It’s a new year, yet some things remain the same. Jan. 1 marked the opening stage of the 2016 Tour de Ski, a 1.5-kilometer freestyle sprint in in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. It also marked the third World Cup sprint victory in a row for Italy’s Federico Pellegrino.
Before the 2011 World Cup season was even finished, the ski community knew that the Italian team would be losing one of their biggest stars. Arianna Follis, who had been racing on the circuit since 1995, saved the best part of her career for last. She was the World Champion in the sprint in 2009, and in 2011 placed third in the overall World Cup rankings and second in the sprint standings. But at 33...