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Devon Kershaw

In Switzerland last weekend, Russia’s Alexander Legkov skied to his second podium of the year, continuing a strong start to the winter. But in an interview afterwards with the Russian newspaper Sport Express, he said he was trying to relish the results as much as possible, knowing that soon, Norwegian star Petter Northug would be back on the circuit at full strength. “Make no mistake—a couple of races, and Northug will return to the level...

Following on the heels of two North American podiums in Dusseldorf, Canadian and American distance skiers turned in a mixed bag of results in the 10/15km individual start classic race in Davos, Switzerland. The top distance skiers from both countries, with the notable exception of all-rounder Kikkan Randall, skipped the Dusseldorf sprint weekend in order to prepare for the longer event at altitude in Davos. Devon Kershaw (CAN) led the way, skiing to an impressive...

What Was He Thinking?! World Cup Athletes and Coaches on D-Dorf Team Sprint

Stupid, nonsensical, and “completely in the wrong.” Those were the descriptions by elite cross-country skiers and coaches of German sprinter Josef Wenzl’s actions in the Dusseldorf team sprint on Sunday. Wenzl’s his own Wenzl-esque kamikaze attack against Swedish skier Marcus Hellner. “I moved in on him, when there was absolutely no reason to—and we both went down,” Kershaw wrote in an e-mail on Monday. “I had qualified first, and was poised to perhaps slot into...

Dusseldorf City Sprint Preview – Get Yer Popcorn Ready!

Since 2002, the city sprint in Dusseldorf, Germany, has become a fixture on the International Ski Federation’s (FIS’s) World Cup calendar. One of three regular city sprints on the circuit, Dusseldorf features a flat, extremely fast, and almost dangerously narrow and twisty sprint course. Over the last eight seasons, the German city has become renown for carnage and upsets, almost as much as for cross-country skiing in a unique location and with a great crowd...

You can tell that North American skiing has come a long way when a day with two men in the top 15 of a World Cup race is closer to disappointing than exciting. In the final stage of the “Ruka Triple”—a three-day mini-tour in Kuusamo, Finland—Canadian Devon Kershaw led the way for the North Americans with a 10th place in the 15 k skate pursuit. But with Alex Harvey dropping 13 places and Kris Freeman...

Kuusamo Mini-Tour: Freeman Seventh, Sets Up For Strike at Sunday Podium

Kris Freeman wasn’t quite able to match his teammate Andy Newell’s result from yesterday – but he came pretty close. Freeman, of the U.S. Ski Team (USST), finished seventh in the 10 k classic in Kuusamo, Finland on Saturday, just 0.3 seconds out of sixth. Newell, who had finished sixth in the sprint yesterday, finished 89th, slipping to 42nd place overall in the mini-tour standings. Meanwhile, Canada’s Alex Harvey finished 17th, moving up to fourth...

Newell Sixth in Kuusamo, and Four Canadians Make The Heats

The Kuusamo mini-tour opened with a bang for the North American contingent, as both Andy Newell and Alex Harvey skied into the top ten for the first time this season. Newell, who had a lackluster 15k in Gallivare last weekend but a strong opening relay leg for the United States, qualified in eighth position and ultimately finished sixth after making the A-Final. Harvey had a mediocre weekend in Gallivare, finishing 34th in the skate race...

In Petter Northug’s absence, Marcus Hellner (SWE) took over the mantle as the dominant World Cup male, following up an impressive victory in Saturday’s 15km freestyle by leading the Swedish relay team to the top of the podium. Hellner outsprinted Russia’s Alexander Legkov after the two teams broke away on the third leg. Daniel Rickardsson (SWE) and young Petr Sedov (RUS) broke away from Norway’s Chris Andre Jespersen and Switzerland’s Remo Fischer during the first...

The Canadian National Ski Team (CNST), despite fielding five men with Olympic experience, started the 2010-2011 World Cup season slowly on Saturday. In the 15 k freestyle in Gallivaere, Sweden, Alex Harvey led the team, placing in 34th, while Ivan Babikov finished 54th, Devon Kershaw 58th, George Grey 78th, and Brent McMurtry 94th. “It was definitely a bit of a letdown,” said Head Coach Justin Wadsworth in a phone interview with FasterSkier. “I was obviously...

Pro Workout: “Freaking Hard” Rollerski Intervals with Devon Kershaw

This week’s Pro Workout is a first-person affair, with guest writer/athlete Devon Kershaw of the Canadian National Ski Team.  Kershaw wrote this just before leaving for Europe earlier in November. It’s getting close to the racing season – crazy close. My first race is on the 13th of November in Bruksvallarna, Sweden – a season opener/tune up race ahead of the World Cup opener a week later in Gallivare – way up there (latitude-wise) in...

Harvey Back in Sprinting Form, Aims for Top 30-World Cup Results

Along with the rest of the Canadian National Ski Team (CNST), Alex Harvey opened his season this past weekend in Bruksvallarna, Sweden. In two races, the promising youngster with two World Cup medals to his name finished 16th and fifth. In Harvey’s first competition of the year, a sprint race, he qualified for the rounds in a strong seventh place. “It was a really good day,” Harvey said in a recent phone interview with FasterSkier. However,...

It isn’t even Thanksgiving, and the international racing season is officially just over a week old, yet there has already been plenty of high-octane racing action to satisfy even the most demanding ski fan. With elite skiers tuning up for the season opener, and up-and-comers out to make a name for themselves, FIS races in Finland, Sweden, and Norway featured a level of competition usually limited to the World Cup. It is always a challenge...

With the top Americans starting their race season yesterday in Munio, Finland with a skate sprint, the Canadians attempted to keep pace, taking part in a 1.6 k skate sprint in Bruksvallarna, Sweden. There were several top finishes by the Americans in Munio, including a win by Kikkan Randall, and  the Canadians kept the ball rolling in Scandinavia with more early-season North American success. The day started out extremely promising. Dasha Gaiazova tore up the...

While the Americans started their European campaign Friday with much fanfare in Muonio, Finland, news from the Canadian National Ski Team (CNST) has been more sparse this past week. Nonetheless, the Canucks will kick off their own competition season on Saturday and Sunday with two races in Bruksvallarna, Sweden—albeit a little more quietly. Most of the athletes on the team’s World Cup squad, along with a few up-and-comers, are scheduled to start Saturday’s sprint and...

Team 12: Canada

Canada Nations Cup Ranking: 12th (1161 pts) Men: 10th (848 pts) Women: 13th (313 pts) 2010/2011 A Team Men Alex Harvey Devon Kershaw George Grey Ivan Babikov Women Chandra Crawford Dasha Gaiazova What you may have missed last season: The sheer amount of injuries and setbacks the Canadian team endured this season, especially at the Tour de Ski.  The World Cup circuit had barely kicked off when former head coach Inge Braten slipped and fractured...

A new crop of elite cross-country ski athletes have emerged in Canada and are now ready to charge for the international podium as the National Ski Team officially kicked off the road to the 2014 Olympic Winter Games on Tuesday. On the heels of engaging its media partners in one of the team’s final training session at Sunshine Village Ski Resort before heading to Europe, Cross Country Canada kicked off the post-Olympic season by unveiling...

If Vegard Ulvang gets run out of Europe, it appears that he still could safely make his home in North America. Ulvang is the chair of the International Ski Federation’s cross-country committee, which is considering the introduction of a new race format that includes five kilometers of climbing followed by five kilometers of technical downhill. Scandinavians have reacted to the idea with derision: Norwegian Eldar Roenning told the newspaper Nettavisen that the idea was “the...

Ivan Babikov is going to Wipeout in Argentina. No, he’s not competing in an early-season World Cup—the 30-year-old Canadian departed yesterday for a week-long stint in South America to compete on the TV show of that name, in which participants navigate a series of obstacles in the hopes of winning the $50,000 winner’s prize. Hazards in the American version of the show include a wall that punches athletes as they climb along it, and spinning...

Canadians Head to Quebec to Focus On Speed, Intensity

No one could ever accuse the Canadian National Ski Team of a lack of variety in their training locations–this summer alone, the team has held camps in Bend, Oregon, the Snow Farm in New Zealand, and the Haig Glacier.  The current camp, however, has the team  training in Mount Saint Anne, Quebec, home of Canadian National Ski Team (CNST) member Alex Harvey. According to Justin Wadsworth, the CNST’s head coach, the focus of this particular...

Tales From Down Under: A Junior Skier’s Trip to New Zealand

This summer, Andrew Nesbitt, a rising senior at Gould Academy traveled to New Zealand on a trip organized by Alexei Sotskov.  Five junior skiers from around New England made the journey.   Andrew sent regular email updates to family and friends in the US, providing a first-hand account through the eyes of a junior skier.  Perfect conditions, hanging with the US and Canadian National Teams and an epic storm were just some of the highlights....