In most sports, the question of whether men and women would compete on equal playing fields, so to speak, was answered long ago. While gender inequalities remain- a recent decision by the IOC to maintain the exclusion of Women’s Nordic Combined from the Olympics comes to mind- the sport of cross-country skiing will now be joining the list of those in which competition is equal for men and women. In a press release issued on...
ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA — A month ago, I met with a source close to the Chinese government in a tiny room in this mountain resort outside Beijing, which hosted the 2022 Olympic cross-country skiing events. There, the source explained how a decision by international skiing officials to disqualify a Chinese cross-country skier from a race was like killing a baby. China does not have, exactly, a long tradition of success in winter sports like cross-country skiing. But...
ZHANGJIAKOU, CHN — International Ski Federation officials say they’re exploring backup options for season-ending races in Russia amid fears of a war between that country and Ukraine, though they’re still planning on holding the event as scheduled next month unless circumstances change. The final races of the top-level World Cup are scheduled to be held in Tyumen, Russia, in an oil-rich area in Siberia — about 1,000 miles away from the border with Ukraine, where American...
Female American and Swedish cross-country skiers are pushing to race equal distances as men. But some of the sport’s star women remain unconvinced. ZHIANGJIAKOU, CHINA — At the end of her first-ever competition at the Winter Olympics — a 15-kilometer effort that left her sprawled on the ground gasping for breath — Julia Kern contemplated the idea of racing twice as far. “I personally like the shorter distances,” said Kern, a rising American star. But,...
Update: Expressen Sport, a Swedish daily, has reported Linn Svahn and two unnamed Finnish cross-country skiers are cleared to race in Friday’s mass start events after more sensitive Covid-19 PCR tests returned negative. Original Post: Earlier today, Swedish team doctor Per Andersson announced that Linn Svahn, who won the first two stages of the 2021 Tour de Ski in Val Müstair, has tested positive for COVID-19 on an antigen test. (The antigen test is...
Here’s a news brief from around the Inter-webs. Unofficial thoughts on next season’s World Cup On April 9, Nowegian news outlet VG published an interview with International Ski Federation (FIS) Cross-Country Race Director Pierre Mignerey. The interview created some mild buzz, as Mignerey discussed some 2020-2021 World Cup scheduling scenarios. Still seven months away, but with the Covid-19 pandemic impacting global sport, it is no surprise FIS officials are discussing contingency plans. VG’s article was...
Is Norway taking advantage of a partnership get around new FIS rules limiting the number of team staff allowed on course? Or is Great Britain actually taking advantage of them, to get more expert wax testing? Either way, FIS says that a new partnership that rubs Sweden the wrong way is a-okay.
There are many stakeholders involved in creating the World Cup each year — athletes, race organizers, national governing bodies and, ever increasingly, television. U.S. Ski Team head coach Chris Grover shares his thoughts on media influence on cross-country’s evolution and provides some insight into the reasoning behind decisions made at last month’s FIS Calendar Conference.
Of all the races to go by the wayside in recent years, the 30/50 k is often missed by longtime fans of the cross-country World Cup. Athletes miss it too, and at the annual International Ski Federation (FIS) Calendar Conference this week in Dubrovnik, Croatia, one of the biggest items on athlete representative Kikkan Randall’s agenda is to propose its return.
Nobody really knew what to expect when Québec City hosted its first World Cup last weekend. Between the spectators, course and conditions, everything was a bit of a surprise. International athletes and coaches sum up their experiences.