two World Cup race weekends, it is clear that the U.S. women are hot....

Racing World Cup

Therese Johaug Notches Seventh Skiathlon Victory; Diggins Charges to 2nd

Rachel PerkinsDecember 7, 2019

This week’s episode of the Therese Johaug show featured a clinic in her signature event, the 15-kilometer mass start skiathlon in Lillehammer, Norway. Before today, the two-time World Championship gold medalist had made the podium in 13 of her 14 World Cup skiathlon starts (six of those were wins), failing only in Oberstdorf, Germany during the 2011 Tour de Ski. Her strategy was familiar. Johaug set the pace from the gun, attacking the first climb...

Racing World Cup

Johaug Dominates in Ruka; Three Americans in the Top Ten

Rachel PerkinsDecember 1, 2019

Ruka, Finland looked quintessentially Nordic at the start of the 10-kilometer freestyle pursuit. December at 66 degrees north: temperatures in the low teens (F), flat Northern light, frosted pines looking as though they were spray-coated with foam. Athletes warmed up in puffy jackets with mittens, neck warmers, and taped faces while crowds huddled with cups of soup. First out of the start and racing in a balaclava and mittens, Norway’s Theresa Johaug attacked the course...

General News Training

The World’s Great Age Begins Anew: Athletes Mark May 1

Gavin KentchMay 7, 2019

If you’re reading this website, you’re probably well aware that the nordic skiing training year begins on May 1. In a sport where most races happen between November and March, and demand of athletes that they repeatedly race to the point of nearly losing consciousness, the preparation for race season had better start a long time before that. As the well-worn, but accurate, saying has it, skiers are made in the summer. tretinoin Embracing the...

News Racing US Ski Team World Cup

Johaug Victorious at Holmenkollen; Americans Land Outside Top 30

Rachel PerkinsMarch 10, 2019

Skies cleared and the sun shined on the 30-kilometer mass start classic at the Holmenkollen. When not surrounded by tall pines, racers were offered beautiful vistas of Oslo and the cold blue fjord on which Norway’s capital is built. While the Sunday crowd pales in comparison to the masses who attended the men’s event on Saturday, plenty of tents still lined the course to house families of fans camped out for the weekend. The snowbanks lining...

News Racing US Ski Team World Cup

After a Long Wait, Johaug Wins Second Gold Medal in the World Championship Skiathlon; Brennan 10th

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 23, 2019

An emotional Therese Johaug of Norway stood atop the podium after the 15-kilometer skiathlon in Seefeld, Austria. While the race seemed to be decided during the second of two classic laps where Johaug began to pull away, the title has taken much longer to achieve. This moment was one she has been hoping for since she last earned the title during the 2015 world championships in Falun, Sweden. Johaug was unable to compete in the...

Canadian National Ski Team General News Olympics Racing US Ski Team

Saturday Olympic Rundown: Norway Tops Women’s Relay, U.S. 5th; Kuzmina Dominates Mass Start

FasterSkierFebruary 17, 2018

FasterSkier would like to thank Fischer Sport USA, Concept2, International report Full report Not even a miss in the final stage could keep Slovakia’s Anastasiya Kuzmina from her third medal of the 2018 Olympics, this time gold, in the women’s 12.5-kilometer mass start on Saturday at the Alpensia Biathlon Center. Kuzmina took charge early in the five-loop race, leading Germany’s Laura Dahlmeier into the range for the first prone shooting stage. There, Kuzmina cleaned all five targets quickly...

General News Racing World Cup

World Cup Windup: Norway

FasterSkierNovember 13, 2017

Welcome to World Cup Windup, where we check in with the top-10 teams from last year’s FIS Cross Country World Cup tour before the season starts with the Ruka Triple in Kuusamo, Finland, on Nov. 24. NORWAY Overall in Nations Cup Last Year: First, by a landslide: 13,383 points to 7,053 by runner-up Sweden. Women’s Ranking 2016/2017: First Men’s Ranking 2016/2017: First Who’s Back: Overall World Cup winners Martin Johnsrud Sundby and Heidi Weng; Sprint...

General Interviews News Olympics US Ski Team World Cup

Approaching Final Season, Randall Looks Forward

Gavin KentchSeptember 29, 2017

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Kikkan Randall is approaching a season full of lasts: her final season as a full-time athlete, her final season on the World Cup, and, she hopes, her fifth and final Olympics. Her main focus these days is resolutely on the future, but she took some time earlier this month to speak with FasterSkier about her summer training and what comes next. Summer training Randall’s final summer of training was anchored by the same...

General Resources Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Matching Attacks with Astrid Jacobsen

Jason AlbertAugust 30, 2017

On July 28, Masters World Cup in Minneapolis or other hallmark races like Sun Valley’s

Interviews Multimedia Nordic Nation Podcasts

Nordic Nation: The Astrid Chronicles

Jason AlbertJuly 28, 2017

Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen. At 30 years old, Jacobsen is a longtime member of the venerable Norwegian national ski team — and she’s truly busy. Her career on the World Cup has spanned a decade, bookended by her first World Championship medal in 2007 in Sapporo, Japan (a sprint), and three 2017 World Champ medals in Lahti, Finland. There, Jacobsen placed third in the 10-kilometer classic and 30 k skate and was part of the winning...

Norway Women Win Again, But It’s Closest Relay in Two Years; U.S. Fourth in Nailbiter (Updated)

Chelsea LittleJanuary 22, 2017

Another women’s 4 x 5 k World Cup relay, another Norwegian win. Yawn? Not so fast. While the team of Ingvild Flugstad Østberg, Heidi Weng, Astrid Jacobsen, and Marit Bjørgen may have picked up the victory, the women’s race in Ulricehamn, Sweden, was anything but dull. For one thing, it was the closest race in 23 months, going all the way back to the 2014 Olympics where Sweden took gold. The top four teams all...

Biathlon Biathlon Canada Canadian National Ski Team Continental Cup News Nordic Combined Racing US Biathlon US Ski Team World Cup

Sunday Rundown: Ulricehamn, Antholz, Chaux-Neuve, Whistler, & Truckee (Updated x3)

FasterSkierJanuary 22, 2017

FIS Cross-Country World Cup (Ulricehamn, Sweden): 4 x 5 k and 4 x 7.5 k Relays Women’s report Norway notched back-to-back team victories in the women’s and men’s relays on Sunday at the World Cup in Ulricehamn, Sweden, with Finn Hågen Krogh securing a win in the men’s 4 x 7.5 k relay by 0.5 seconds over Sweden’s Calle Halfvarsson and Canada’s Lenny Valjas. With two kilometers remaining, nine teams were within 3.8 seconds of first. Krogh...

Camps Canadian National Ski Team Training US Ski Team Workouts

Throwback Workout: Pace-Development Intervals with the NAWTA (Remember That?)

BrainspiralAugust 31, 2016

Everything's better with a group -- at least in terms of threshold interval workouts. In this "Throwback Workout" from three years ago, U.S. women's coach Matt Whitcomb explains why this was one of the best workouts he had seen back then. “It doesn’t need to be incredibly hard — today was roughly threshold and above during bursts of speed — but it was about the terrain that helped push the pace for us,” he said.

Camps General Resources Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Diggins Dives into Norwegian Camp, Leaves with Big Takeaways

Gabby NaranjaJuly 6, 2016

After recently returning from a training camp with the Norwegian women's team, Jessie Diggins describes how the opportunity came about and one of her favorite workouts from her week in Norway. "I’m always looking for ways to make summer training exciting, new and adventurous," Diggins said.

General News Racing World Cup

With Falun Victory, Johaug on Pace for Winningest Season Ever in Women’s Field

Chelsea LittleFebruary 13, 2016

With her 13th win of the season and two more distance races before the Ski Tour Canada already begins, Therese Johaug of Norway might beat her predecessor Bente Skari's record of 17 wins in a single season. In Falun, she bested Heidi Weng by almost 20 seconds in the 5 k classic.

Racing World Cup

With Ever-Pressing Diggins, U.S. Women Grab Final Podium Step in Lillehammer 4 x 5 k Relay

Jeremy BlazarDecember 6, 2015

The Norwegians may have won the race, but the Americans stole the show in the women's 4 x 5 k relay on Sunday in Lillehammer, Norway. For the U.S. women, placing third marked their first time back on the World Cup relay podium since December 2013. (Updated)

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