Medal hopefuls to start the day, the U.S. women had to reconcile with ninth place in Saturday's Olympic 4 x 5 k relay, a result they said didn't reflect their best day but one which indicated they were still very much a team, united in success as well as on off-days.
Sophie Caldwell's goal at the beginning of the season, said her father Sverre, wasn't to win the Olympics - it was to just get there. But Caldwell found herself in position to go for a medal when she made the women's sprint final in Sochi today. Felled by a ski tangle at the top of the course, Caldwell's result still topped the historic records for U.S. women's skiing.
While the 15 k skiathlon, the first cross country ski race of the Olympic Games, could have been a warm-up, it turned into much more for the U.S. women: Jessie Diggins rocketed her way into eight, the best finish ever by a U.S. woman at the Games, and Liz Stephen placed 12th.
The US men's team faced fatigue and fickle conditions on Sunday's 15 k classic mass start race in Szklarska Poreba, Poland. Noah Hoffman led the US men's results in 19th, with Andy Newell 27th, and Erik Bjornsen 40th.
Sunday's 10 k classic mass start in Szklarska Poreba, Poland was another great day for the US women. Liz Stephen had a breakthrough performance, finishing sixth, a career best for her and a major milestone in her development as a classic skier. Ida Sargent too had an excellent day, placing ninth, her career best distance rac
Kikkan Randall made a statement out of Saturday's freestyle sprint in Szklarska Poręba, Poland, winning each of her heats, including the final, with some tactical smarts on a flat-and-fast course. Another American, Jessie Diggins notched a career-best sprint result of fifth, and five Americans landed in the top 15.
Noah Hoffman was the last American left in the Tour de Ski. Bad ski choice got him off to a slow start, but he powered up the immense climb to find himself in a career-best 25th.
Saturday's Tour de Ski stage 6 individual classic race saw Jessie Diggins notch her best ever classic race. Diggins came in 10th, while Liz Stephen finished a solid 21st, and Noah Hoffman in 47th had an off day.
Ida Sargent became the latest US Ski Team member to break through this winter with her first top 10 of the season. All four U.S. women made the heats and finished in the top 25, but most left wanting more.
Incoming U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association CEO Tiger Shaw promised this fall that he'd spend some time getting to know each of the many sports he'll soon oversee. He made good on that promise when he visited the cross country ski team in Davos, Switzerland, this weekend, witnessing their best day ever of World Cup sprinting.
A podium for Kikkan Randall, a career-best ninth-place finish by Sophie Caldwell, a semifinals appearance by Jessie Diggins - it was a good day for the U.S. Ski Team, before you even consider strong quarterfinal efforts by Sadie Bjornsen, Andy Newell, and Simi Hamilton. "We're really excited about the day," Matt Whitcomb said.
After making a risky lane choice - albeit one that had worked in the past - Kikkan Randall ended up touching skis with Stina Nilsson of Sweden in the final of today's World Cup sprint. While she didn't fall, it may have cost Randall something - she only lost the race by 2 centimeters. U.S. coach Matt Whitcomb reviewed the video and called the incident a valuable learning experience.
The Canadian and American men's relays fell short of their goals on Sunday, placing 14th and 17th, respectively, in the 4 x 7.5 k Lillehammer World Cup, but both are optimistic about the future.
Four races into the 2013/2014 World Cup season and American Sadie Bjornsen already has two top 10's and the recognition that comes with it. Bjornsen placed seventh in Saturday's 10 k classic in Lillehammer, Norway, leading three U.S. women in the top 30.
Kikkan Randall (USA) earned the first classic sprint podium of the year, placing second to Justyna Kowalczyk in the World Cup opener in Kuusamo, Finland.
With week one of the U.S. Ski Team's two-week training camp in Park City, Utah, in the bag, head coach Chris Grover shares what his athletes have been up to and how they've trained with dozens of other U.S. skiers.
The joint women’s training camp between the U.S. Ski Team and Alaska Pacific University began this week in Anchorage, Alaska, bringing many of the nation’s top female skiers together for the first time in a month along with a few special foreign guests. After a "killer" workout earlier this week, USST women’s coach Matt Whitcomb said training has been going well so far.
Upon returning to Park City from her recent training trip to Norway and Sweden, Liz Stephen spoke about the experience of training with Marit Bjørgen and Therese Johaug, overcoming the fear of new things, and how she plans to carry confidence into next season, where she wants to be on the podium at the Sochi Olympics.
Ida Sargent made a breakthrough this season when she cracked the top-ten for the first time Kuusamo, Finland, and then topped it in February by making the A-final in Sochi, Russia. Next year she wants to be back there as part of the U.S. Olympic Team. "If you’re not excited and fired up thinking about it, you probably shouldn’t be training for it," she says of the Games.
The qualification criteria for the U.S. Ski Team's National Training Group now includes a top-three finish from NCAA Championships, signaling a change in the way the national team involves collegiate skiing in its development pipeline.