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.
This week’s edition of the Devon Kershaw Show comes in hot with a recap of the city sprint in Dresden, Germany.
The breakdown includes solid American results and a tragic crash for a Canadian sprinter, plus some Kremlinology about Alexander Bolshunov and the Russian Ski Federation, discussion about the internal dynamics of the Swedish sprinters, and a reminder about how you’re lucky to live outside Norway if you want to go to the Olympics for cross-country skiing.
The men’s podium of Dresden’s individual freestyle sprint. Håvard Solås Taugbøl (NOR) took the win ahead of Federico Pellegrino (ITA) and Lucas Chanavat (FRA). (Photo: NordicFocus)
This World Cup coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and the A Hall Mark of Excellence Award. To learn more about A Hall Mark of Excellence Award or to learn how you can support FasterSkier’s coverage please contact info@fasterskier.com.
With Christmas decor lining a ribbon of snow providing a better indication that we are nearing the end of Period I and heading into the holiday season than the surrounding green grass in Dresden, Germany, athletes took to the track in the city for yet another iteration of its thrilling sprint weekend. Humid conditions well above freezing made for fast racing on the two-lap course, which often sees spicy turns and tactics, without a significant climb to separate the field in a deciding manner.
If you’d like a throwback from January, 2018, here’s a video clip from Instagram where Simi Hamilton painfully face-plants, just after having broken the pole of Johannes Høsflot Klæbo. This left Hamilton with a lip full of carbon-fiber splinters and plenty of abrasions from the harsh granular track. Good times.
After the first three weekends of racing, 21-year-old JC Schoonmaker sat in second place in the U23 World Cup standings, and 27th in the overall World Cup ranks. Showing he was ready to build on this platform, Schoonmaker smashed the qualifier, finishing third, 1.16 seconds behind Norway’s Håvard Solås Taugbøl and roughly 0.3 behind Richard Jouve of France, who qualified in second.
In an episode of Nordic Nation recorded earlier this week, Schoonmaker, along with teammates Ben Ogden and Gus Schumacher, discussed how their results in the early season races have encouraged them to raise their limits and take chances in their sprinting as they transition into their senior racing careers. Instead of choosing heat four or five, which they explained shows that one is limiting their potential on the day to the semifinal, they wanted to begin racing in earlier heats with the top qualifiers. Thus increasing their risk of being knocked out early, but also learning what it takes to advance further through the rounds.
JC Schoonmaker skis to 3rd in qualification in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Today, Schoonmaker raced in heat one alongside Taugbøl and Jouve, along with Even Northug (NOR), Johan Häggström (SWE), and teammate Logan Hanneman, who qualified in 7th, 28th, and 30th, respectively.
The first lap of the race, the pace was fast but the men looked cool, each carefully navigating the hairpin curves and not racing aggressively. As they accelerated in the second lap, Schoonmaker kept himself in contact with Jouve, who was not in the lead, but still racing in a position of control at the front with Taugbøl. Dropping into a tuck coming off a roller and safely rounding the hairpin, Schoonmaker headed to the final straight behind Jouve. As they powered through the final lanes, it was Taugbøl and Jouve at the front for a photo finish, with Northug finishing just ahead of Schoonmaker close on their tails for third and fourth.
JC Schoonmaker marks Richard Jouve (FRA) during the first quarterfinal heat in Dresden. Logan Hanneman stays in contact with the pack in bib 30. (Photo: NordicFocus)
As the remaining quarterfinals progressed, it became clear that Heat 1 was the fastest, allowing both Northug and Schoonmaker to advance to the semifinals.
Hanneman also stayed in contact through the round, finishing 1.88 second behind the leaders, but sixth in the heat. After the final rounds were decided, Hanneman’s position was 30th overall on the day.
Also racing in the quarters, Canada’s Graham Ritchie qualified in 16th and raced in the fifth quarterfinal heat. In a competitive position throughout the second lap, Ritchie came into the final hairpin on the inside of the curve, looking to slide up in position heading into the final stretch. Perhaps lacking real estate along the v-board, Ritchie went down, losing his position and ability to advance further. He ended his day in 26th.
Graham Ritchie pushes the pace in the quarterfinal in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
A post-race Instagram story posted by Ritchie’s coach Erik Bråten captioned “sh*t happens” showed his ski tip had broken off and the base had delaminated — not ideal.
Racing in the first semifinal, Schoonmaker looked comfortable and smooth, approaching the round in a similar way as the first in terms of his positioning heading into the second lap.
At the front, Italy’s Federico Pellegrino, last year’s winner, set the tone alongside Taugbøl, with Jouve in a strong position on their tails.
Lapping through the finish, JC Schoonmaker stays in position with the leaders to advance into the final round. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Putting faith in his boards and catching a quick draft, Schoonmaker again dropped low coming down the last roller and into the final curve. Once again, he was following Jouve and in contact with the front of the pack, however, as they headed into the final lanes, he was only in position to take fifth in the heat, unable to advance into the final round.
Still a very strong overall result, Schoonmaker ended his day in 9th overall.
In a post-race interview, Schoonmaker discussed his decision to select heat one, along with his rollerski warm up, maintaining the headspace needed to perform between rounds, and what’s next for him over the next few weeks. A quick note, we had some trouble with WiFi connection, which interrupted some of Schoonmaker’s comments. The trials of remote reporting from eight time zones away.
Taugbøl took the win in the first semi, with Pellegrino narrowly staying ahead of Chanavat in second and third. Jouve was just 0.3 seconds behind his teammate, leaving the two Frenchman in wait to see whether they would advance as lucky losers.
A close finish for the top-four, JC Schoonmaker crosses in fifth in his semifinal heat. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Lead changes and tight racing developed the plot line of the second heat of the semis, which featured Northug and his teammate Sindre Bjørnestad Skar fighting for position at the front with two Russians, Gleb Retivykh and Alexander Terentev, who beat Klæbo in the opening sprint in Ruka and currently ranks just ahead of Schoonmaker in the U23 standings.
Each unable to break away at the front on the fast and flat tracks, Northug, Skar, and Retivykh came to the line in unison, throwing their boots for a three-way photo finish. Though their times were indistinguishable, it was determined that their finish order was just that: Northug, Skar, Retivykh, with Terentev a ski length behind in fourth. Men crashed in every direction crossing the line, falling to the ground and gasping for air to evidence the intensity of the effort.
Heading into the finish, the second semifinal was tight between two Russians and two Norwegians. (Photo: NordicFocus)
By the clock, Jouve and Terentev were on the wrong side of the cusp for lucky loser. They ended their day in the semis, while Retivykh and Chanavat advanced to the final.
More lead changes and thrill, Chanavat took the lead in the first lap of the final. Lapping over the finish line for the first time, Taugbøl moved to the front while Pellegrino lurked on their tails. Down the backstretch, the Italian moved up alongside Chanavat, skiing powerfully on Taugbøl’s tails as they safely rounded the first hairpin. Not looking to cede space, Taugbøl held himself in a position of command at the front.
Around the final curve, Pellegrino tried to sneak around the outside of Taugbøl, but could not quite gain enough ground to find the lead. Heading into the final straightaway, Pellegrino was attacking the track with a powerful V2, but it was still Taugbøl with the advantage at the front, crossing the line just 0.15 seconds ahead of the Italian.
Norway’s Håvard Solås Taugbøl takes his first World Cup victory ahead of Federico Pellegrino (ITA) and Lucas Chanavat (FRA). (Photo: NordicFocus)
In pursuit, France’s Lucas Chanavat crossed the line a ski length behind Pellegrino for the third step of the podium (+0.68), with Northug, Skar, and Retivykh crossing a few meters behind to close out the final round in fourth (+1.22), fifth (+2.01), and sixth (+6.15).
Today’s result marked Taugbøl’s fist career World Cup victory.
“It feels pretty good,” he told FIS humbly after the race. “It’s of course a goal I have tried to reach my whole life, and to do that in Dresden in a show sprint venue, it’s really fun and I’m proud of myself today.”
The men’s podium congratulates one another on their efforts in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)Sportsmanship and respect on display at the finish of the men’s sprint in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Taugbøl also spoke to his highly-respected opponents with whom he shared the podium.
“Of course to beat guys like Pellegrino and Chanavat, it’s a dream come true. If you try to count how many podiums and victories they have, I can’t count so far. So it’s amazing to be there with them.”
Norway’s Håvard Solås Taugbøl earned his first World Cup victory on the tracks in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Despite not adding another win to his resume, today’s result perhaps marks a turning point in the start of Pellegrino’s season. The Italian, who has been a force in skate sprints for many seasons now, had not raced in a final yet this season.
In an Olympic year that features a freestyle sprint, Pellegrino will be looking to find his peak form in February. The Italian was 11th in the event at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, and took second in the classic sprint, his weaker discipline, in PyeongChang in 2018, just behind Klæbo.
Italy’s Federico Pellegrino skis back into form in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Outside the top 30, Kevin Bolger, who was 6th in the individual sprint in Dresden last year, qualified in 42nd (+7.97). Bolger was roughly two seconds outside the top-30.
Following Bolger, Ben Ogden finished 51st in the qualifier (+9.37), with Luke Jager in 63rd (+10.73).
Ben Ogden races the qualifier with the spectacular skyline of Dreden in the background. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Racing for Canada, Russell Kennedy took 48th (+8.85) in qualification.
The weekend of city sprinting continues tomorrow with men’s and women’s team sprints.
This World Cup coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and the A Hall Mark of Excellence Award. To learn more about A Hall Mark of Excellence Award or to learn how you can support FasterSkier’s coverage please contact info@fasterskier.com.
For the fourth year in a row, the city of Dresden, Germany was ready to host an exciting city Freestyle sprint on a 1.3-kilometer course. A race that usually attracts fans from all over the world, for the second year in a row could not allow spectators on the course due to Covid. The last race before the holiday break, the skiers were ready to have fun, and enjoy the challenging and icy course.
Julia Kern (bib 10) takes the inside around a curve in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
“It is so amazing, it is one of my favorite races of the year. I love it, it’s fast and furious. it is going to be an exciting day of racing,” Julia Kern told FIS before the heats started. Kern’s family has roots in Germany, and she is often celebrated in Dresden as if she were a native.
On the women’s side, World Cup Sprint Leader, Maja Dahlqvist (SWE) was ready to continue her great start to the season. On a win-streak, has been on the top step of the podium in each of the last four individual sprint races, including the first three of this season. A fifth win would make Dahlqvist the second woman to win five consecutive individual sprint events in the World Cup, after Norwegian legend Marit Bjørgen, who won 11 in a row from December 2003 to January 2005.
Sweden’s Jonna Sundling set the mark in the qualifier, finishing the top spot in a time of 2:29.52. The American women placed four in the top-30 in qualification, with Hailey Swirbul leading the way in 7th(+2.39), followed by Kern in 10th (+3.49), Jessie Diggins in 17th (+4.87), and Hannah Halvorsen in 25th (+6.82).
The top American qualifier in Dresden, Hailey Swirbul races the quarterfinal. (Photo: NordicFocus)
In the first heat of the women’s sprint, Swirbul stayed in contact with the lead pack until the final 100 meters. In the final straightaway, Swirbul pushed to the line to cross fourth in her heat. Anamarija Lampic (SLO) and Kristine Stavås Skistad (NOR), who qualified in 6th and 9th, respectively, were the top two finishers in the heat.
In the second heat, Kern (USA) raced alongside Dahlqvist, who comfortably cruised through the heat to take the win ahead of Italy’s Greta Laurent. Kern solidly maintained her position within contact with the leaders throughout the two-lap course, but finished fifth in the heat, unable to advance.
Hannah Halvorsen advanced from the quarters to the semis in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
In the third heat, Hannah Halvorsen (USA) faced the top qualifier, Sundling, who won the classic sprint at last year’s World Championships in Oberstdorf, GER. Navigating through chaos, Halvorsen was able to stay on her feet after a crash between Nathalie von Siebenthal (SUI) and Magni Smeedas (NOR) leaving a group of three to fight for the top two spots. Sundling was able to cross the finish line comfortably in first, with a photo finish between Halvorsen and Jasmin Kahara (FIN) behind her. Halvorsen was able to outstretch Kahara in the bootslide, taking the second spot in her heat, and punching her ticket to the semi-final.
Diggins (USA) raced in the final quarter-final heat, staying with the main pack throughout the laps, pushing up from 5th to 3rd as they headed into the final stretch. Diggins finished third in the heat but was able to advance to the semi-finals as a lucky loser. Lena Quintin (FRA) and Moa Lundgren (SWE) were the two automatic qualifiers from this round.
Fast racing on icy tracks in Dresden makes staying upright and balanced an accomplishment of its own. (Photo: NordicFocus)
In the first semi-final, Sundling and Dahlqvist set a steady-pace with the pack staying together throughout both laps. Pulling to the front in the final 500 meters, Dahlqvist and Sundling cruised to the finish, crossing first and second, respectively. On their tails, Lampic and Skistad slid over the line in a photo finish, just 0.35 seconds behind Dahlqvist. Both these women advanced to the final as lucky losers.
The two Americans, Diggins, and Halvorsen both raced in the second semi-final heat, which featured the inevitable twists and turns of sprinting. At the lap, 23-year-old Lea Quintin of France, who had qualified in second, snapped her left pole, leaving her searching for a new one while the pack skied away.
Turning it up in the final stretch, Jessie Diggins and Hannah Halvorsen race the semifinal in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Meanwhile, Diggins and Halvorsen patiently waited near the back of the pack until the final straightaway where both made strong moves to contend for a spot in the final. Halvorsen powered from fifth place into a position to fight for second, but ended up just 0.27 seconds behind Eva Urevec of Slovenia who took the second automatic qualifier position. Diggins crossed a ski length behind Halvorsen, each less than a second behind Mathilde Myhrvold (NOR) who won the heat.
The final consisted of two Norwegians, two Swedes, and two Slovenian skiers fighting to claim the Dresden sprint title.
Dahlqvist follows Sundling on course in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Racing was tight and tactical, with all six women skiing together through the first loop. Dahlvquist and Sundling led the whole way, controlling the pace at the front. In the final 100m, Dahlvquist started to make her move, creating a small gap between herself and the field, to win in a time of 2:33:36. Sundling crossed just behind (+0.43) with Lampic closing fast for third (+0.64) to round out the top 3. Skistad ended her day in fourth (+1.64), with Myrhvold in fifth (+3.03) and Urevc in sixth (+6.15).
The women’s individual sprint podium in Dresden. Maja Dahlqvist (SWE) wins her fourth straight this season (of four), ahead of teammate Jonna Sundling and Anamarija Lamic (SLO). (Photo: NordicFocus)
The Americans put together an outstanding day overall with all four women finishing inside the World Cup points. After final rounds were decided, Halvorsen ended her day in seventh, a career-best result. Coming off a horrific accident in November, 2019, Halvorsen showed she is back on form in Dresden.
Introspective and progress-oriented, Halvorsen spoke to her day in Dresden, and how it helped her take a step forward with confidence in her ability to race into the semis and beyond.
After strong work in the semifinal, Hannah Halvorsen and Jessie Diggins end their days in 7th and 8th, respectively. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Diggins finished right behind Halvorsen in 8th place in the final rankings, while Swirbul ended her day in 16th and Kern ranked 22nd.
Two Canadian women raced the qualifier but did not advance into the rounds. Maya Macisaac-Jones led the Canadians in 52nd (+11.31), while Dahria Beatty finished 58th (+14.16).
The Americans and Canadians debrief the qualifier in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
With the win, Dahlvqist has taken over the overall World Cup lead from teammate – and roommate – Frida Karlsson (SWE). Diggins currently sits in 5th, behind teammate Rosie Brennan who ranks 4th. Now with a week off for Christmas, the teams will get some rest as they gear up for the Tour de Ski which starts on December 28th.
When asked about taking over the World Cup Lead from her teammate and best friend, Dahlvqist said in a FIS interview, “The most important thing is that it is still in our room”
Looking good in Period I, Maja Dahlqvist wins five in a row. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Nadine Faehndrich (SUI) celebrates her win as Sophie Caldwell Hamilton (USA) lunges for the line. Photo: Nordic Focus
This World Cup coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and their A Hall Mark of Excellence Award. To learn more about A Hall Mark of Excellence Award or to learn how you can support FasterSkier’s coverage please contact info@fasterskier.com.
Tight corners, flat laps, and fast skis, the Dresden city sprints are sure to provide some spice to the World Cup circuit. With sunshine and above-freezing temperatures you would be forgiven for thinking it was March instead of mid-December. The green grass lining the course could have fooled you too.
The previous six sprint events held in this city have all been won by the women’s sprinting powerhouse country, Sweden. With the Swedes, Norwegians, and Finns still absent from the World Cup, the title was open to a new nation’s winner. Nadine Fähndrich of Switzerland seized the opportunity as she won in a time of 2:38.52. Sophie Caldwell Hamilton of the U.S., notched her first podium of the season, coming in second and Anamaria Lampic of Slovenia finished third.
Today’s podium: Sophie Caldwell Hamilton (USA) finished second, Nadine Faehndrich (SUI) with her first victory, and Anamarija Lampic (SLO) in third, (l-r). Photo: Nordic Focus
Katerina Janatova of the Czech Republic won the qualifier with a time of 2:37.15. “I really like it here, I like the flat, I think it’s really fast,” said Janatova in a FIS interview before the heats, where she was eliminated in the semi-finals.
All four U.S. women made the top thirty in qualification, led by Jessie Diggins in 12th at 2:41.47. She was followed by Julia Kern in 13th, Caldwell Hamilton in 15th, and Hannah Halvorsen in 26th. Returning from a year of injury rehabilitation, Halvorsen continues to demonstrate the meaning of tenacity, earning her first World Cup points with a 23rd place finish after being bumped out in the quarterfinals. In an email, Halvorsen wrote, “I think a lot of racers can relate to the feeling that you can have a bunch of people tell you that you’re good enough, but sometimes it takes a result to believe that for yourself. Making the heats makes me feel like I belong here, and that is a pretty incredible feeling because I have wanted to be a World Cup skier since I was little.”
A career first “in the points” for Hannah Halvorsen – 2020 Dresden, Germany sprint. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Diggins, Caldwell Hamilton, and Kern all advanced to the semi-finals where Kern was eliminated in the second heat. Both Diggins and Caldwell Hamilton advanced to the finals.
Through to the finals after a tight squeeze in the finish lanes in her semi-final, Caldwell Hamilton lined up with teammate Diggins, accompanied on the start line by eventual winner Fähndrich (SUI), Anamarija Lampic (SLO), Laurien van der Graaff (SUI), and Lucia Scardoni (ITA).
Diggins tangled slightly with Scardoni (ITA) at the top of the first rise but escaped unscathed, only to avoid Lampic’s discarded broken pole on the ensuing descent. Caldwell Hamilton positioned herself well with a smooth corner into the second lap and slotted in behind Fähndrich (SUI). Despite a broken pole on the first lap, Lampic (SLO) made a strong recovery and pulled herself back into contention, dueling Caldwell Hamilton in a photo finish for second place which ultimately went to Caldwell Hamilton. Diggins followed in fourth (+2.60), with van der Graaff (+3.04) and Scardoni (+3.30) rounding out the top six.
Laurien Van Der Graaff (SUI), who finished 5th, congratulates teammate and winner, Nadine Faehndrich (SUI). Photo: Nordic Focus
Today was the first World Cup victory for Fähndrich (SUI), who races on Peltonen skis, not often seen in the World Cup lineup. After her race, she told FIS, “Yeah it means a lot, it’s amazing, I just concentrate on my work and not too much on what is after the finish line.” She placed fourth in last weekend’s skate sprint in Davos.
Sophie Caldwell Hamilton (USA) celebrates her podium finish. Photo: Nordic Focus
For Caldwell Hamilton, the second-place finish marked her first podium of the season and first individual podium since Davos last year where she finished third in the skate sprint. She finished just off the podium in fourth during the Dresden sprints last year. With today’s result, she moves into third place with 125 points in the overall sprint rankings behind Lampic (172 points) and Fähndrich (176 points) who has taken the top spot after her win today.
Post-race interview with Sophie Caldwell Hamilton:
Jessie Diggins during the 2020 Dresden skate sprints. (Photo: NordicFocus)
As for Diggins, today was her first time through to the sprint finals this season. “For me, the best part was that I really, truly had fun out there,” said Diggins, whose last sprint final appearance was in Oberstdorf Germany last year where she finished third. “Seeing Hannah make the heats for the first time brought such an adrenaline rush, seeing so many of our boys in the semi and then Sim and Kevin in the final, and of course Sophie skiing like a boss! I’m so proud of this team and the atmosphere we’ve created in our little bubble, and we’re really feeding off one another’s happiness. My own day was exciting as city sprinting isn’t exactly what I’m known for, but my body felt good and I’m just so pumped to team sprint here tomorrow!”
We are corrected in this episode: we try to be better Francophiles by improving our pronunciation of the weekend’s stand out performer on the men’s side, Lucas Chanavat. We also dig down and find the fun in Sunday’s team sprint in Dresden. With a whirlwind 0.7 k loop, and each skier racing six legs, it was basic sprinting fun. Thanks for listening.
Victory on the streets of Dresden. Linn Svahn (SWE) takes the win ahead of Anamarija Lampic (SLO) and Maja Dahlqvist (SWE). (Photo: NordicFocus)“Dream team ready for Dresden.” (Photo: Screenshot Instagram @sophiecaldwell)
With the Tour de Ski in the rearview mirror, athletes donned bibs for a city sprint weekend in Dresden, Germany. Like the other bookend in Planica the weekend before it began, athletes who focused on the Tour de Ski — mostly distance skiers and all-arounders — were not in attendance to focus on rest and recovery. This narrowed the field in Dresden to a sprint-focused lineup.
Under grey skies, skiers drag-raced on an icy ribbon of snow around two lap course along the Elbe River, navigating hairpin turns at each end and a few roller hills along the way. Past the Frauenkirche cathedral and Semper Opera building they soared, while fans cheered from green grassy slopes and stone steps.
Despite making her way up the Alpe Cermis six days prior and taking the win in both sprint stages of the Tour de Ski, Anamarija Lampic of Slovenia lined up in Dresden and posted the fastest time in the qualifier, 2:30.38. Lampic finished 19th overall in the Tour standings.
Sophie Caldwell and Julia Kern were the sole American women in the field. Caldwell was the top qualifier for the U.S. in 4th, with Kern in 15th. After taking 9th in the sprint in Lenzerheide and landing inside the top-30 in distance races, Caldwell withdrew from the Tour after the fourth stage in Toblach. Battling a cold, Kern withdrew after the skate sprint second stage, where she finished 14th.
Focus. Sophie Caldwell works her way through the rounds to a fourth place finish in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
In the first heat of the quarterfinals, Caldwell looked typically calm, cool, and collected. She held a position at the front throughout the race, her technique perfectly smooth and oozing power. Caldwell’s position was secure enough that she could lay off the gas before sliding across the line with Nadine Faehndrich of Switzerland.
Kern was not so lucky. Though she rounded the first hairpin on her own in the lead, skiers became bunched heading into the subsequent high-speed corners. At the apex of the second curve, Kern was pushed wide as Nina Dubotolkina of Russia caught a v-board and fell to her knees in the middle of the group. On the final turn, Kristine Stavås Skistad lost her footing and shot off the edge. Kern finished 4th in her heat, which was slowed by the crashes, and did not advance.
Julia Kern leads the way in the first lap of her quarterfinal in Dresden. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Racing for Canada, Dahria Beatty finished 29th overall and Maya Macisaac-Jones 37th. Beatty was also eliminated in the quarterfinals after finishing 6th in her heat. She has landed in the top-30 in each of the three freestyle sprints she has contested on the World Cup this year; she was 25th in Davos, and 16th in Planica.
Canada’s Dahria Beatty during the 2020 Dresden skate sprint qualifier. She placed 29th overall. (Photo: NordicFocus)
In the semi, Caldwell tucked into the middle of the pack, marking leaders Laurien Van der Graff of Switzerland, Linn Svahn of Sweden, and Lampic. Rounding the final curve safely, they laid on the accelerator, all four women in a tight group down the final straight, a fifth on their tails. Svahn threw her boot for the win, Caldwell crossed just behind in a three-way photo finish with Van der Graff and Lampic. The American was deemed third; as the top time in the next round was three seconds slower than hers, she advanced to the final without a hitch.
On the hunt in the final, Caldwell stayed wide on the turns, out of trouble in the event of a fall. Sweden’s Svahn and Maja Dahlqvist set the pace, but the group stayed tight.
The women charged down the final straight three abreast with Svahn at the front. In another photo finish, Lampic and Dahlqvist threw their boots for second and third, respectively, with Caldwell in the next lane for 4th. Linn Sömskar of Sweden took fifth as Van der Graff rounded out the final in sixth.
Linn Svahn takes the win in Dresden with second through fourth in a photo finish behind her. (Photo: NordicFocus)
“It is a difficult course, but I like it when it’s high speed and I like to do a strong finish, so I’m happy,” a smiling Svahn told FIS at the finish.
In response to questions about her tactics with her teammate Dahlqvist, Svahn responded that she was proud to share a spot in the top three.
“It’s so fun to have Maja beside me on the podium. She’s strong and had a really great season last season, then a little bit tougher this year, so I’m so happy to be beside her. Our plan was to just be in the lead the first lap, then I felt very strong, so I tried to push from the hill — if you can call it a hill.”
A newcomer to the World cup, this is Svahn’s second win. With an unforgettable blurt of surprise, she seized her first win in Davos in December.
The podium of the women’s 1.3-kilometer freestyle city sprint in Dresden, Germany. Linn Svahn (SWE) took the win ahead of Anamarija Lampic (SLO) and Maja Dahlqvist (SWE). (Photo: NordicFocus)
Caldwell improves upon a 5th place result in last year’s individual sprint in Dresden.
In a post-race call, Caldwell discussed her tactic to stay unscathed through the tricky corners and crashes of the course. She also explains how the deteriorating manmade conditions was familiar to her, her advice for selecting skis in these conditions, and the excitement of competing in a stacked field of women.
Sophie Caldwell of the U.S. placed fourth in the Dresden skate sprint. She is currently ranked fifth in the sprint overall. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Andy Newell (19) and Kevin Bolger (28) compete in the 2019 Dresden City Sprint World Cup (Photo: Dresden World Cup)
Dresden City Sprint World Cup – Torsten Püschel Interview
April 29, 2019
In the lead-up to the Minneapolis World Cup in March 2020, there are some parallels to the city sprint weekend in Dresden, Germany. Both are urban events relatively new to the World Cup circuit.
What are the motivations and goals behind hosting a World Cup? What does it take to get a new event on the calendar? What has the Dresden World Cup learned and how is the event changing after the first two years of their five-year contract?
Garrott Kussy spoke with Torsten Püschel, Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Dresden World Cup, to learn more about hosting a city sprint World Cup. Püschel grew up in Dresden as an elite athlete when the city was part of East Germany. He has spent the past 20 years working as a sports commentator for German television and radio, including the past six Olympic Games.
Launching a World Cup City Sprint: “Bring Skiing to the People”
Garrott Kuzzy: What was your inspiration for bringing a World Cup event to Dresden?
Torsten Püschel: First and foremost, because Dresden is my home. My co-founder (René Kindermann, also a German television sports commentator) and I are enthusiastic fans of our hometown. In 2014, the Mayor of Dresden, Helma Orosz, came to us and said: ‘Torsten & René, you both travel the world for sporting events. Do you have any ideas for promoting the city in the winter?’ Dresden is known for the Striezelmarkt, Germany’s oldest Christmas Market, in December. In the spring and summer, it is full of cyclists and travelers. But things were a little quiet in January.
Chief of Competition Georg Zipfel (L) and Co-Director Torsten Püschel talk about the event. (Photo: Dresden World Cup)
René and I were announcing at the World Cup in Lahti, Finland, where the nordic venue is within walking distance of the city. We thought, ‘Hey, how about we host a nordic World Cup in Dresden?’
We had conversations for over a year with all possible constituents before announcing our idea. We didn’t want anyone to feel left out. This was one of the keys to the success of the event.
The regional ski clubs loved the idea of bringing the World Cup to the people in the city, rather than bringing people to a more remote ski area in the Iron Mountains (Erzgebirge mountain range about 50 miles from Dresden, on the border with the Czech Republic). That also fits with the German Ski Federation’s mission to bring more winter sports to the cities.
Hannah Halvorsen competes in her first World Cup event (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy / LumiExperiences.com)
GK: Once you decided you wanted to host a World Cup, how did you make it happen? What were the challenges?
TP: There were three big challenges. First, we had to find a weekend that fit into the FIS calendar. Second, we had to get all of the permits from the city. There were over 10 different departments who had to sign off on our proposal. Finally, we had to achieve the FIS requirements like organizing accommodation, paying for athlete’s travel expenses and, of course, to build a venue in the city. It took over three years from having the idea in fall of 2014 to approval by FIS in May 2017, to actually hosting the event in January 2018.
GK: You mentioned that Dresden is known for its cycling. Rock climbers are also likely familiar with the famous sandstone Bastei rock formations. Cross country skiing is not as synonymous with the region. What are winters like in Dresden?
TP: Dresden itself is cold, but does not always have snow in the winter. Instead, people typically travel around 45 minutes into the surrounding Erzgebirge mountains to ski. Rather than make people travel to snow, our inspiration was to bring the World Cup to the people.
Aerial view of the race course in front of the State of Saxony’s Ministry of Culture building (Photo: Dresden World Cup)
Creating a Sustainable Event
GK: Has it been hard hosting a World Cup in a city without consistent snow? Are you taking into account environmental concerns?
TP: Creating an environmentally sustainable World Cup has actually been one of the most interesting parts of the project. From the beginning, we wanted to make sure the event was ‘green’–in the environmental sense at least. FIS actually has a Green Event Manual. We used the manual, along with the input from several local, environmentally focused non-profits, to make the event as sustainable as possible.
For example, it is actually better to host a city event than a rural event in the mountains because everything is so central. The athlete hotel is located right next to the course, so racers and coaches can walk to the venue. Tickets for spectators include public transportation.
FIS now requires that every World Cup venue has snowmaking, so every event is making snow–not just city sprints. We make our snow at the Dresden Airport with non-potable water collected from the roof of the airport. Snow guns make the snow inside an airport hanger, so no moisture is lost to wind or sun. The energy used to make the snow is 100% renewable; from hydro, solar and wind power.
Snowmaking container set up outside a hanger at the Dresden Airport (Photo: Dresden World Cup)
Indoor snowmaking means no moisture is lost to wind or sun (Photo: Dresden World Cup)
It takes about a month to make all the snow for the event, which we can even make in temperatures above freezing. Two days before the event, we transfer the snow from the airport to the venue. A short 650m snow loop has several advantages. First, it means we do not need to make much snow. Second, racers ski two laps, which is more exciting for spectators. On the team-sprint day, racers ski past the spectators 72 times–more than any other World Cup event.
The total carbon required for our snow production is about the same as one person in Dresden would use in two months of normal living.
A family heads out for an evening ski after the races (Photo: Dresden World Cup)
A Family Winter Weekend
GK: In Minneapolis, the race organizers are creating a four-day festival around the World Cup. How do you use the snow when World Cup racers aren’t racing?
TP: One of our goals is to help put Dresden on the world stage. The course runs along the banks of the Elbe River with the city skyline in the background. Of course, promoting the city and sport is a big part of our event.
As part of bringing skiing to the people, we leave the course set-up for 10 days. After the race weekend, we open the track to everyone. Elementary school kids come during the week to learn to ski. Tobias Angerer (Olympic Bronze Medalist and two-time World Cup Overall Champion) has connections to Dresden and spends the week teaching lessons. The German National Paralympic team teaches skiing to people with disabilities. A junior championship event brings over 450 kids for sprint races. We also host an event for the Special Olympics. The hill is used for sledding. The VIP hospitality ‘tent,’ which is actually a beautiful, temporary, two-story glass building, is perfect for companies to host team-building events, which is used for all 10 days as well.
Racers line up for the Team Sprint in front of the VIP hospitality building (Photo: Dresden World Cup)
Looking toward the future
GK: After two years, what have you learned? How will you evolve as you move forward?
TP: For the event, we will continue to add activities. For example, we will have a sponsor village next year, where people can sample Gruyère cheese, or try laser biathlon. We will also lower the ticket prices, aiming for cinema pricing–where spectators can access the event for the same price as a movie ticket. We really want this to become a family winter weekend.
Photo finish for second place in the women’s team sprint (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy / LumiExperiences.com)
GK: What is the athlete perspective of the event?
TP: Athletes have appreciated how firm and fast the course was; and how well the conditions held. That was very positive feedback. They also appreciate being able to walk, or run, from their hotel to the course.
Regarding the loop itself, the qualifying times were slower than FIS wants, so we are shortening the course by about 200m and making the whole venue more compact–which also improves spectating. We are reversing the direction of the course, putting the uphill at the beginning to try spreading out the field more. We are also adding more berms and bumps to make the course more challenging for athletes and exciting for spectators.
Men’s team sprint podium celebrates with champagne (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy / LumiExperiences.com)
GK: Why should someone travel to Dresden for the World Cup?
TP: There are several reasons. First, the event is quickly becoming a tradition in Dresden. The local community is excited to host the event. People are very friendly excited to host an international event and spectators. Second, everything is within walking distance. It’s special to be able to experience the World Cup during the day and the city of Dresden, including their restaurants and culture at night. Most importantly, the event is a lot of fun. There is an opportunity to interact with some of the best skiers in the world and watch them compete on one of the most iconic World Cup courses in front of the city skyline.
GK: Thank you, Torsten. Good luck as you prepare for the World Cup next winter.
Julia Kern (L) and Sophie Caldwell after finishing fourth place in the team sprint (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy / LumiExperiences.com)
About Garrott Kuzzy
Garrott competed in the 2010 Olympic Games and raced several years with the US Ski Team and the CXC Team. He is the founder of Lumi Experiences, specializing in cross-country ski vacations. Lumi Experiences is offering a trip “Dresden to the Dolomites” with VIP tickets to the Dresden World Cup and the opportunity to ski the Dolomitenlauf Worldloppet Ski Marathon in Austria.
Norwegian Sindre Bjørnestad Skar (c) after taking first in the men’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle race on Saturday. Russia’s Gleb Retivykh placed second, while Norway’s and Erik Valnes placed third. (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy /LumiExperiences.com)
The white ribbon of snow created a stark contrast to the green grass and gothic architecture along the bank of the River Elbe for the second year of city sprints in Dresden, Germany. As is typical in these events, the 1.6-kilometer out and back course was predominantly flat with a few short hill punches and a 180-degree hairpin turn at the halfway mark, where the race seemed to truly begin. The nature of the course challenged skiers as there was little opportunity for recovery, and as always, a small margin for error.
Last year in Dresden, Italy’s Frederico Pellegrino upset a seemingly unbeatable Johannes Høsflot Klæbo in the men’s sprint, going on to win back-to-back the next day in the team sprint as well. This Saturday, after he won the qualifier in a time of 3:21.12, the question quickly became whether or not Pellegrino would remain king of the track in Dresden.
Heading into his quarterfinal, Pellegrino appeared to employ the same patient tactics which paid off for him in 2018. The Italian skied calmly in the middle of the pack for the first half of the course, moving slowly ahead after the hairpin. Coming into the final hill just before the finishing lanes, Pellegrino surged to take the lead, stepping on the ski of Frenchman Baptiste Gros as he passed by. Holding onto the lead, Pellegrino crossed the quarterfinal in first ahead of Norway’s Pål Golberg in second.
Due to the hangup with Pellegrino, Gros staggered, losing momentum, but stayed on his feet heading down to the final stretch, crossing the quarterfinal in third. More excitement ensued as the two Russians in the heat, Alexander Terentev and Andrey Krasnov, caught their skis on the pine boughs that were used to line the course and mark out the lanes and crashed in the final meters before the line.
It was ruled that the hang up caused by Pellegrino was an obstruction, earning him a yellow card and relegating him to last in his heat. He finished the day in 30th position.
With Pellegrino out of the running and Klæbo sitting out the races in Dresden to recover from his overall win in the Tour de Ski, focus shifted toward Sindre Bjørnestad Skar and Erik Valnes of Norway, Lucas Chavanat, who took third in last year’s Dresden city sprint, Baptiste Gros, and Richard Jouve of France, and Gleb Retivykh of Russia, all of whom are ranked highly on the overall sprint World Cup standings.
In the first and fastest heat of the semifinals, Skar and Retivykh jockeyed for the lead throughout the race, Skar punching ahead on the final hill, but Retivykh bested him in the final meters with a time of 3:32.58, just 0.14 seconds ahead of the Norwegian. Both Jouve (+0.20) and Gros (+0.53) advanced as lucky losers. Everyone in the first heat skied a faster time than the skiers in the second wave. Advancing from the second semifinal was Valnes (3:37.72) and Chavanat (+0.15).
As the men faced off in the final, it was anyone’s game through the first half. Rounding a turn late in the race, Gros caught his ski on a V-board lining the course causing him to fall, taking Chavanat down with him. Left standing, Skar and Retivykh again dueled for position, eager to be first to the top of the final roller. Skar attacked at this seemingly pivotal spot, positioning himself just ahead of Retivykh. The Russian fought back, not willing to relinquish the victory until the very end when Skar threw his foot forward for the win with a time of 3:25.94.
Retivykh finished just 0.11 seconds behind, followed by Valnes (+2.83) in third. Jouve cruised through the finish in fourth (+11.22) followed by the two Frenchman, Chavanat in fifth (+21.94) and Gros in sixth (+23.93).
Skar is now ranked second in the overall World Cup sprint standings.
“It feels good to be the winner today,” Skar told the International Ski Federation (FIS). “It is my fourth final this year and I’ve been number four, and number five, and number six, so to be on the top now today, that’s a very good feeling.”
Despite the man-made snow and warm and wet weather leading into the race, the event coordinators were able to produce a solid and fast track for the athletes.
“Yesterday was unbelievably sugary and was 8 inches deep by the end of the testing period,” Matt Whitcomb told FasterSkier in a call. “Today they were able to take advantage of salting because it had gotten warmer and it had rained a little bit so that added moisture which allowed the salt to react with the snow an make for a very hard surface.”
“I think the conditions of the track were very good,” Skar told FIS. “But of course with the headwind up to the U-turn, it is hard to be in the front and it’s a lot of tactics, but that’s the same for everyone so you just have to go with it and try to be up there.”
Andy Newell placed 25th in Saturday’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint in Dresden, Germany, his first World Cup race since last season. (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy /LumiExperiences.com)
In his return to World Cup skiing after racing the domestic circuit, American Andy Newell qualified in 19th (+5.58) and ultimately ended the day in 25th. The second North American to finish in the top 30 on Saturday, Kevin Bolger (USST), qualified in 28th (+6.76) and finished in 29th overall.
Both Bolger and Newell raced in the third quarterfinal, along with Jouve, Norwegians Eirik Brandsdal and Gjøran Tefre and Russia’s Artem Maltsev. Jouve won the quarterfinal in a time of 3:28.24, while Newell crossed in fifth (+1.31), and Bolger sixth (+1.45). ending the day in 25th and 29th respectively.
Americans Andy Newell (l) and Kevin Bolger after their quarterfinal in the men’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint in Dresden, Germany. (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy /LumiExperiences.com)
“We had Simi Hamilton get sick on Thursday, which was disappointing because he’s been feeling great, qualifying really fast, ready for big results,” said Whitcomb. “But, we decided to bench him this weekend, so it was awesome to have Andy jump in as a replacement and qualify for the rounds with Kevin Bolger. Putting two guys in there, having only started four wasn’t too bad for us.”
“It feels good to be back,” Newell said during a phone conversation. “You know, your first World Cup of the year, you don’t know what to expect. I was hoping to do a little bit better than I did today. It’s always hard to jump on a plane and come over and race, but I think it was a good start.
American Kevin Bolger during the qualifier for the men’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint in Dresden, Germany, his first World Cup race since last season. (Photo: Garrott Kuzzy /LumiExperiences.com)
“I think we had good skis and I felt pretty good in qualification and I felt like I did what I needed to do to get to a good position,” Newell continued. “Then I think I maybe forgot how aggressive it is in the last 200-meters here compared to some other races. I remember last year I was taken by surprise by how much contact and how much jostling goes on up and over the last little bump and into the lanes. I think I was caught by surprise again this year. Even though I was in a great place with good energy, I just ended up getting ping-ponged around a little bit.
“On the World Cup here you can’t give anybody an inch,” he continued. “They’ll take advantage of that because the competition is so tight. So I think that’s kind of where I messed up today, but it’s good to check in and see how the speed is going and see what I need to work on if I am going to come back over and race later in the year.”
The final American in the race, Erik Bjornsen, finished in 33rd in the qualifying round (+7.43). Simi Hamilton did not start due to illness.
For Canada, Bob Thompson placed 32nd overall, Lenny Valjas 47th (+9.55).
The women’s freestyle sprint podium on Saturday at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany, with Sweden’s Hanna Falk (c) and Maja Dahlqvist (l) in first and second, and American Sophie Caldwell (r) in third. (Photo: Fischer/Nordic Focus)
In Sophie Caldwell’s quarterfinal heat of the World Cup skate sprint in Dresden, Germany, she led from start nearly to finish. In the final 200 meters she was passed by Sweden’s Hanna Falk, but won a photo finish for second place and advanced to the semifinals.
In that quarterfinal heat, the U.S. Ski Team member had finished just 0.24 seconds behind Sweden’s Falk.
As the racing got even tighter in the semifinals and final, it became more difficult to shoot off the starting line and into first place. Caldwell spent much of those heats boxed in the middle or even the back of her six-woman heats, partly on purpose, but advanced to the final as a “lucky loser” anyway.
American Sophie Caldwell (11) leads Sweden’s Hanna Falk (1), Germany’s Hanna Kolb (21), France’s Aurore Jean (27), and others during their 1.2 k freestyle sprint quarterfinal on Saturday at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
“Sophie really executed the way she wanted to all day,” U.S. Ski Team Head Coach Chris Grover said. “She was in control of her quarterfinal, and then when she got to the semifinal, she purposely wanted to relax a little bit… same thing in the final. She was not going to, like, burn a match early. She was going to relax, be in the draft, save a little bit of energy early, and look to make a move.”
By the end of the final, despite skiing from the back instead of the front, Caldwell’s margin to Falk was almost the same as it had been in the quarterfinal, this time 0.30 seconds.
Falk took the win while Caldwell finished third, earning her second podium of the year.
“It was pretty frantic, and in the final I didn’t have a great start,” Caldwell said. “I found myself in the back and it’s easy to waste a lot of energy being in the back and trying to move up, so I tried to be patient and pick people off when I could. But you also kind of have to capitalize on those opportunities when they come, so I just tried to be patient and pick people off. There was a fall that I dodged, which worked to my advantage, and so I am really happy with it.”
The crash belonged to Sweden’s Stina Nilsson, the favorite to win the final even though Falk had the fastest qualifying time. Near the end of the race loop Nilsson tripped and went down, with Caldwell and Switzerland’s Laurien van der Graaf splitting to go around her, one of each side.
“The crash happened right in front of me,” Caldwell said in a U.S. Ski & Snowboard press release. “But I managed to avoid it and then put in a big push to maintain contact with the leaders.”
That liberated Caldwell from the back of the field, although she still had work to do to get near the front. From the beginning of the heat, Falk, Nilsson, and Swedish teammates Anna Dyvik and Maja Dahlqvist had controlled the pace.
Sweden’s Hanna Falk (1) edges her teammate Maja Dahlqvist (l) and American Sophie Caldwell (r) in the women’s 1.2 k freestyle sprint final on Saturday at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. (Screenshot: ZDF broadcast)
As the meters ticked down to the finish, Caldwell finally was able inch towards the lead.
“Where she ended up making that move, under the bridge, was a targeted strategy of hers,” Grover said.
Coming into the finish, everyone except Nilsson was still in it, and the five women all crossed the line within 0.68 seconds of one another. Falk, though, managed to stay clear of the pack and take her first win since 2010.
“I think I was a little unfocused in the start in the semifinal, so in the final I really tried to focus on the start,” she said in a finish-line interview with FIS’s Jeff Ellis. “Then I took the front, and it was just to push hard… I really like this kind of city sprint. It was a good day for me. I have all my family and fans from Ulricehamn here cheering for me here, so it was a good day.”
Dahlqvist claimed second (0.23), van der Graaf fourth (+0.58), and Dyvik fifth.
Sophie Caldwell’s last podium came just two weeks ago, where she finished second in the 1.5 k sprint in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
While pursuing a completely different strategy from Falk in the final, Caldwell proved that there are many ways to the right position, as long as you play your cards right.
“I am really psyched to be here,” Caldwell said. “ I’ve never had great results in Period 1 in the past, so I was really happy to have made the semifinals in all three of the sprints. I considered it a really strong start, but I was left wanting more.”
She is following up a second-place finish in the skate sprint in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, which kicked off the Tour de Ski. But Caldwell fell ill partway through the Tour, and didn’t start the (later-canceled) classic sprint in Oberstdorf, Germany.
“I woke up sick the morning of the sprint in Oberstdorf, so I was sick for a week,” she explained. “I am actually still clearing things out, but energy-wise I felt good the past few days. Today was going kind of be a test to see how I felt, and I guess I was well rested. It felt good.”
She is now third in the Sprint Cup behind Nilsson and Norway’s Maiken Caspersen Falla, who did not race in Dresden.
Sweden’s Stina Nilsson (2) winning the second semifinal just ahead of her teammates Hanna Falk (1) and Maja Dahlqvist (not shown) and American Sophie Caldwell (not shown). Dahlqvist placed second, Caldwell third and Falk fourth in that heat. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
City sprints aren’t so unusual; they have been held in Drammen, Norway, for many years straight, with other venues like Stockholm, Dusseldorf, Milan, and Quebec City coming and going from the schedule.
But even for a city sprint, this course was particularly flat, short, and fast, which played to some athletes’ strengths and left others just trying to do their best to get by.
“It was a really funny course a lot different than anything we have ever done — by far the shortest I have ever done and flattest,” Caldwell said.
Her American teammate Ida Sargent qualified in 14th position, a new experience on such a course.
“It’s a weird course,” she said. “It’s fast and flat. Not at all my favorite kind of sprint race. I just went into it looking at it as a challenge and an opportunity to improve on some of the things that are not really my strengths. So I’m pretty psyched with the qualifier to be right up there, on a course where I feel like a year or two ago I definitely wouldn’t have qualified on. That was exciting.”
Like Caldwell, Sargent led out her quarterfinal heat. And like Caldwell, she got swept up at the end of it, with her competitors using a small uphill and a subsequent downhill to shoot into the finishing straights. She couldn’t hang on to the top two and finished fourth in the heat, 0.43 seconds behind Sweden’s Ida Ingemarsdotter.
That put her 17th on the day.
“Coming into the finish, it was pretty fast and I wasn’t quite ready for that,” she said. “I should have switched to V2 sooner, and I felt like it was all over the place. So I’m kind of kicking myself.”
“Ida had a great start, took control, skiing how she wanted to ski, just ran out of gas at the end,” Grover said. “And I think it was a course where there’s no rest, it’s continuous effort – if V2’ing hard, V2 alternate-ing hard, if that isn’t your deal, then you could run out of gas at the end.”
Both Sargent and Caldwell thought it was important to start well on this course, even though in the semifinal and final Caldwell managed to succeed without ever leading.
“It’s really narrow and hard to pass,” Caldwell said. “It was pretty easy to sense when people were coming up, so I think people were guarding their space. That made it even harder to pass. When I was leading my quarterfinal I got to do some of that, and then when I wasn’t leading it was frustrating sometimes — you would see people bouncing around out there trying to make moves.”
“There’s room to move up, but it’s definitely big decisive moves,” Sargent agreed. “I just got out fast [in the quarterfinal] and tried to stay in my rhythm at the beginning. I could feel the others coming up and I would just try to increase the pace whenever I could feel someone coming up so I could keep control.”
Kikkan Randall (U.S. Ski Team) racing to 34th in the 1.2 k freestyle sprint qualifier on Saturday at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
Also starting for the U.S., Kikkan Randall narrowly missed qualifying for the quarterfinals in 34th, 6.57 seconds behind Falk’s time and 0.6 seconds behind 30th-place Giulia Stuerz of Italy.
Randall, Caldwell, and Sargent are now looking forward to the Olympic Games, which begin in less than a month. Sargent sealed her qualification with that 17th-place finish, as she is now ranked 13th in the Sprint Cup, well within the top-50 designation required by the U.S. Ski Team.
“I am looking forward to the Olympics,” Caldwell said in a post-race press conference. “It has been a strong year for me, and especially for my whole team. We are going to compete as a team to win the first medal for the U.S. women in Olympics, and I am proud to be on the team.”
Julia Kern (U.S. Ski Team/Stratton Mountain School) racing to 38th in the women’s 1.2 k freestyle sprint qualifier at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
Julia Kern finished 38th (+7.78) and Caitlin Patterson 40th (+8.56).
“We had an uncharacteristically poor qualification,” Grover said. “I have a feeling it was a combination of things… Just over two minutes for women and men a minute fifty, I think that might have been a little bit of a shock to the system. I couldn’t tell if our group was a little flat, or [this race is] just so uncharacteristic, something that we don’t really prepare for because it’s that much more on the anaerobic side instead of a mix of aerobic and anaerobic like we’re used to for a sprint.
“Anyway, to have Erik Bjornsen just miss the qualification, to have Kikkan just miss the qualification, to have the four athletes who did go in not have the best qualifications, something was a little bit missing,” he concluded.
In Sunday’s team sprint, Sargent and Caldwell will team up, with Randall and Patterson forming the second U.S. team in a field of 20 entries.
Caitlin Patterson (Craftsbury Green Racing Project) racing to 40th in the women’s freestyle sprint qualifier at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
Italy’s Federico Pellegrino (5) getting a ski tip ahead of Norway’s Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (l) for the men’s freestyle sprint final win on Saturday at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. France’s Lucas Chanavat (1) placed third for the second-straight World Cup sprint, another Frenchman Richard Jouve (second from r) placed fourth, Sweden’s Emil Jönsson (second from l) was fifth, and Norway’s Even Northug (behind) took sixth after breaking a pole out of the start. (Photo: Fischer/Nordic Focus)
How do you beat Norway’s Johannes Høsflot Klæbo at his competition-crushing game? Take him by surprise with minimal time to recover. Italy’s Federico Pellegrino did just that on the last uphill rise of the 1.2-kilometer sprint course on Saturday in Dresden, Germany.
Dresden, a historic city in eastern Germany, debuted its brand-new course along the Elbe River on manmade snow amid damp conditions and temperatures above freezing throughout the day. Pellegrino had done what he needed to advance through the rounds, clocking the first-fastest time in the qualifier, 2.9 seconds behind France’s Lucas Chanavat in first, then placing second in his quarterfinal and third in the first semifinal. Klæbo won that semi by 0.16 seconds over Chanavat in second and 0.3 seconds ahead of Pellegrino in third. With a fast-enough time, Pellegrino moved on to the final, where he met the 21-year-old Klæbo again.
“I knew that at the beginning of the race, I’m becoming a little bit old so the younger Klæbo and Chanavat were faster than me,” Pellegrino, 27, said of the final in a post-race interview with the International Ski Federation (FIS). “So I just had to wait, but I wanted to attack in the longer race to the finish line.”
The race from his point of attack might have seemed like an eternity, but in actuality, it was about 500 meters before the finish. Klæbo and Chanavat had burst out of the start at lightning speed, skiing “shoulder to shoulder,” as Chanavat later said in a press conference, and slightly gapping the four skiers behind them — one of which was Pellegrino.
While Klæbo pushed the pace up front, Pellegrino kept the two leaders close, skiing just a couple strides back. France’s second man in the final, Richard Jouve slotted into fourth behind him and Sweden’s Emil Jönsson — in his first final in a year — followed in fifth. Behind them, Norway’s Even Northug (Petter Northug’s 22-year-old brother) worked to fasten a new pole after breaking his on the starting gate. That took him out of the race from the gun.
Chanavat attempted to get ahead of Klæbo on a tight righthand corner, but Klæbo held the inside line and his position. Coming out of that corner, Pellegrino latched on to Chanavat and brought the rest of the group with him. Shadowing the two leaders’ every move, Pellegrino accelerated just before the final rise, taking just three V2 pushes to get to the top.
Norway’s Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (l) and Italy’s Federico Pellegrino (second from l) jockey for position just before the finish of the men’s freestyle sprint final at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany, while France’s Lucas Chanavat (1) and Richard Jouve chase, followed by Sweden’s Emil Jönsson (14). (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
Even with Klæbo, the Italian took another push to move ahead and left Klæbo chasing. With about 75 meters to go, they began their all-out showdown to the finish, side by side, with Pellegrino staying just ahead to cross the line first in 1:52.77 minutes. Klæbo was just 0.18 seconds back in second and Chanavat 0.98 seconds behind in third.
“When I will have grandchildren this will be the story I am going to tell them, that I beat Johannes,” Pellegrino said, according to a FIS press release.
It was his first World Cup victory in nearly a year since winning a freestyle sprint in Falun, Sweden, late last January, and his 10th career individual World Cup win.
“Klæbo is a really good guy because if he wanted to he could stop me,” Pellegrino told FIS. “… He tried to stay stay quiet to let me go … he’s really good to continue to win.”
In the four sprints Klæbo’s contested this season, Saturday marked his first loss (he did not compete in the Tour de Ski, opting for a training block instead and racing at Norwegian nationals in Vang, Norway, where he won the classic sprint).
“It was a tough one,” Klæbo said of Saturday’s final. “Me and Chanavat was trying to go pretty hard from the start of the final, and I think both of us went a little bit too hard. … I’m satisfied with second place here but I have to do something else to beat him next time.”
Two seasons ago, Pellegrino was the overall Sprint World Cup champion. Last season, it was Klæbo as both the U23 and Sprint World Cup Champion.
The men’s freestyle sprint podium on Saturday at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany, with Italy’s Federico Pellegrino (c) in first, Norway’s Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (l) in second, and France’s Lucas Chanavat (r) in third. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
“I always try to do my best; if the best means the victory it’s great,” Pellegrino said, according to FIS. “It was a really good show. I prefer courses with more hills. Yesterday I changed the way I was thinking about the race.”
“He was clever,” Klæbo said in an interview with NRK. “He skied like this in the semi and quarterfinal. Our strategies differed slightly.”
While Pellegrino kept himself in contention in the heats by skiing from behind, Klæbo did as he usually does, by leading with a pace few, if anyone else, could match. Klæbo qualified second, 0.15 seconds off Chanavat’s top qualifying time of 1:50.42, then won his quarterfinal by a clear-cut margin of 0.6 seconds over Switzerland’s Roman Schaad. Chanavat won his quarterfinal by 0.12 seconds over Pellegrino, then hung with Klæbo once again in the semifinal.
At the last World Cup sprint in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, the first stage of the Tour de Ski, Chanavat placed third in the skate sprint.
“I did my best and I competed to try to get the victory today, but I was a lot focused on Johannes,” Chanavat, 23, said at the press conference. “So I was surprised when Pellegrino came pretty strong on the side in the race.”
He added that the gap between him and Klæbo is getting closer. “So I’ll try to keep it shorter,” Chanavat said.
Jouve finished 0.25 seconds off the podium in fourth, 0.98 seconds behind Pellegrino, Jönsson finished fifth (+2.36), and Northug sixth (+12.04).
Hamilton 10th, Locke 15th
American Simi Hamilton made it to the semifinals and finished the day in 10th overall after placing fifth in the second semi, 0.38 seconds behind Jönsson in first. That heat ended in a three-way photo finish for first, which Jönsson took ahead of Northug (+0.01) and Jouve (+0.04). Those three men advanced to the final, but Hamilton and Norway’s fourth-place finisher in that semifinal, Pål Trøan Aune (+0.23) did not.
American Simi Hamilton (front) leads Germany’s Sebastian Eisenlauer during their quarterfinal of the men’s 1.2 k freestyle sprint at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
Before that, Hamilton had qualified in 15th and finished second to Norway’s Fredrik Riseth in his quarterfinal.
“It was a really cool venue, great course,” Hamilton told FasterSkier in person after the race. “But it was really tight the whole way around so it was hard. My starts aren’t that good right now and so my quarter, I was basically trying to start as fast as I could and I still was second or third out of the blocks, so I wasn’t feeling super confident after that.”
Going into the semifinals, he decided not to worry about his start and concentrate on moving up later in the course.
“What ended up happening around that corner, I just couldn’t get around anyone,” Hamilton recalled. “Every time you get an opportunity to make a move, it gets shut down almost immediately, so that was really frustrating, but I was happy with how my body is feeling right now, and it’s fun to get into the heats.
“I am always way more comfortable skiing towards the back of the pack and then making a definite move somewhere on the course, so unfortunately for me like this course doesn’t favor doing that too well,” he continued. “You can’t afford to ski at the back and then pass four five people, not enough room or time.”
He added that he enjoyed how different the Dresden course was in comparison to other, much hillier World Cup terrain.
“I think the only super-short flat course we race like this was in Milan [Italy] years ago, so its fun just doing something different,” he said. “The crowd is awesome here.”
U.S. Ski Team Head Coach Chris Grover observed that Hamilton was at a disadvantage trying to move up from behind on Dresden’s course.
“He made it work in the quarterfinal,” Grover told FasterSkier. “He’s so good when he gets that opening to go. I think we saw in the semifinal that he would be starting to go and then get blocked. And again after the corner, started to go, and got blocked. And under the bridge, started to go, and then got blocked. It’s nobody’s fault, nobody obstructed him or anything like that, it’s just not a course with many passing options. The guys are so well-matched, in a semifinal or final it becomes that much harder. So he’s a little bit frustrated, but I think he’s in good shape.”
Andy Newell (U.S. Ski Team) racing to 18th in the men’s freestyle sprint qualifier at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. He went on to finish sixth in his quarterfinal for 27th overall. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
Two Americans qualified for the heats in the top 30, with Andy Newell finishing 18th in that preliminary round, but Grover noted the U.S. team’s qualifiers overall were “uncharacteristically poor”.
“To have Erik Bjornsen just miss the qualification, to have Kikkan [Randall] just miss the qualification, to have the four athletes who did go in not have the best qualifications, something was a little bit missing,” he said.
(Bjornsen placed 32nd and Randall 34th in their respective men’s and women’s qualifiers. Bjornsen was 0.23 seconds out of 30th.)
Newell’s run ended in the quarterfinal, after he initially took the lead, ahead of Canada’s Julien Locke, but slipped to sixth on the second half of the course.
“Andy didn’t have the best start, but he got himself to first and he was able to take the best line,” Grover reflected.
He wasn’t sure why Newell then dropped to the back of the group, and Newell wrote in an email that he wasn’t sure what happened, either.
“Felt like I was able to accelerate to the front well but then managed to get swarmed before the last little bump and then it was extremely tough to pass before the finish,” Newell wrote. “I should know better than to let myself get stuck in the middle… on narrow tracks like this if you get stuck in the middle with guys on either side you can’t get a full push and thats how you get swarmed, bad tactics on my part.”
“Tomorrow should be fun, fast, and wild,” he added of Sunday’s freestyle team sprint. “Hopefully I’ll be able to be more aggressive tomorrow 🙂 Looking forward to it.”
Julien Locke (Canadian U25 Team/Black Jack) racing to 16th in the men’s freestyle sprint qualifier at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. He went on to place third in his quarterfinal for 15th overall, his best World Cup result. (Photo: Cross Country Canada/NordicFocus)
He finished his quarterfinal in sixth, 1.54 seconds behind Northug in first, for 27th overall. Meanwhile Locke hung with Northug and Jouve up front and finished third, 0.62 seconds out of first and just 0.18 seconds out of second.
While second place in that heat would have put him in the semifinals, 15th overall was still a career best for Locke, of the Canadian U25 Team and Black Jack Ski Club. Last March at World Cup Finals in Quebec, he placed 20th in the freestyle sprint. And just over a week ago at the NorAm Olympic trials in Mont Sainte-Anne (MSA), Quebec, Locke, 24, won the classic sprint final, but missed out on a potential Olympic spot by one place after qualifying second (the tiebreaker) behind Russell Kennedy (Team R.A.D.).
The individual top 30 was the second of Locke’s career. Fresh off of competing in Canada, he arrived in Dresden a day and a half ago.
“… A little bit of a tight schedule, but body feels great, and super-fun course out there with all these spectators,” Locke told FasterSkier after. “And yeah, short, very short. It was close to 1.1 [kilometers] and definitely the shortest sprint race I have ever done.”
“I was prepared to hit it hard here and I was hoping for sure to get into the heats and then get into the rounds,” he added. “I don’t like getting knocked out, but I am content with how today went.”
Bob Thompson (NTDC Thunder Bay) racing to 50th in the men’s freestyle sprint qualifier at the World Cup in Dresden, Germany. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
Three other Canadian men met the Cross Country Canada (CCC) selection criteria for Dresden, where Bob Thompson (NTDC Thunder Bay) finished 50th in the qualifier (+8.67), Dominique Moncion-Groulx (Alberta World Cup Academy) 59th (+9.99) and Antoine Briand (Pierre-Harvey National Training Centre) 60th (+10.12).
(Note: CCC High Performance Director Thomas Holland explained in an email that Briand was added as the fourth man, based on the U23 selection list, after Kennedy had to relinquish his starts in Dresden due to illness.)
For the U.S., Period 2 SuperTour leader Ben Lustgarten (Craftsbury Green Racing Project) finished 49th (+8.64) out of 67 men.
“I thought I skied well — usually this stuff is my weakness,” Lustgarten said after. “It’s like icy and slushy so usually when it’s like that skate skiing, I get off balance, but I was like trying really hard to stay focused and ski big. I only got bogged down a little bit on the big hill, but … I was only nine seconds out of first, so I think that is really good. I am really happy with that.”
The U.S. and Canada each have two teams entered for Sunday’s freestyle team sprint on the same course in Dresden, with Bjornsen and Hamilton (United States I), Newell and Lustgarten (U.S. II), Thompson and Locke (Canada I), and Briand and Moncoin-Groulx (Canada II).
“It’s going to be wild out there,” Lustgarten said. “[The Dresden organizers] pulled it off; they had to shorten the course a little bit because they didn’t have enough snow … but it was good. It’s the shortest sprint I have ever done in my life by far.”
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