FasterSkier

Visit FasterSkier.com →

From the FasterSkier archive — posts syndicated from athletes’ and coaches’ own blogs between 2004 and 2012, kept online as published. Current coverage is at fasterskier.com.

Tag: Dani Aravich

  • (Press Release) Super Sprint Day for Team USA as Three More Medals Collected in Beijing

    (Press Release) Super Sprint Day for Team USA as Three More Medals Collected in Beijing

    ZHANGJIAKOU, China — Team USA Para Nordic skiers Oksana Masters (Louisville, Kentucky) and Jake Adicoff (Sun Valley, Idaho), alongside guide Sam Wood (Harpswell, Maine) each won silver medals, and Sydney Peterson (Lake Elmo, Minnesota) took bronze in an exciting, fast-paced day of cross-country sprint racing at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.

    Through five days of competition, the U.S. Para Nordic team has collected 10 medals in cross-country and biathlon at Beijing 2022, with three more days of racing to go at the Zhangjiakou Biathlon Center.

    Oksana Masters takes silver in the women’s sitting sprint. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    Masters has won four medals — in all four races — at Beijing 2022 and now has won 14 medals in her Paralympic career. Masters, the 2021 world champion and 2018 cross-country sprint gold medalist from PyeongChang, finished just 1.7 seconds away from gold on Wednesday.

    The cross-country and biathlon star powered up the hills on the 1-kilometer course and sprinted down the finish chute to nearly catch China’s Hongqiong Yang who won gold with a time of 3:18.2. Masters finished in 3:19.9 and Panpan Li of China earned the bronze in 3:31.0.

    Team USA’s Kendall Gretsch (Downers Grove, Ill.) placed fifth, in 3:37.3.

    Adicoff and Wood won their second silver medal of Beijing 2022 in the men’s visually impaired category, just 0.8 seconds away from gold. The duo hammered the sprint cross-country course in a time of 3:20.3, just behind Canada’s Brian McKeever, guided by Russell Kennedy. Sweden’s Zebastian Modin, guided by Emil Joensson Haag, took the bronze in a time of 3:37.8.

    The silver is Adicoff’s third medal of his Paralympic career — and he’s gunning for two more cross-country medals in Beijing.

    Jake Adicoff (right) with guide Sam Wood earn a second silver medal in the visually impaired freestyle sprint, their second medal in two races at the 2022 Beijing Paralympics. (Photo: Joe Kusumoto / Team USA)

    “I said it before, but I’ll say it again — ‘We’re going to gun for gold,’” said Adicoff who is a three-time Paralympian who won silver in the 10k cross-country at the 2018 Paralympic Games in PyeongChang.

    “Two more to go. We’re hoping for four for four (on the podium) so we’re right on schedule,” Wood said.

    Adicoff said the fun of cross-country sprints is the opportunity to cheer on his fellow U.S. Para Nordic teammates. The entire team raced on Wednesday, which began with qualification rounds, a round of semifinals and the final to determine the Paralympic medalists.

    “Being with this team is so much fun. Especially on sprint day. Sprint days are the best. You get to watch everyone and it’s an absolute blast,” said Adicoff. “The team had a good day, so we’re psyched.”

    Peterson, who is competing in her first Paralympic Games, won her second medal of Beijing 2022, adding to the silver she won in long-distance cross-country. She completed the sprint cross-country in 4:12.1, behind Canada’s Natalie Wilkie (4:05.1) and Norway’s Vilde Nilsen (4:08.1).

    “It was a super challenging race. There were a lot of components to it going throughout the day, but I’m super excited about how it all stacked up,” Peterson said. “I had a ton of people that were out there helping and cheering and it wouldn’t have been possible without all their support.”

    Grace Miller races to 14th in the women’s standing freestyle sprint. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)
    Visually impaired athlete Max Nelson sprints to 14th with guide Simi Hamilton. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    A total of 14 U.S. athletes competed in the day’s events. For the women’s sitting sprint, Lera Doederlein and Erin Martin finished 14th and 16th respectively while Grace Miller took 14th in the women’s standing. In the men’s sitting competition, Dan Cnossen finished just outside a qualifying spot with a 13th place finish while Josh Sweeney finished 19th. Max Nelson took 14th place in the men’s visually impaired qualification round while Drew Shae covered the course in the first round of the men’s standing for 21st.

    American teammates Dani Aravich, Ruslan Reiter and Aaron Pike made their way to the semifinal round finishing the sprint competition in 8th, 12th and 12th respectively.

    Aaron Pike races into the sprint semifinal, finishing 12th. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    Nordic athletes will enjoy a rest day on Thursday. Racing is scheduled to resume on Friday, with the men’s and women’s individual biathlon. To follow and watch U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing competition from Beijing 2022 on NBC, which features more than 230 hours of coverage across NBC, Peacock, USA Network, the Olympic Channel, NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports App. All events will be streamed live on NBC’s Peacock. Follow U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for daily updates from Beijing.

  • (Press Release) Team USA Goes 1-2 in Middle-Distance Biathlon as Gretsch Wins Gold and Masters Earns Silver

    (Press Release) Team USA Goes 1-2 in Middle-Distance Biathlon as Gretsch Wins Gold and Masters Earns Silver

    Kendall Gretsch takes gold in the sitting middle-distance biathlon event in Zhangjiakou. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    By Stephen Meyers

    ZHANGJIAKOU, China — Team USA’s dynamic duo of Kendall Gretsch (Downers Grove, Ill.) and Oksana Masters (Louisville, Kentucky) won gold and silver in the women’s sitting biathlon middle-distance on the fourth day of competition at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.

    The U.S. Para Nordic team has now collected seven medals across biathlon and cross-country skiing at Beijing 2022, with four more days of racing to go at the Zhangjiakou Biathlon Center.

    For Gretsch, Saturday’s gold medal is the fourth gold —and fifth medal overall — in her Paralympic career. She won gold in the 6k biathlon and 12k cross-country events at PyeongChang 2018 and won gold in Para triathlon at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo six months ago.

    Kendall Gretsch races to the line to take gold in the sitting middle-distance biathlon event. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    The dual sport star now has two medals at Beijing 2022, as she began the biathlon competition with a bronze in the women’s sitting biathlon sprint.  

    After receiving a penalty in the first round of shooting in Tuesday’s race, Gretsch shot clean the remaining three rounds and skied strong, with quick shooting, in the second half of the 10-kilometer race to overtake Masters and win gold in a time of 33:12. 

    “I’m really excited with today‘s race. I had a good day on skis and I’m happy with our performance. Hopefully we can build on that for the rest of the races too,” said Gretsch, who praised the U.S. Para Nordic team’s culture and support.

    “We have such a strong program and great support from our team. The coaching and everything from waxing our skis so they are really fast, and helping us with nutrition, all the support that we get from the staff at Team USA is huge.”

    Kendall Gretsch (right) and Oksana Masters (left) go 1-2 in the sitting middle-distance biathlon event during the 2022 Beijing Paralympic Winter Games. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    For Masters, Tuesday’s silver is the third medal she’s won in Beijing and 13th overall in her Paralympics career. She again shot clean — like she did en route to winning gold in the women’s sitting biathlon sprint — and finished 9 seconds behind Gretsch, in 33:21. 

    “I’m excited with a silver medal. This is my second biathlon medal in the Paralympic Games. This is my second consecutive biathlon medal that I’d shot clean for, which I don’t normally do,” said Masters who also won silver in long-distance cross-country.

    “I’m so proud of myself. I was doubting myself coming in here and I think now what I can do is have confidence knowing I have put the work into it and I can do it. And try to make it a little faster so I’m not just giving away time in the race trying to get that shot.” 

    Oksana Masters goes three-for-three, adding a silver medal to her growing collection in the sitting middle-distance biathlon competition. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    Germany’s Anja Wicker won the bronze, in a time of 35:45. 

    Team USA’s Lera Doederlein (San Diego, California), competing in her first Paralympic Games, placed ninth. 

    Dan Cnossen (Topeka, Kansas) was the top U.S. finisher in the men’s sitting biathlon middle-distance, where he placed 12th with a time of 34:10. Aaron Pike (Park Rapids, Minnesota) finished 15th in a time of 36:49.

    Dan Cnossen competes in the middle-distance sitting biathlon event during the 2022 Beijing Paralympics. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    Tuesday’s racing action also included biathlon middle-distance events in the standing and visually impaired categories. 

    The lone U.S. athlete competing in the women’s race, Dani Aravich (Boise, Idaho) skied to 11th place in her second Winter Paralympic race. She made her Paralympic debut in track and field at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo. 

    Dani Aravich skis to 11t in the middle distance biathlon competition, her second Winter Paralympic appearance. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    In the men’s standing biathlon race, Ruslan Reiter (Manchester, Maine) placed 12th and Drew Shea (Vienna, Virginia) took 13th. Reiter is competing in his second Winter Paralympics, while Shea is making his Paralympic debut. No U.S. athletes competed in the visually impaired category.

    Racing returns to the Zhangjiakou Biathlon Center on Wednesday, March 9 with the men’s and women’s sprint cross-country.

    Ruslan Reiter on course during the middle-distance biathlon competition in Zhangjiakou. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    To follow and watch U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing competition from the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Games, tune in to NBC, which features more than 230 hours of coverage across NBC, Peacock, USA Network, the Olympic Channel, NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports App. Follow U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for daily updates from Beijing.

  • (Press Release) Masters wins fifth gold, Gretsch takes bronze in biathlon sprint to begin 2022 Para Games

    (Press Release) Masters wins fifth gold, Gretsch takes bronze in biathlon sprint to begin 2022 Para Games

    Oksana Masters (left) takes gold while Kendall Gretsch (right) earns bronze in the sitting biathlon sprint to open the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    By Stephen Meyers | March 05, 2022, 7:27 a.m. (ET)

    Oksana Masters (Louisville, Kentucky) won the first gold medal for the U.S. at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 on Saturday in the women’s sitting biathlon sprint while teammate Kendall Gretsch (Downers Grove, Illinois) earned bronze on a cold, breezy day that included racing in the men’s and women’s biathlon sprint in the sitting, standing and vision impaired categories. 

    Masters, a biathlete and cross-country skier, won her fifth career Paralympic gold medal and 11th overall medal between the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. Saturday’s gold was her first in biathlon; she won two silvers at the Paralympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 in the 6k and 12.5k biathlon. 

    “I can’t believe it, this is so amazing,” Masters said. “To be able to start off the Paralympic Games in Beijing and bring home a gold medal for Team USA is absolutely incredible. And it’s incredible because I get to do it with my teammate on the podium by my side again.”

    “I think this just shows that there’s amazing stuff that’s going to happen for Team USA in the Para Nordic program.” 

    Oksana Masters takes her first gold of the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in the sitting biathlon sprint. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    Masters now owns Paralympic gold medals in biathlon, cross-country skiing and Para-cycling. She won two cycling golds at the Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 six months ago. 

    Masters finished the 6k sitting biathlon sprint race in a time of 20:51.2. China’s Yilin Shan finished 15 seconds back with a time of 21:06 to earn the silver.  

    Gretsch — who also won gold at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo six months ago, in paratriathlon — earned the bronze, with a time of 22:47. The medal is the fourth of her Paralympic career. At PyeongChang 2018, Gretsch won gold in the 6k biathlon and 12k cross-country events. 

    “That was a tough race. The sprint is so short and you’re kind of going all-out the whole time. I’m happy to have the first race done and hopefully just build off today for the rest of the races,” said Gretsch, who also races the cross-country events. “It’s crazy [being back at the Paralympics six months after competing in Tokyo] and it’s feeling very different than Tokyo conditions today. I’m trying to channel how warm I was there. It’s always exciting to be at the Paralympics.”

    Eighteen-year-old Lera Doederlein (San Diego, California) made her Paralympic debut on Saturday, also competing in the women’s sitting biathlon sprint, finishing ninth. It was Masters who encouraged Doederlein, who had been competing in sled hockey, to give Para Nordic skiing a try in 2019.

    “It’s a pretty incredible experience for me to race [with Masters and Gretsch] especially since I’m only 18 years old and it’s my first Paralympics. It was incredible to experience this with them,” Doederlein said. 

    Dan Cnossen races to fourth place in the sitting biathlon sprint. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    Dan Cnossen (Topeka, Kansas), former Navy SEAL who won six medals in PyeongChang, led Team USA’s men on Saturday in the sitting biathlon sprint, placing fourth. 

    “I dug deep as far as I could, and this is perhaps the best biathlon race I’ve ever had. I know it may not have been my best result, but for me, it’s more about effort and I really think I put a complete race together today,” Cnossen said.

    “Biathlon is a really challenging sport in the sense that you can always ski a little bit faster into the range or you can always try to take your first shot a little bit quicker, or the shots two, three, four, five a little bit quicker. I’ve got to be happy with how I raced today. I’m also happy to be out there with my teammate Aaron [Pike] and our women who had an awesome day. I would also say I’m really happy to see the Ukraine athletes out here today getting after it. With everything they’re going through, it’s inspiring to me to see them compete. I was thinking about them today when I was out there.”

    Pike (Park Rapids, Minnesota) finished eighth. A constant in the Paralympics over the past decade, Pike is competing in his sixth Paralympic Games. He raced in Tokyo for U.S. Paralympics Track & Field, competing in the marathon. 

    Aaron Pike races to 8th in the sitting biathlon sprint to open the 2022 Beijing Paralympic Winter Games. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    In addition, Team USA had three athletes competing in the standing biathlon sprint. 

    Dani Aravich (Boise, Idaho), who also competed in track and field in Tokyo, placed 13th in her first race as a winter Paralympian. 

    In the men’s standing biathlon race, Ruslan Reiter (Manchester, Maine) placed 12th and Drew Shea (Vienna, Virginia) took 14th. Reiter is competing in his second Winter Paralympics, while Shea is making his Paralympic debut. 

    Ruslan Reiter races to 12th in the standing biathlon sprint. (Photo: Mark Reis / Team USA)

    No U.S. athletes competed in the visually impaired category. 

    U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing athletes return to competition on Sunday, as cross-country action takes the stage with the men’s and women’s sitting long-distance races. 

    Follow and watch U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing competition from Beijing 2022 on NBC, which features more than 230 hours of coverage across NBC, Peacock, USA Network, the Olympic Channel, NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports App. All events will be streamed live on NBC’s Peacock. Follow U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for daily updates from Beijing.

    Results

  • (Press Release) FOURTEEN PARA NORDIC ATHLETES NOMINATED TO 2022 PARALYMPIC TEAM

    (Press Release) FOURTEEN PARA NORDIC ATHLETES NOMINATED TO 2022 PARALYMPIC TEAM

    Oksana Masters crosses the finish line of a race in Lillehammer, Norway. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    By Kristen Gowdy | Jan. 31, 2022, 6:02 p.m. (ET)

    COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO ­­­– Following a stellar world championships performance that saw Team USA earn 13 medals in Para Nordic disciplines, U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing today announced the six women, seven men and one guide who have been nominated to compete at the Paralympic Games Beijing 2022 in March.

    Veteran athletes will lead the way in Beijing as Team USA looks to build on the 16 Paralympic medals won at the Paralympic Games PyeongChang 2018. Headlined by multi-time Paralympic medalists Oksana Masters (Louisville, Kentucky), Kendall Gretsch (Downers Grove, Illinois) and Dan Cnossen (Topeka, Kansas), the athletes nominated to the 2022 team sport a combined career total of 21 Paralympic medals. Of the 14 athletes, nine have previous Paralympic experience while five athletes will make their Paralympic debut.

    “We have many athletes who thrive in these high-stakes competitions, who know what it means to represent Team USA as a Paralympian,” Eileen Carey, director of U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing, said. “We are looking to them, as well as our experienced coaching staff, to lead the newer athletes into Beijing 2022. We are motivated by the combination of experience and the high quality of our Paralympic rookies as a testament to the growth and bright future of our program; their success this Paralympic quad has shown us that we can reach new heights in March.”

    A 10-time Paralympic medalist and recently crowned 10-time world champion, Masters is set to make her sixth Paralympic appearance. After winning double gold in Para-cycling at the Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, Masters has continued her success on the snow, earning a medal in every world cup competition in which she has competed, as well as five medals at the recent Lillehammer 2021 World Para Snow Sports Championships. In Lillehammer, the multi-sport phenom earned her ninth and 10th career world championship titles and will look to put an exclamation point on her already historic 2021-22 season on the world’s biggest stage.

    Gretsch, who is putting together a world-class resumé herself this season, also won gold in Tokyo in paratriathlon. She led Team USA in Lillehammer with three world championship titles and also added a silver as she looks to repeat the double gold she won in PyeongChang. The 13-time world championship medalist is headed into Beijing as a heavy favorite in the biathlon discipline, having won both titles in the Para biathlon events in which she competed in Lillehammer.

    A six-time Paralympic medalist and retired Navy SEAL, Cnossen earns his third Paralympic team nomination in 2022. All six of Cnossen’s Paralympic medals came in PyeongChang, where he dominated in both cross-country skiing and biathlon. Cnossen is at his best on the Paralympic stage, where he will look to repeat his success come March.

    Paralympic silver medalist Jake Adicoff (Sun Valley, Idaho) will team up with longtime friend and guide Sam Wood (Harpswell, Maine) to lead the U.S. in the men’s visually impaired class for his third Paralympic appearance. After taking several years off following his podium performance in PyeongChang, Adicoff accepted an invitation to join the team for a training camp last February, and hasn’t faltered since. He and Wood enter Beijing as one of the top podium contenders in the men’s visually impaired field. The duo have been putting together Adicoff’s best racing of his career, having recently combined for three medals ­­– one of each color ­– in Lillehammer.

    Paralympians Aaron Pike (Park Rapids, Minnesota) and Josh Sweeney (Glendale, Arizona) round out the men’s sitting class for Team USA. Pike, who recently won his second career world championship medal, a silver in the men’s individual biathlon, makes his sixth career Paralympic team. Also a prolific wheelchair racer and marathoner, Pike is peaking at the right time, having been in the podium mix in nearly all of his races this season. He is seeking his first career Paralympic medal in Beijing.

    Sweeney, meanwhile, makes his first Paralympic team in Para Nordic skiing, having transitioned to the sport following a 2014 Paralympic gold medal appearance in sled hockey. The 2014 Pat Tillman Award for Service winner and retired U.S. Marine Corps Sergeant picked up skiing through the Challenged Athletes Foundation.

    The final sit skiers on the 2022 roster, Erin Martin (Seattle, Washington) and Lera Doederlein (San Diego, California) are set for their Paralympic debuts. A former rock climber, Martin found Para Nordic skiing after sustaining a T4 spinal cord injury while climbing. She is also a registered nurse care manager who has served during the COVID-19 pandemic. Doederlein, meanwhile, also competes in sled hockey and Para-cycling. At just 18 years old, Doederlein, who was adopted from Russia, has found a mentor in the Ukraine-born Masters.

    Standing skiers Grace Miller (Palmer, Alaska), Ruslan Reiter (Manchester, Maine) and Dani Aravich (Boise, Idaho) also bring Paralympic experience to the team. Miller and Reiter competed in PyeongChang, where Reiter’s best finish was seventh in the cross-country mixed relay, while Miller finished 10th in the 15-kilometer cross-country skiing race. Aravich made her Paralympic debut as a track and field athlete in Tokyo and along with Masters, Gretsch and Pike, will compete in her second Paralympic Games in six months.

    Making their first Paralympic appearances and rounding out Team USA’s roster is standing skier Drew Shea (Vienna, Virginia), and visually impaired athlete Max Nelson (Mahtomedi, Minnesota).

    Relatively new to Para Nordic skiing, Shea recently moved to Bozeman, Montana, to pursue the sport competitively with Crosscut Mountain Sports Center, his club team. A rising star in the sport, the 17-year-old Nelson made history as a high school junior last year when he became the first visually impaired Nordic skier to win an individual conference title in Minnesota.

    The Paralympic Games begin on March 4, and Para Nordic skiing competition kicks off on March 5. Following record-breaking coverage of the Tokyo Paralympic Games, NBC has announced a historic broadcast schedule for its Winter Paralympic programming, which features more than 230 hours of coverage across NBC, Peacock, USA Network, the Olympic Channel, NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports App. NBC’s scheduled programming also includes the first-ever Winter Paralympic Games primetime coverage.

     

    For media requests and photo inquiries, please contact Kristen Gowdy at Kristen.Gowdy@usopc.org.

     

    2022 U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing Paralympic Team

    Women:

    Dani Aravich, women’s standing

    Lera Doederlein, women’s sitting

    Kendall Gretsch, women’s sitting

    Erin Martin, women’s sitting

    Oksana Masters, women’s sitting

    Grace Miller, women’s standing

     

    Men:

    Jake Adicoff (with guide Sam Wood), men’s visually impaired

    Dan Cnossen, men’s sitting

    Max Nelson, men’s visually impaired

    Aaron Pike, men’s sitting

    Ruslan Reiter, men’s standing

    Drew Shea, men’s standing

    Josh Sweeney, men’s sitting

      

  • Americans Bring Home More Medals as Para World Championships Wrap Up in Lillehammer

    Americans Bring Home More Medals as Para World Championships Wrap Up in Lillehammer

    The Para World Championships wrapped up in Lillehammer, Norway on Sunday January 23rd, with a mixed open relay event bringing athletes from across genders and race categories together into one thrilling capstone event. 

    Rewinding to where our previous coverage left off, Saturday’s schedule featured the final individual races of the Championships, a classic spring for standing athletes, and a cross country sprint for sprint skiers. As in able-bodied fields, a sprint involves a qualification round, followed by a semifinal and grand finale to decide the medalists. The number of athletes who make the semifinal varies based on category.

    Highlighting the day, Oksana Masters took gold in the women’s sitting race, her sixth medal of the Championships (two of each color) and career 11th World Championship medal. This title was not certain until the final meters of the race, where Masters put in a final surge to overtake an athlete from Belarus just before the line. 

    Oksana Masters (right) sprints to the finish during the women’s sitting individual biathlon. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    “It feels incredible,” Masters said in the Team USA press release. “It doesn’t feel that long ago that I was barely making finals in sprint, or I couldn’t finish a sprint without falling or breaking a pole. To be able to have a third consecutive world championship title in this event is just incredible.”  

    Another medal favorite based on her performances through the week, Kendall Gretsch also raced in the sitting finale, however, a late crash put her out of reach of the podium and she ended the day in fifth.

    On the men’s side, Aaron Pike led the American men in the sitting sprint, placing well inside the top-12 to qualify for the semifinals. In his semi, Pike finished fifth and did not advance to the finale. Meanwhile, Dan Cnossen was 16th in qualification and did not advance to the rounds. 

    Dan Cnossen competes at the Para World Championships in Lillehammer. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    In the women’s standing races, newcomer to the team Sydney Peterson earned her second silver medal of the week, in addition to a third place medal. Perhaps still gaining experience, Peterson felt her first two rounds of racing were not smooth, though it came together in the final round. 

    “I had some mishaps the first two races this morning so I’m glad that things worked out for the finals,” said Peterson to Team USA. “I’m pretty excited that was a really fun race. It will be fun to continue racing.” 

    A second standing athlete, Dani Aravich, was just shy of the top-eight in qualification, meaning she was unable to advance to the semifinal for her class. 

    Also on a medal streak, visually impaired athlete Jake Adicoff and his guide Sam Wood earned a silver medal in the classic sprint, allowing them to make a clean sweep of gold, silver, and bronze in the three events they contested this week. 

    Friends, teammates, and more recently athlete-guide pair, Jake Adicoff and Sam Wood fist bump after earning a gold medal in the 10k classic at the Para World Championships in Lillehammer. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    “I’m feeling pretty good,” said Adicoff. “This is an improvement from the classic sprint in Canmore. We’re pretty happy with the result and it’s super fun racing out there. [We’re taking away] a little bit of confidence and then to be off that gold medal for two races now that’s what we’re looking for – gold in Beijing.” 

    On Sunday, the American squad fielded two relay teams in the mixed-gender, mixed-class 10-kilometer event. Given the variations in time based on sitting, standing, and subcategories within those groups, this makes for an interesting equation. Simultaneously, what better a way to highlight the diversity, talent, and teamwork seen across nations?

    According to the daily Team USA press release, “relays were structured so that each athlete was assigned points based on their classification and gender, and the sum of each team’s total points could not exceed 335 for the mixed relay and 375 for the open relay. From there, it was head-to-head racing, and factored times did not come into play.”

    Masters led an all-women’s team for the U.S., passing off to Peterson for the second leg, with Grestch racing third, and Aravich as anchor. Each of the women put together strong performances to keep their team within the top four, finishing in a cumulative time of 31:41.5.

    The American women’s open relay team took fourth in the final race of the Para World Championships in Lillehammer. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    “We didn’t know until yesterday how we were going to do the relays, so when our coaches told us it was all women, we were really excited,” Aravich explained in the press release. “When we looked at the points and how it was stacked up, we probably shot ourselves in the foot a bit because we didn’t come close to maximizing the points we could have had in the race. We set our expectations to have fun and end this trip on a high note, which we did.”

    On the men’s side, Adicoff and Wood raced both the second and final leg of the relay, with Pike leading the team for the first leg and Cnossen racing third. Following a strong opener from Pike, Adicoff and Wood brought the men into second place, though they slipped back in the results over the next two. They finished the race in fifth overall, however, they were issued a 30-second time penalty for one of their exchanges, which bumped them down to sixth.

    Jake Adicoff and guide Sam Wood race the long-distance skate, bringing home a bronze medal. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    The next races on the Para World Cup calendar begin next weekend, running January 27th – February 1st in Östersund, Sweden. The 2022 Paralympic team will be named following these events on February 1st, leaving the team just over a month to prepare for the Games in Beijing, which kick off on March 4th. 

    More information, including press releases, livestreams of past events, and links to results can be found on the U.S. Paralympics Nordic Facebook page. You can also follow the team on Instagram, or at TeamUSA.org/USParaNordicSkiing.

  • U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing On a Roll at Para Worlds in Lillehammer

    U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing On a Roll at Para Worlds in Lillehammer

    Oksana Masters (left) and Kendall Gretstch (right) go 1-2 in the women’s 15k sitting long distance cross country race. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    It’s late January and we’re deep into the race season. As the Olympics and Paralympics draw nearer, we’ve simultaneously just wrapped up the Tour de Ski, the U.S. Cross Country Championships, and another wave of SuperTour races. Never a dull moment in the racing world, the Para World Championships are currently well underway, running January 13-23rd in Lillehammer, Norway. 

    Normally occurring on odd years, the World Championships were postponed from last February due to the pandemic. Nevertheless, the event was called the Lillehammer 2021 World Para Snow Sports Championships. It was a hallmark event, as it is the first time that all snow sports have competed together in one location over the same dates.

    Led by well-decorated veterans like Oksana Masters, Kendall Gretsch, and Dan Cnossen, the U.S. Para Nordic Team has put together a string of outstanding results at World thus far. Events have ranged from biathlon springs to cross country distance races, with athletes competing – and cleaning up – across all disciplines and distances.

    Kicking off the series of events, Sun Valley’s Jake Adicoff took home his career first World Championship medal by winning the men’s visually impaired 10-kilometer middle distance race.

    “It feels great,” Adicoff said of his performance, according to the Team USA Press Release. “Lillehammer has been skiing really well so far, I’ve been having a lot of fun here. It feels great to go and get that first podium, and hopefully we can go out and get some more here.”

    Jake Adicoff and his guide Sam Wood put together a gold medal performance on the opening day of racing at the Para World Championships in Lillehammer, NOR. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    Adicoff retired in 2018 after earning a silver medal in the 10k and taking 4th in the sprint, however, he is making his return with a bang in this 2021/22 season. 

    Building momentum throughout the first day, 19-year-old Sydney Peterson earned a silver medal in the women’s standing middle distance race, with Gretsch earning the second gold medal for team USA in the women’s sitting 7.5k middle distance event. That’s three medals, two gold and one silver, on the first day of racing, along with an additional two athletes, Cnossen and Dani Aravich, earning top-10 finishes. 

    Dan Cnossen hits the range during the individual sitting biathlon event at the Para World Championships in Lillehammer, NOR. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    Joining the team in Lillehammer late after testing positive for COVID-19 on New Year’s Eve, Masters made a smooth return to competition, taking second place in her first race at Worlds, the sitting biathlon sprint on January 15th. The next day, the American women took first and third in the sitting biathlon middle distance race, with Gretsch earning her second gold medal of the week and Masters adding an 18th World Championship medal to her ever-expanding collection.

    On point, a perfect shooting performance contributed to Gretsch’s gold, while Masters skied her way out of a significant deficit. Experiencing challenges on the range, Master’s racked up seven penalties, but made up her shooting with her skiing. In the men’s sitting race, Master’s partner, Aaron Pike, skied his way into the Top-10, a rank he has achieved in each of his World Cup races this season, leaving him primed for a medal. 

    Two days later on the 18th, Masters and Gretch again took the spotlight, going 1-2 in the women’s sitting 15k long distance cross-country race. Now reaching 19 total, this marked Masters’ 10th career World Championship gold medal.

    “It’s absolutely incredible,” Masters said in the Team USA press release that day. “It feels like yesterday where I was that new athlete, never thinking that I would be a world championship athlete. So, to have 10 now … is incredible and it’s a testament to our team’s hard work. It’s not just me, it’s the whole team.” 

    Already an historic day for the U.S., Peterson and Adicoff continued the medal streak in the long-distance cross country races, with each athlete earning a bronze medal in the standing and visually impaired divisions, respectively. Four Americans competed that day, and four medals were won. How’s that for success? 

    Aaron Pike races the individual sitting middle distance biathlon event at the Para World Championships in Lillehammer, Norway. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    As the final days of World Championship racing kicked off, Pike’s consistency paid off with a silver medal in the men’s sitting individual biathlon event. Missing just one target, matching the best result of the event, Pike finished 24 seconds back on the winner, Pavlo Bal of the Ukraine. This result is both a World Championship and overall World Cup career best for Pike, who is an accomplished wheelchair racer during the summer season. 

    “It was a tough day to be shooting out there, everybody’s missing so I was happy to come away with just missing one shot,” said Pike in today’s recap. “This is probably the windiest race we’ve had in three years. Every chance you get to put a bib on and race in a biathlon race is experience.”

    Racing in the women’s sitting individual biathlon, Gretsch and Masters continued to dominate the field, taking first and third, respectively, to keep their medal streak alive and well.

    Again performing well on the range, Gretsch missed just one target in four rounds of shooting and skied the second fastest time on course for a finish time of 52:25.0. While Masters skied the fastest time of day, she again faced challenges in her shooting, incurring five penalties, leaving her 3:00.7 behind Gretsch in the final results. In the women’s standing class, Aravich earned another top-10 finish in eighth. 

    With excellent shooting records, Kendall Gretsch puts together back-to-back gold medal performances in biathlon events. (Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    After a day of rest, the Para athletes have two final days of racing in Lillehammer on the 22nd and 23rd, which feature a sprint for the standing and visually impaired categories on Saturday and a Mixed Relay on Sunday. Based on the week’s results, it’s clear that they are primed for another medal run in the upcoming 2022 Beijing Paralympic Games, which begin March 4th. 

    Livestreams of past and upcoming events, along with links to results can be found on the U.S. Paralympics Nordic Facebook page, or you can check out the remainder of snowsport events happening this week in Lillehammer by following along here.