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Tag: Dusseldorf World Cup

  • Notes and Quotes from Dusseldorf and Seefeld

    Notes and Quotes from Dusseldorf and Seefeld

    The course in Dusseldorf, Germany, during Sunday's team sprint. Photo credit Fischer/NordicFocus

    While there was plenty of excitement last weekend at the World Cup sprints in Dusseldorf, Germany, not every international competitor was there. A few Americans stayed closer to Davos, Switzerland, where they have been focusing on distance training. On Sunday, U.S. Ski Team members Liz Stephen, Noah Hoffman, Kris Freeman and Tad Elliott tested themselves in an FIS race in Seefeld, Austria. Stephen won the women’s 5 k freestyle, and Hoffman was third in the men’s 10 k skate.

    Here are a few bits and pieces of what didn’t make it in the race recaps:

    The team sprint final, as seen in from front left-right: Lucia Anger (GER) and Kikkan Randall (USA). Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus

    On celebrating the U.S. women’s success (first with Kikkan Randall’s freestyle sprint victory on Saturday, then with Randall and Sadie Bjornsen placing a historic second in the team sprint Sunday) in Dusseldorf:

    “We left the hotel early (Saturday in Davos) so that we could get to Seefeld in time to see the sprint rounds. Watching Kikkan win was incredibly exciting. (Sunday) was great because our race (in Seefeld) was early in the morning. We were done in plenty of time to clean up, have lunch, and watch the team sprint final. It made for a great drive back to Davos watching Sadie and Kikkan be so successful!” — Noah Hoffman

    “The team just all arrived together again (in Davos), so that is awesome. It was certainly tough not to be able to celebrate with Kikkan and Sadie after such amazing performances, but it is how it goes some times, and it brings so much energy back to the team on their return. Momentum is an amazing thing, so we will just try to keep it going!” — Liz Stephen

    Canadian Chandra Crawford in Sunday's team sprint in Dusseldorf, Germany. Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus

    On the Canadians’ success in the team sprint in Dusseldorf, with Lenny Valjas and Drew Goldsack placing fifth and Chandra Crawford and Perianne Jones placing seventh:

    “Drew and I are so happy with this result! Drew skied amazing all day and fought really hard to keep us in contention. I had so much fun skiing today! Our team is really happy to have all these great results, but we are ready to step it up and start getting on the podium.” — Valjas

    “I think today’s result is a great sign of how much the level has come up on both the men’s and the women’s side!” — Goldsack

    On preparing for the final in the team sprint:

    “It’s so intense during the racing that they key is to try and relax.” — Goldsack

    On the jam-packed team sprint on Dusseldorf’s narrow course:

    “It’s pretty hectic, but not that foreign. It was like skiing in a sprint race. It was all about holding your ground Some of the big guys made me realize that.” — Skyler Davis (U.S.A.), on the semifinal, in which he and teammate Andy Newell failed to advance.

    “I was so happy to be racing in a team sprint. I absolutely love team sprints, and (Sunday) I simply went out there and raced as hard as I could. Our team coaches picked the teams and the team order, and it was great to be anchoring for Canada 2.” — Dasha Gaiazova, who teamed up with Alysson Marshall in the team sprint for Canada, but did not advance to the final.

    “I felt good in the race and it went super-smooth for Alysson and I in all our exchanges and on the race course.”

    Davis, on starting  his season with World Cup sprints:

    “The first lap was good … on the second lap I felt bad. Then on the last lap, it felt like the middle of a 20 k. It was pretty hard. … It’s just (my) second race of the year. It’s hard to judge fitness. I need more of these though.”

    On this being the last time World Cup races are held in Dusseldorf until at least 2013:

    “If it’s up to us, the 11th FIS Cross-Country Ski World Cup will take place in Dusseldorf in two years’ time. Everything is perfect here. It’s as simple as that. I assume that we will be here again in two years.” — German national coach Jochen Behle told FIS Ski.

    “It is a pity that we won’t be here next year. The organization is excellent, the track is always well-prepared, and the atmosphere around the event is super. I am hoping that we will be back in two years.” — Hanna Kolb (GER), 11th in individual sprint, 10th in team sprint.

    “I want to say thanks to Dusseldorf and the audience, they are great. It was again a fantastic event and I am pleased to be here and show a strong performance.” — Alexey Petukhov (RUS), second in both the freestyle sprint and the team sprint. “I love this city sprint event. … It’s incredible how many enthusiastic fans cheer us on along the course.”

    On the small U.S. contingency that went to Seefeld:

    (Note: Liz Stephen, Kris Freeman, Noah Hoffman, Tad Elliott and coach Bryan Fish drove from Davos to Seefeld on Saturday and returned by Sunday afternoon.)

    “It was really fun to check out Seefeld. … Seeing new places with a small group is even more enjoyable, as there are far fewer logistics and craziness going on.” — Stephen

    Stephen, on winning the Seefeld 5 k by 18 seconds:

    “The race was really fun. It was nice to get a low-key race in on an off weekend. … I have put a couple of pretty big weeks along with racing and an altitude adjustment this week, so I felt about about on par with what I would have expected. I had some tired legs, but energy was pretty good up until my bonk with 200 meters to go, but in an 5 k that’s an OK place to hit the wall.”

    On racing a 5 k:

    “My goal was to go get a hard effort in and treat it like a relay leg. 5 k races, to me, are relay races, as it is rare to have a standalone 5 k event, except in a mini tour or relay, and it is easy to get fired up for a relay for me. … I went out hard and tried to hang on. … There is not enough time to be conservative or safe.” — Stephen

    On skiing in Seefeld:

    “The skiing in Seefeld was the best terrain with the longest loop that we have had this year. … Seefeld had 2.5k of rolling terrain and it was beautiful! The Youth Olympic (Games) Nordic events will be held there in January, and those guys should be stoked for sure.” — Stephen

    On training and gearing up for races in Davos:

    “I am excited for Davos, and we just got some snow (Sunday) night, so hopefully it will keep falling this week and we can ski the full 5 k loop so that they can run the full 15 k race, which is on the (World Cup) schedule (Dec 10). I am very excited for a 15 k skate! They are some of my favorite races.” — Stephen

    “We are in Davos rocking a one k loop. It gets old but it’s skiing.” — Elliott

    “I am looking forward to racing in Davos and Rogla (Slovenia) before Christmas. Unfortunately this winter is very heavy on skate sprints, and I am naturally better in classic-style. My next World Cup classic sprint opportunity is 1.5 months away, but every sprint — skate or classic is equally important for me this year.” — Gaiazova

  • Dusseldorf City Sprint Preview – Get Yer Popcorn Ready!

    Dusseldorf City Sprint Preview – Get Yer Popcorn Ready!

    Since 2002, the city sprint in Dusseldorf, Germany, has become a fixture on the International Ski Federation’s (FIS’s) World Cup calendar. One of three regular city sprints on the circuit, Dusseldorf features a flat, extremely fast, and almost dangerously narrow and twisty sprint course.

    Over the last eight seasons, the German city has become renown for carnage and upsets, almost as much as for cross-country skiing in a unique location and with a great crowd atmosphere.

    Racers in the 2009 edition of the Dusseldorf World Cup. Photo courtesy of World Cup Dusseldorf.

    Every year, 3,000 cubic meters of artificial snow are trucked in from a nearby indoor ski slope, and the German organizers cover the boardwalk along the Rhine River and pack in thousands of fans. Dusseldorf is often a bit of a spectacle, as according to FIS, over 350,000 fans packed into the city to catch the World Cup in 2008. And speaking of spectacles, the 2006 edition of the race featured the little incident in which Oeystein “Sausage” Pettersen (NOR) earned his nickname.

    Dusseldorf is notable for the lack of high-powered distance and all-around World Cup skiers. Top overall contenders like Lukas Bauer (CZE), Marcus Hellner (SWE), and Petter Northug (NOR) will be absent on the men’s side, and Marit Bjoergen (NOR) and Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) will also take the weekend off. This typically results in a few surprises – last season, Sweden’s 20-year-old Hanna Falk came out of nowhere to stand on the top of the women’s podium.

    Dusseldorf is also home to a few consistently impressive city sprinters. Germany’s Josef Wenzl is a bit of a one-trick pony on the World Cup, as he skis amazingly in Dusseldorf, but struggles in most other locales. While last season he faltered, failing to make the heats, Wenzl has been in the A-Final in Dusseldorf three times, including two podium finishes in his four starts. He might not win, but it’s tough to count out a fast sprinter with that track record on home turf, especially when German Head Coach Jochen Behle backs him.

    The Norwegian Sprintgutta has traditionally been a strong presence as well, and this year is no different. Of the eight men sent to Dusseldorf by Norway, six have stood on the podium there before. Anders Gloersen and Eirik Brandsdal finished second and third, respectively, last season. The stacked Russian sprint team will also make an appearance – Alexei Petukhov won in Dusseldorf last year, while Nikita Kriukov and Alexander Panzhinskiy, the top two finishers in the sprint at the 2010 Olympics, are both on the start list.

    As for the North American contingent, Kikkan Randall is the only American woman racing, and she has skied well at the city venue in the past. According to U.S. Ski Team (USST) Head Coach Chris Grover, Randall has some unfinished business on the boardwalk.

    “Last year in Dusseldorf, she got tangled up and fell down in her quarterfinal right after the start,” Grover said, “She never had a chance to demonstrate her ability.”

    The two-woman Canadian sprint squad is undeniably led by Chandra Crawford (CAN). Crawford considers the Dusseldorf sprint a bit of a specialty, and she has made the heats in all of her starts there. She has been targeting the upcoming weekend all year for her first big performance.

    Last season, Crawford finished 12th at the venue, punching her ticket to the Olympic Games. According to her blog, this season she looks to crack the top 20, which would cement her spot on the World Ski Championships team.

    Dasha Gaiazova, Crawford’s counterpart, has been strong in both sprint and distance races this season, and there is no reason for that success not to continue, especially with a smaller field making for slightly less-competitive qualification.

    Andy Newell (USA) will undoubtedly lead the North American men, as he proved in Kuusamo that he is top sprinting shape, and like Randall, he undoubtedly has an axe to grind from last year’s Dusseldorf event, where he qualified third but failed to reach the A-Final. While Newell’s arrival has been delayed by transportation and passport problems, so long as he arrives in time to hit the start line, he will still be a contender.

    The performances of the other American men are harder to predict, however. Simi Hamilton had a breakout sprint season last year; however that was mainly due to his classic sprinting speed, and so far this year he has been hampered by a leg injury. According to his blog, the injury is now in the rearview mirror, and he will be looking for an opportunity to mix it up in at least one heat.

    Torin Koos has been traveling and racing in Europe separate from the USST this year, but after finishing second in a sprint event in Norway last weekend, Koos was chosen to step up for his first World Cup of the season.

    As for Chris Cook, his season has started out slowly, and he will need to take a big jump if he wants to advance on the fast course, with so many top sprinters taking to the start line.

    In the absence of top male all-around threats Devon Kershaw (CAN) and Alex Harvey (CAN), the Canadians are rolling with a pure sprint squad for the weekend. Classic sprint specialist Stefan Kuhn, breakout talent Lenny Valjas, and Phil Widmer will all start. Kuhn and Valjas qualified last weekend in Kuusamo’s classic sprint – look for them to build on those strong results in the slightly reduced field.

    Brent McMurtry (CAN) also gets the call for the Canadian team, and after two weekends which saw him fail to score World Cup points, he will hope to make a break through.