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Sadie Bjornsen

Euphoric Victory for Sweden’s Nilsson and Dahlqvist in Classic Team Sprint; Diggins, Bjornsen 5th

Icy tracks and a relatively flat course made for a tight race in Seefeld, Austria for the women’s 6 x 1.2-kilometer classic team sprint. Even in the final meters as the women charged up the last climb and double poled to the finish, the winner was not clear. In fact, the three fastest teams were within one second of one another. The resulting time difference between first and fifth place was less than the difference...

Sunday Rundown from Seefeld World Champs (Updated)

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships Seefeld, Austria Women’s/Men’s Classic Team Sprint The furious pace of the World Championship racing schedule continued on Sunday in Seefeld, Austria with the women’s and men’s classic team sprint. Sweden’s Stina Nilsson and Maja Dahlqvist won the women’s 6 x 1.2-kilometer classic team sprint final in 15:14.93 minutes. Katja Visnar and Anamarija Lampic of Slovenia placed second (+0.37), with Norway’s Ingvild Flugstad Østberg and Maiken Caspersen Falla taking the final...

Falla Wins in Seefeld with a Turbo to the Finish; Diggins in 8th

Norway’s Maiken Caspersen Falla torched the start of the women’s 1.2-kilometer freestyle sprint on Thursday at the 2019 World Championships in Seefeld, Austria. She skied snappy and smooth – her compact frame channeling energy downstream and towards the awaiting finish line.   Like a prize fighter knowing she had her peers against the ropes, Falla first appeared to give the knock-out blow a minute into the race. She pushed over the top of the first...

2019 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Seefeld, Austria 1.2 k/ 1.6 k freestyle sprint 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. The women’s 1.2-kilometer freestyle sprint at the 2019...

Scenes From a Preparation Day in Seefeld from Photographer John Lazenby

Cross country and nordic combined athletes have arrived in Seefeld, Austria to prepare for the 2019 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships which begin on Thursday, Feb. 21. To ready themselves for the competitions, athletes, techs, and coaches are trying out the courses and testing wax. Nordic combined athletes are also practicing on the Olympic jump at Innsbruck. Click each photo in the gallery below to enlarge. Photos courtesy of John Lazenby / lazenbyphoto.com .j24a5f {display:none}

Diggins Wins Cogne Sprint; U.S. Puts 6 Women in Top 30

Until the very end of Saturday’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint race in Cogne, Italy, American Jessie Diggins had those watching on the edge of their seats. She advanced as the lucky loser in her quarterfinal and then once again in her semi final, before winning the final in a lunge to the line. “Man I am glad they do lucky  losers here!” Diggins told the International Ski Federation after winning Saturday’s sprint. “It’s so fun to...

FIS Cross Country World Cup 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint Cogne, Italy Amidst sunshine and sporting rolled up sleeves on Saturday in Cogne Italy, American Jessie Diggins took the women’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint win in nail-biter fashion. After making it into the semifinals and the final as one of the day’s lucky losers, Diggins outlunged Germany’s Sandra Ringwald by 0.11 seconds, claiming the victory in a time of 3:32.73. The 27 year old Afton, Minnesota native now has...

Norway Wins 11th Consecutive 4 x 5 K Relay; U.S. in Sixth with a Diggins Charge

“We have a strong team, many girls are going fast. We do this together so we are really happy,” Therese Johaug told the International Ski Federation (FIS) after Sunday’s 4 x 5-kilometer relay in Ulricehamn, Sweden. With wind, snow, and crowds lining the course the 4 x 5 k women’s relay appeared to simply be an illustration of Norway’s astounding plug-and-play depth. Sunday marked Norway’s 11th 4 x 5 k consecutive relay win dating back...

Sunday Race Rundown: Ulricehamn, Antholz, and Lake Placid (Updated)

FIS World Cup Ulricehamn, Sweden 4 x 5 k / 4 x 7.5 k relay The sun rises, the sun sets, and Norway wins the women’s 4 x 5-kilometer relay in Ulricehamn, Norway on Sunday. For the 11th time in a row, a Norwegian women’s team bested the world in the storied race format. Heidi Weng, Therese Johaug, Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen, and Ingvild Flugstad Østberg won in a time of 57:06.3 minutes. For the first...

50th World Cup Victory for Johaug; Diggins 4th

The World Cup returned to Ulricehamn, Sweden for the second time today for the women’s 10-kilometer individual start freestyle event. Ulricehamn earned rave reviews when it first hosted a World Cup two years ago, with athletes expressing their gratitude for the top notch course preparation and for the support from a huge crowd of fans. This year appeared no different; tens of thousands of people lined every inch of the 5k loop, erupting in cheers...

Saturday Race Rundown: U.S. U20 Men Win Relay, U20 Women 4th at World Juniors (Updated)

2019 U23 World Ski Championships in Lahti, Finland 4 x 3 k and 4x 5 k relay Full U20 Men’s Race Report In a historic first for the U.S., the U20 men’s team won the 4 x 5-kilometer relay today in Lahti, Finland at the 2019 World Junior Ski Championships. Luke Jager skied the first classic leg for the U.S., Ben Ogden skied the second classic, Johnny Hagenbuch skied the first initial skate leg and...

U.S. 2019 World Championship Team Announced

  In a press release Monday afternoon, U.S. Ski and Snowboard announced the members of the 2019 Cross-Country World Championships in Seefeld, Austria.  (Press Release) U.S. Ski & Snowboard has named 18 athletes to the U.S. Cross Country Team that will compete in the 2019 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships next month in Seefeld, Austria. The biennial World Championships brings together the best athletes in the sport for the Feb. 20 – March 3 event...

Johaug Returns With Win in Typical Fashion; Diggins 13th

In the first distance race after the Tour de Ski, it remained to be seen whether Norway’s Therese Johaug, undefeated in distance events, would be able to pick up where she left off in December. As Johaug sat out the TdS, her teammate Ingvild Flugstad Østberg entered the 10-kilometer interval start classic race with momentum, having taken the win in four distance stages of the Tour, including two 10 k classic victories. Østberg also posted the...

Sunday Race Rundown: Otepää and More (Updated 2x)

FIS World Cup Otepää, Estonia classic 10/15 k individual start  Women’s Full Report | Men’s Full Report World Cup cross-country action returned to the Otepää race venue on Sunday, with athletes reconvening after Saturday’s classic sprints for the weekend’s distance classic event. In the women’s 10-kilometer individual start classic race, Norway’s Therese Johaug finished first in a time of 29:53.7 for the win. Sweden’s Ebba Andersson finished second (+48.4) while Russia’s Natalia Nepryaeva claimed third (+56.7). Skiing for the...

Norway’s Falla Leaves No Doubt with Otepää Win; Diggins in 12th

Some proverbs hang in there. From situation to situation they simply capture, in the moment, how best to move forward. “Patience is a virtue,” has an etymology going way back. Yet the timeworn saying and it’s wait-wait-wait underpinnings helped dictate the outcome of Saturday’s World Cup 1.3-kilometer classic sprint in Otepää, Estonia. That is until Maiken Caspersen Falla broke up the final. But we’ll get to that in a moment. It was the modern course...

Saturday Race Rundown: Otepää Classic Sprints and Beyond (Updated 2x)

FIS World Cup Otepää, Estonia 1.3 k / 1.6 Classic Sprint Starting the day’s performance benchmarks off was Stina Nilsson of Sweden with the fastest qualifier in the women’s 1.3-kilometer classic sprint in Otepää on Saturday. She stopped the clock in 3:07.62 minutes. The U.S. Ski Team’s (USST) Jessie Diggins was the top-qualifying North American in 18th (+5.37). Sadie Bjornsen (USST) qualified 20th (+5.71), and Ida Sargent 27th (+8.38). On a course rewarding patience and...

Østberg Solos to Stage 5 Win; Diggins Steps on Podium and up to Third Overall

The real race tension today was the race for third between the U.S. Ski Team’s (USST) Jessie Diggins and Russia’s Yulia Belorukova during the 10-kilometer freestyle pursuit in Oberstdorf, Germany, Stage 5 of the Tour de Ski (TdS). The race up front was a solo effort, as Ingvild Flugstad Østberg of Norway started 24 seconds ahead of Russian skier Natalia Nepryaeva. Østberg held that lead until the finish, winning with a time of 26:21.2. Nepryaeva...

Thursday Race Rundown: Tour de Ski and U.S. Nationals (Updated 2 x)

FIS World Cup Tour de Ski Stage 5 15 k/10k Freestyle Pursuit Oberstdorf, Germany Men’s Report | Women’s Report  Today’s Tour de Ski (TdS) Stage 5 15-kilometer freestyle pursuit in Oberstdorf, Germany began and ended simply enough: Norway’s Johannes Høsflot Klæbo wearing the Tour’s blue leader’s bib started first with a 15 second lead over second overall skier Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov.   By 2 k into the race, the pair had linked up and ceded...

Østberg wins in Oberstdorf and takes TdS Lead; Diggins 11th

It was a snowy and grabby day in Oberstdorf, Germany, for Stage 4 of the Tour de Ski (TdS). The temperatures were sitting right around freezing, making it challenging conditions for dialing kick wax. Many racers skied on zeros for this 10-kilometer classic mass start. But throughout the race, many women appeared to be struggling to find the right amount of kick as slipping on the hills was a common theme for some. U.S. Ski...

Wednesday Race Rundown from Oberstdorf, Germany (TdS Stage 4) Updated

FIS World Cup Tour de Ski Stage 4 10 K Classic Mass Start Oberstdorf, Germany With snow falling, strenuous forest skiing, and fresh snow blanketing the rolling hills for a decisive Stage 4 of the Tour de Ski (TdS) in Oberstdorf, Germany, the day’s 10-kilometer classic mass start shook out the close overall standings. Norway’s Ingvild Flugstad Østberg, who came into the race wearing bib 2 as the second skier in the overall TdS standings...