For the second day in a row, a Russian kept Petter Northug (NOR) off the top of the podium. Alexander Legkov won the men's 10km skate in Kuusamo by 6.8 seconds. Maurice Manificat (FRA) was third.
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Petter Northug
Nikita Kriukov (RUS) outsprinted Petter Northug (NOR) to win the first stage of the Ruka Triple in stunning fashion. Eirik Brandsdal (NOR) was third in first stage of the three event mini-tour in Kuusamo, Finland.
With No Need for Finishing Sprint, Northug Finds New Way to Irk Swedes
Chelsea LittleNovember 25, 2012
Norway's relay anchor Petter Northug didn't have to use his signature finishing sprint to embarrass the Swedes on their home soil. With the extra time he had on Marcus Hellner near the finish, Northug picked up a Swedish flag and skied across the line.
After months of training and anticipation, the nordic sports opened their seasons around the world this weekend with races around the world. Established veterans had several dominating performances, but there were new faces on the podiums as well, signaling that when World Cup racing starts next weekend, things could be pretty interesting. In Bruksvallarna, Sweden, the Swedish, Canadian, and Slovenian national teams butted heads in a three-day race series. One of the biggest surprises was...
Is Petter Northug Serious?
JoranSeptember 20, 2012
That’s an easy one: probably not. I’m referring, of course, to his recent pronouncements about the upcoming season, in which he claims that he will win 7 World Cups, the Tour de Ski overall title, as well as 3 golds at World Championships. Obviously, given Northug’s history I’m not inclined to take this too seriously. [...] Related posts:
The sixth annual Bysprinten took place over the weekend in the small town of Mosjøen, Norway. The town is home to less than 10,000 residents, yet the event manages to attract some of the biggest names in cross-country skiing every year from both Norway and elsewhere in Europe. This year, Petter Northug (NOR), Laurien Van der Graaff (SUI), Øystein Pettersen (NOR), Heidi Weng (NOR) and Ola Vigen Hattestad (NOR) were among the biggest draws of...
No snow-speed records were broken at the sixth edition of Bysprinten, but the annual two-day ski festival on the streets of Mosjøen, Norway provided plenty of excitement for the 3,000 spectators who came out to see their favorite national team members ski as fast as possible. On Saturday, Eirik Brandsdal (NOR) prevailed in the men’s final sprint, and Laurien Van der Graaf (SUI) topped the women’s field. “I am very fond of Bysprinten. I often do...
Johaug Takes Sixth Skarverennet Title; Jespersen Holds Off Northug for Win
Audrey ManganApril 21, 2012
Just when you thought the ski season was over, Norway hosted one of the world’s biggest ski marathons, the 38 k Skarverennet, on Saturday morning. About 12,220 skiers competed in the race that runs from Finse to Ustaoset, high in the mountains. Therese Johaug won in 1:41:33, defeating Norwegian teammate Marit Bjoergen by 19.8 seconds. Martine Ek Hagen took third, one-tenth behind Bjoergen. Johaug took it out hard up a long incline out of Finse, and Bjoergen...
While both Kikkan Randall and Andy Newell are currently in Craftsbury, Vt., for SuperTour Finals, just a few days ago they were mixing it up in the skier-cross style event that is Red Bull NordiX, in Oslo, Norway. Randall and Newell stayed on in Europe at the conclusion of World Cup Finals just over a week ago to take part in several additional events, wrapping up with the first Red Bull NordiX to be held...
Follow-Up On Devon Kershaw + World Cup Overall
JoranFebruary 17, 2012
A commenter on Monday’s post noted that there are some folks fairly close behind Kershaw in the WC overall, so he has more to worry about than just catching Petter Northug. In particular, Marcus Hellner is only 57 points back, while Alexander Legkov is fully 168 points back. Hellner is obviously the more immediate concern, [...] Related posts:
That was the question in a comment I got the other day. So here’s the situation. Devon Kershaw currently has 953 WC points, Petter Northug has 1199. Northug is apparently going to skip the next two weekends of WC racing in order to prepare for the Vasaloppet. Could Kershaw catch and overtake Northug in that [...] Related posts:
Northug Makes Usual Play to take Relay Victory for Norway
Topher SabotFebruary 12, 2012
He may have failed in his attempt to win the Tour de Ski, couldn’t hang in the Marcialonga, and on Saturday, never factored into the 30k, placing 14th. But if there is one thing that Petter Northug can be counted on for, it is sprinting at the end of a mass start event. The men’s 4x10k relay was replete with attacks, counters, epic comebacks, and painful fades, but throughout it all it was hard to...
When Germany’s Andreas Birnbacher left the shooting range for one more three-kilometer loop in Sunday’s mass start race, there was little doubt that he’d be beaten to the finish line. Yes, Birnbacher was leading. And yes, he was wearing the red bib denoting that he led the discipline standings on the World Cup circuit. There was just one problem: Emil Hegle Svendsen of Norway was right on his shoulder. Just one day earlier, Svendsen had...
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Tour de Ski winners are all alike; every Tour de Ski loser is a loser in his own way. Petter Northug (NOR), Marcus Hellner (SWE), Devon Kershaw (CAN), Lukas Bauer (CZE)—each had his own problem that torpedoed his hopes for a Tour victory, whether it was bad skis, a broken pole, a weak discipline, or an uncooperative body. Dario Cologna, on the other hand, had nothing go wrong. The Swiss...
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Eldar Roenning (NOR) spent much of the eighth stage of the Tour de Ski working for Petter Northug (NOR), but as the final kilometer rolled around, he submitted his resignation, packed up his skis and poles, and headed out on his own. Roenning attacked on the final climb of the unforgiving Val di Fiemme 4.5 kilometer loop, opening a 10 meter gap entering the stadium, a lead he never relinquished...
TOBLACH, Italy – The Dolomites were the site of brutal battles between the Austrians and Italians during World War I. Nearly 100 years later, members of European and North American countries once again waged war among these mountains in the depths of winter—this time, in a cross-country ski race. Perhaps appropriately, it was a Swiss athlete who rose above the fray here on Thursday, winning a 32-kilometer freestyle pursuit by skiing his own race and...
Morilov Waits, Then Pounces for Skate Sprint Win in TDS Stage 6 in Toblach
Nathaniel HerzJanuary 4, 2012
TOBLACH, Italy – Were the Russians drinking vodka in their wax cabin after Nikolay Morilov won Stage 6 of the 2012 Tour de Ski on Wednesday? “A little, yes,” said Mikhail Lukertsenko, one of the team’s staff. “It’s a victory.” Morilov, a 25-year-old Olympic medalist, foiled the Tour heavyweights and big names on the homestretch here, using a combination of perfect tactics, timing, and power. Petter Northug (NOR) was second, missing out on the victory...
Legkov Grabs First Win of Season in TDS Stage 5; Cologna Takes Overall Lead
Nathaniel HerzJanuary 3, 2012
TOBLACH, Italy – It took 11 races, but Alexander Legkov finally got his first win of the 2012 season in Stage 5 of the Tour de Ski on Tuesday. With the help of a new coach and the right pair of skis, the Russian powered through finicky conditions to edge Eldar Roenning (NOR) and Dario Cologna (SUI) in the 5 k individual-start classic race. Petter Northug (NOR) floundered through the slick, soft conditions in Toblach,...
Northug in Classic Finishing Form, Wins Men’s Skiathlon but Cologna Gains
Topher SabotJanuary 1, 2012
OBERSTDORF, Germany – Four down, five to go, and an epic battle is developing in the men’s 2012 Tour de Ski. Over the course of the four events thus far, only 1.1 seconds separate Dario Cologna (SUI) form leader Petter Northug (NOR). Northug took his second stage victory of the Tour, but Cologna actually closed the gap due a strong showing in the intermediate sprints in the men’s 20km skiathlon in Oberstdorf, Germany. Despite...
OBERSTDORF, Germany – If anyone was going to embrace Saturday’s downright nasty weather in the third stage of the 2012 Tour de Ski, it was the Russians. The interminable rain and snow here may have gotten to some of their competitors, but it failed to even dampen the energy of Nikita Kriukov, Alexey Petukhov, and Nikolay Morilov, as the Russian trio swept the podium in the classic sprint. “Russian peoples like different weather,” Kriukov told...