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Matti Heikkinen

Sundby Breaks the Streak for 1st Stage Win in Val di Fiemme; Harvey 19th in Mass Start

Six laps. Three climbs per lap. Fifteen-kilometer classic mass start. If you’re in it to win it, where do you make your move? That was the kind of calculating Norway’s Martin Johnsrud Sundby was doing throughout Saturday’s Stage 6 mass start, the second-to-last stage of the 2017 Tour de Ski, in Val di Fiemme, Italy. Every time he rounded the 2.5 k loop, the man he needed to beat — Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov — was...

Saturday Rundown: Val di Fiemme, Oberhof, Soldier Hollow, Planica (Updated x3)

U.S. Cross Country Championships (Soldier Hollow): 10 k skate [UPDATED] Don’t bet against Caitlin Gregg (Team Gregg) in a distance skate event. The 36-year-old took another national title in the 10-kilometer freestyle individual start at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah, earlier today in the first event of the 2017 U.S. Cross Country Championships. Gregg’s winning time was 27:00.6 on a cold, slow-snow morning at SoHo. Chelsea Holmes (Alaska Pacific University) was second, 2.2 seconds back,...

Manificat Nearly Ends Ustiugov’s Streak; Cologna Bumps Harvey in Tour Standings (Updated)

Big wins, small wins – wins of all sizes and over all sorts of rivals. That’s how Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov has built his lead, over a minute and a half now, in the FIS Tour de Ski. For his fifth consecutive victory, Ustiugov started last in the field in the 10 k freestyle in Toblach, Italy. He knew exactly what he had to do: beat the pace set ten bibs earlier by Maurice Manificat of...

Friday Rundown: Diggins 1st, Bjornsen 3rd in TDS Stage 5; Crawford Gets Season Best in Oberhof

FIS Cross-Country Tour de Ski Stage 5 (Toblach): 5/10 k freestyle Men’s report Two U.S. women on the podium. Remember when that happened with Kikkan Randall and Sophie Caldwell back in 2015 World Championships, with Jessie Diggins and Caitlin Gregg in the 10 k freestyle? Well, it just happened again, this time with Diggins placing first and Sadie Bjornsen third in the women’s 5-kilometer freestyle individual start on Friday at Stage 5 of the Tour de Ski...

Wednesday Rundown: Harvey Hangs Onto 3rd; 3 U.S. Women in Top 12 in Oberstdorf Pursuit

FIS Cross-Country Tour de Ski Stage 4 (Oberstdorf): 10/15 k freestyle pursuits [UPDATED] Another win for Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov (that’s four in four stage races at the 2016/2017 Tour de Ski), another second place for Norway’s Martin Johnsrud Sundby, and another third place for Canada’s Alex Harvey. That was how the podium shook out on Wednesday in the Stage 4 men’s 15-kilometer freestyle pursuit, with Ustiugov winning by 37.2 seconds after starting 4 seconds back and...

Ustiugov Unbeatable So Far in TDS; Harvey Moves Into Third After Stage 2

Alex Harvey wasn’t feeling 100 percent on Sunday, but he didn’t need to be. Within three seconds of the leaders and eighth place at the finish of the men’s 10-kilometer classic mass start was essentially what he needed to secure one of the most coveted positions on the Tour de Ski right now: third place. Ahead of him, Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov and Norway’s Martin Johnsrud Sundby have built a nearly one-minute and 40-second lead on third place,...

Sunday Rundown: Harvey Up to 3rd, Diggins Holds Onto 6th Overall in TDS

FIS Cross-Country Tour de Ski Stage 2 (Val Müstair): 5/10 k classic mass starts Women’s report There was a lot of jostling between Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov and Norway’s Martin Johnsrud Sundby, with the latter leading early and the Russian not letting him get too complacent up front, but ultimately, Ustiugov was the first across the line in the men’s 10-kilometer classic mass start, the second stage of the Tour de Ski in Val Müstair, Switzerland. Ustiugov...

Saturday Rundown: La Clusaz, Nove Mesto & Rossland (Updated x3)

Welcome to The Rundown, your quick primer of need-to-know information about the day’s racing. We’ll be updating this digest as the day goes on with additional results, photos and quotes. The Rundown is NOT a race report; stay tuned for complete race reports later today with interviews from the day’s top racers. *** IBU World Cup in Nove Mesto: 10/12.5 k pursuits [UPDATE] Third one day, fourth the next. That’s the streak Susan Dunklee (US Biathlon)...

Davos Notes and Quotes: The Men

Norway’s ergey Ustiugov notched his first victory of the season in the skate sprint. Here’s all the reporting – and there’s a lot – that didn’t make it into the race reports. On that awesome feeling in your legs “I love lactate.” -Matti Heikkinen, Finland (3rd in 30 k) “Not so much.” -Anders Gløersen, Norway (2nd in 30 k) On how to get through a rough patch “Alex [Harvey] came through with a group, with...

Saturday Rundown: Davos, Pokljuka & Sovereign Lake (Updated x3)

Welcome to The Rundown, your quick primer of need-to-know information about the day’s racing. We’ll be updating this digest as the day goes on with additional results, photos and quotes. The Rundown is NOT a race report; stay tuned for complete race reports later today with interviews from the day’s top racers. *** Canadian NorAm/U.S. SuperTour at Sovereign Lake: Classic sprint [UPDATE] U.S. skiers filled the open category podiums on the first fully North American...

Sundby Returns as Distance King in Davos; Harvey 12th, Killick 21st for Canada

DAVOS, Switzerland — Martin Johnsrud Sundby might not have had the fastest World Cup opener (by his standards), but two weeks later it’s clear who is king of the distance field: the same Norwegian who won the World Cup distance globe two of the last three years. “I did not feel my best the last weekend, but I was able to catch the tour victory after all,” Sundby said of won this race in 2013,...

Sunday Rundown: Lillehammer, Östersund & West Yellowstone (Updated x6)

Welcome to The Rundown, your quick primer of need-to-know information about the day’s racing. We’ll be updating this digest as the day goes on with additional results, photos and quotes. The Rundown is NOT a race report; stay tuned for complete race reports later today with interviews from the day’s top racers. (Note: This Rundown has been updated to include comments from U.S. Nordic Combined’s Bryan Fletcher, who placed ninth on Sunday at the World...

Sunday Rundown: Ruka, Östersund, Pontresina & Beitostølen (Updated x6)

Welcome to The Rundown, your quick primer of need-to-know information about the day’s racing. We’ll be updating this digest as the day goes on with additional results, photos and quotes. The Rundown is NOT a race report; stay tuned for complete race reports later today with interviews from the day’s top racers. *** IBU Cup in Beitostølen: 7.5/10 k sprints [UPDATE] With the second set of men’s and women’s sprints IBU Cup sprint on Friday.) In the women’s...

Heikkinen Hauls in First Win in Five Years; Harvey ‘Amazed by the Day’ in 4th

After placing third in Wednesday's skiathlon, Finland's Matti Heikkinen claimed his first victory since 2011 on Friday in the men's 15 k skate. Canada once again had four in the top 30, with Alex Harvey leading the team in fourth. “I think it’s one of the best races of my life here," Harvey said of Canmore. Noah Hoffman led the U.S. in 23rd.

STC Photo Gallery: Stage 6 Skiathlon

Stage 6 of the Ski Tour Canada featured a brutal course for both the women's 15-kilometer and the men's 30 k skiathlons. It was simply survival of the fittest as the classic loop featured a grueling 1.2 k climb while the skate leg was punctuated by dicey soft-snow corners navigated at high speed.

Sundby Stomps Skiathlon to Move into Third Overall; Canadians Excel at Home

Norway's Martin Johnsrud Sundby won the Ski Tour Canada's brutal Stage 6 skiathlon on Wednesday, putting him third overall in the Tour, while Petter Northug remains in second despite losing precious time to Tour leader Sergey Ustiugov. Canada's Alex Harvey jumped a spot to fourth overall, and his teammates Ivan Babikov and Graeme Killick posted season-best results.

Heikkinen, Primed for Three More Years, Tops Legkov in Blink Climb (Updated)

Matti Heikkinen wasn't sure last fall if he still had what it took - but then his home country won the bid for 2017 World Championships, and decided to rebuild from the base up. Meanwhile, biathlete Tarjei Bø beat all of Norway's cross-country skiers to finish fourth: “It's obviously very fun... but I was supposed to have been on the podium!"