Dropouts

Nothing comes for free on the Tour de Ski. After six stages, attrition is becoming a major factor for the competing athletes. The difficult 10-day event can have that effect – every year, dozens of skiers drop out as illness, injury, or just plain fatigue take a steep toll. For the men, 30 have already retired. This year, the Germans have been especially hard-hit – a whopping nine of their men have pulled out of the event....