After making no ski changes and competing with the first chase group for most of the women's 30 k freestyle at Holmenkollen, American Liz Stephen notched another career-high on Sunday in Oslo, Norway, with a ninth-place finish. Though happy with the result, Stephen was a bit frustrated with how the ski change tactics played out.
The disappointment of World Championships now well behind her, Sadie Bjornsen led the American women in the Lahti, Finland, 10 k classic with another personal best: 18th place, six notches better than her previous high water mark. Liz Stephen and Kikkan Randall tied for 28th to put three American women in the top 30.
The classic races of World Championships took place in Val di Fiemme: interval start, relay, marathon. Biathletes competed in Oslo, Americans held their own in Slavic Cup action, and Swedes (and everyone else) gave it their all in the Vasaloppet. Summaries of the action, along with links to reporting and results.
The World Championship 30 k wasn’t the perfect race for the American women, but all things considered Liz Stephen and Ida Sargent were satisfied with the effort it took to ski a race that was dictated by slow, saturated snow, 50-degree heat and tricky waxing conditions. Stephen was 16th and Sargent finished 25th. Jessie Diggins DNF after an early crash and Kikkan Randall did not race.
Liz Stephen’s performance undoubtedly headlined the day for the Americans in the women's 10 k, but further down on the results her teammates felt only “not great” to “satisfied” about their top-30s. Jessie Diggins placed 23rd, Holly Brooks finished 27th and Kikkan Randall was 30th. Still, they expect to feel fully recovered for the 4x5 k relay.
Marit Bjørgen's not unbeatable, but she's a pretty tough nut to crack. Therese Johaug proved its possible in a 10 k freestyle, winning the individual start on Tuesday for her second individual gold at World Championships. Yulia Tchekaleva broke through for Russia in third, German biathlete Miriam Gössner just missed a medal in fourth and American Liz Stephen captured fifth.
Demonstrating once again the power of a goal and unwavering belief in it, Stephen achieved exactly what she set out to do on Tuesday in the World Championships 10 k individual freestyle by finishing fifth, a career-best. "I'm pretty ecstatic," Stephen said. "I'm so lucky to be part of something so big right now."
For the second day of the 2013 Nordic Ski World Championships, the 15 and 30 k skiathlons were not what the Americans were hoping for on Saturday. But through less than optimal outcome the team’s collective outlook was on the upswing after racing concluded. Liz Stephen posted the only top-20 for the team, and she and several Americans found reasons to be positive about certain bright spots they think bode well for upcoming distance events in Val di Fiemme.
Liz Stephen was eighth in the 15 k skiathlon in Sochi, Russia, on Saturday. It was the best regular-season result of her life, but she wasn't quite happy with it. She wants a World Cup podium, and at 25 seconds out of third on the grueling Olympic course she's getting oh-so-close.
Seven Americans landed in the heats in the freestyle sprint in Sochi, Russia, on Friday. Kikkan Randall calmly won her third sprint of the season and Ida Sargent was sixth in her first appearance in a World Cup final. La Clusaz is but a distant memory.
After a short break in the calendar, World Cup action begins again on Friday in Sochi, Russia, with a triple-header. More than the usual amount of intrigue surrounds the upcoming events; in addition to being the first World Cup in almost two weeks, this will be the first international cross-country event to take place at the Olympic venue for the 2014 Games.
In a season filled with personal-bests and historic finishes for the American women, the 4 x 5 k relay in La Clusaz, France, was a reminder that not every race can be a wild success. They finished ninth out of nine teams on Sunday.
Note: This article has been updated. There’s something about La Clusaz. Liz Stephen can’t put her finger on it, but it works for her. A week after her 26th birthday, she notched another career best in the French alpine village -- this time in a classic race.
While Kikkan Randall slipped from seventh to 12th in the overall Tour de Ski standings, she said she was happy with her final place - but mostly "psyched" to see teammate Liz Stephen on the podium for the day. Stephen's second-fastest time on the climb moved her to 15th. Jessie Diggins was 21st and Holly Brooks 38th.
Kikkan Randall placed 7th in the 3.3k classic pursuit, maintaing her position in the overall Tour de Ski with just two stages remaining.
Kikkan Randall continued to ski well, finishing 8th in the Tour de Ski pursuit, just seconds out of 5th. Teammates Liz Stephen and Jessie Diggins also had strong races, moving up in the overall standings.
Holly Brooks and Liz Stephen joined Kikkan Randall in her Tour de Ski quarterfinal, which gave the U.S. star a boost; both Stephen and Brooks had career-best sprint days, placing 18th and 25th. Jessie Diggins was 17th and Andy Newell ninth, which moved him up to fourth in the World Cup sprint standings - all in all a good day for the American team.
After the 9 k classic pursuit stage of the Tour de Ski, three American women sit in the top 30 of the overall standings. Kikkan Randall, following an impressive win in the prologue, leads the way in 14th, 1:48.3 seconds behind Tour leader Justyna Kowalczyk. Liz Stephen ranks 23rd and Holly Brooks sits just behind her in 25th. Jessie Diggins moved up 12 places to reach 50th at the end of the pursuit.
The results keep rolling in. Kikkan Randall placed fifth to lead a quintet of American women in the top 25 of the Kuusamo mini-tour and send the team back to North America riding high.
Kikkan Randall led a quartet of U.S. women in the top 20 on Saturday, demonstrating that last week's third place in Sweden was no fluke. Randall set a new U.S. mark, becoming the first woman to place second in a World Cup distance race.