While Tor Arne Hetland is just starting as Canada's World Cup coach, his wife, Guri Hetland, is no longer head coach of the Swiss National Team. Swiss-Ski Sports Director Mark Wolf referred to negotiations that "ended in disaster" after Hetland and the association could not agree on team decisions. Dario Cologna had already committed to a new personal coach, Ivan Hudáč.
Seraina Boner, the best female marathon skier in the world, was focusing on the Vasaloppet. But then she realized she could go to the Olympics. This week she found herself holding her own in the team sprint, and then notched 9th place in the 30k skate, the best Olympic result for a Swiss woman in nearly two decades. "I can always do the Vasaloppet next year," she said.
Switzerland has never won a biathlon World Cup race - and it was especially surprising that the first victory would come from its small women's team. But Selina Gasparin has been close to the podium before and today she sealed the deal in the 7.5 k sprint, eking out a 1-second victory over Veronika Vitkova of the Czech Republic.
Dario Cologna finally won World Championships gold in February. But his craving for medals has hardly been satisfied, and he has one goal on his mind: the Olympics in Sochi. Even his beloved Tour de Ski is falling by the wayside. We dropped in on a training session in Davos and chatted with Cologna about the upcoming winter.
Switzerland has a population just a bit smaller than the state of Virginia, and despite the Alps and Jura mountains faces some of the same challenges in developing World Cup skiers that you might find in North America. We chatted with Swiss U24 coach Christian Flury, formerly of Alberta World Cup Academy, about how his squad represents his country's future, and how he manages it.
Heidi Widmer, 22, isn't one for hanging around. Recently promoted to the Canadian Senior Team, Widmer ended the season with a backcountry trip then flew to El Salvador and New Orleans before training in Switzerland, where she'll spend a month with World Cup and national team skiers.
Though Marit Bjørgen made the last-second decision to skip Sunday's race, the Norwegian women were just fine in her absence. Therese Johaug claimed her first individual-start win in the 10 k in Davos, Switzerland, for a confidence-boosting tune-up before World Championships. She bested Justyna Kowalczyk and teammate Kristin Størmer Steira on the challenging course.
In late May, weeks after Nina Silitch finished her last race of the season, loads of her ski-mountaineering equipment still occupied more than half the space in her bedroom. Her husband, Michael, couldn’t understand why, after six months on the World Cup and international circuit, she wasn’t ready put it away. At 39, Silitch was coming off a career-best season in most respects – she became the first American to earn World Cup gold in...
Earlier this month, Philip Furrer wasn’t sure what his summer held. Sure, the Swiss cross-country ski racer knew he’d be training and spending three weeks with military recruits for Switzerland’s army requirement. At least he was a sports instructor for the mandatory period. Otherwise, work was winding down. Throughout spring, the 28-year-old from Andermatt, Switzerland, taught primary students in grades 1-6. When he wasn’t racing or traveling across the globe, Furrer, who started in four...
As athletes prepare to start this year’s Tour de Ski on Thursday, plans are taking shape for the next four editions of the race that would vary its length and location. According to FIS Cross-Country Race Director Jürg Capol, the Tour will almost certainly be making a stop in Switzerland next year, and for the three years afterwards. The event will alternate between venues in Münstertal—the small valley that claims Swiss superstar Dario Cologna as...
The North Americans on the World Cup circuit had plenty to look forward to as they flew to Davos, Switzerland. After three straight days of races in Kuusamo, Finland, the cross-country skiers would have a chance to kick back, train and enjoy the sun. What many didn’t think about was the snow. The Canadians first set eyes on the green landscape before the Americans, as they drove from the airport to Davos on Monday. As...
Successes of Swiss skiers in recent years have strongly increased the importance of Cross-Country skiing in Switzerland. Swiss-Ski wants to boost interest in Cross-Country skiing with high level World Cup competition. “The FIS Tour de Ski represents the most important event in the World Cup calendar. It is the best way, how Cross-Country skiing in Switzerland could strengthen its positions. Our goal is to welcome each year a FIS Tour de Ski stage in Switzerland...