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.
Here’s a quick results recap from today’s SuperTour classic sprint in Soldier Hollow. Stay tuned tomorrow for detailed coverage including comments from athletes.
On a second warm and slow day of classic racing, temperatures in Soldier Hollow, UT climbed into the low 50’s as athletes raced through the heats of the 1.5 kilometer sprint.
In the women’s race, Katharine Ogden (USST/SMS T2) won each round of racing, from the qualifier to the final, where she stopped the clock in 5:01.63. Caitlin Patterson (CGRP) was second for women (+0.48), with Hannah Rudd (BSF Pro Team) in third (+1.53).
The men’s podium of the SuperTour 1.5k classic sprint in Soldier Hollow: Magnus Bøe took the win ahead of Karl Schultz and JC Schoonmaker. (Photo: Instagram @nysefnordic)
The men’s final saw a surprise upset. After JC Schoonmaker (USST/UAA) won the qualifier, and took first in his quarterfinal, and semi, it was Magnus Bøe (U of Colo.) whose tactics and strength carried him over the line in 4:08.28 for the men’s win. Bøe narrowly edged out Karl Schultz (SVSEF) who finished second (+0.35), with Schoonmaker hanging on for third (+4.58).
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.
By: Ben Theyerl
It was “going to be a new adventure for sure.” That’s how Rosie Brennan framed the new 10- kilometer course that was laid out in Lillehammer for the race on Saturday morning in an interview before with FIS media. In retrospect, her positive comment, a simple positive affirmation that she was ready to take on the day, should have been taken as a promise for U.S. ski fans.
On Saturday morning, Brennan’s race was the adventure for American fans to follow – a smartly raced 10 kilometers where she finished on the podium, in third place, and with the first U.S. Ski Team distance podium of the season.
Rosie Brennan skis to 3rd place in Lillehammer’s 10k skate. (Photo: NordicFocus)
The new 10k at Lillehammer was a course that invited one to think about approach. Three laps on a 3.75k course where the A-climb came at the 0.5 k mark. It would have been easy to go into that first climb too hard, and many racers did. The first checkpoint at 0.9k was placed at the peak of the climb, and when Brennan came across it, she was in 4th place, +6.5sec from leader Frida Karlsson. Quickly though, others passed in front of that mark. Moa Olsson (SWE) took Brennan’s 4th place spot, then Victoria Carl (GER), then Natalia Nepryaeva (RUS), and then later Tatiana Sorina (RUS). It was an auspicious start for Brennan, and also reiterated how compact the field would be throughout the day.
Meanwhile, two skiers went through the first check-point locked in a battle for first and second. They were familiar to those who watched the distance races in Ruka last weekend, and for those who have watched skiing for years. Frida Karlsson (SWE) went through the 0.9k checkpoint at 2:27.5, and only Therese Johaug would come close to matching her – and it was close – just 0.1 seconds between them at the top of the first climb.
No longer the assumed winner, Therese Johaug (NOR) takes second in the 10k skate in Lillehammer. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Karlsson and Johaug would remain in lockstep on the clock all day. Karlsson, in bib 32, setting the mark at the 6.1k, and 8.3k checkpoints, only for Johaug, in bib 40, to come in with just tenths of a second to separate the two. At 6.1k, the gap was still 0.1 seconds in Karlsson’s favor. At 8.3k, it was up to 1.1 seconds for Karlsson. And then at the finish, Johaug had closed it down to just 0.3 seconds, and that was the final result. Karlsson first place at 26:58.4, Johaug second place (+0.3)).
The two skiers replicated last weekend’s results, which perpetuates an intriguing rivalry for the distance World Cup at the start of the season.
A focused Frida Karlsson on her way to victory in the 10k individual start freestyle in Lillehammer, NOR. (Photo: NordicFocus)On course and on her way to her first podium of the season, Rosie Brennan powers through the 10k skate in Lillehammer. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Brennan, wearing bib 42, was close behind Johaug all day. Her race, though, would be marked against the skiers that had slotted in front of her early on. At the 6.1k checkpoint, she had moved back up into fourth place. During the second lap she tucked in behind Tiril Udnes Weng (NOR), who was on her final lap and on the way to a sixth place finish.
As Brennan went into the final lap, she was on her own, attacking the final A-climb and then heading towards the finish line with the podium in reach.
When Brennan reached the stadium, she had not only maintained the 4th place position she had at the 6.1k mark, but had the real possibility to move up a spot. She would need to edge out Helene Marie Fossesholm (NOR), who despite not being given starts in Ruka last weekend found herself holding onto 3rd place.
In her first World Cup starts of the season, 20-year-old Helene Marie Fossesholm (NOR) skis to fourth place in the 10k skate in Lillehammer. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Seconds later, that possibility became a result, with Brennan finishing in third place. She had gained nearly five seconds on Fossesholm, to finish just +11.3 seconds off of Karlsson. As skiers who had earlier knocked her off her podium spot at earlier checkpoints crossed the finish line, Brennan remained in position, claiming her first podium of the 2021-22 season in the venue where she had, way back in 2015, claimed the first podium of her career (a 3rd place finish in the 4 x 5k relay).
The women’s podium of the 10-kilometer individual start freestyle in Lillehammer, Norway. Frida Karlsson (SWE) took the win ahead of local favorite Therese Johaug (NOR) and Rosie Brennan (USA). (Photo: NordicFocus)
Brennan credited a trust in herself for the late push that got her to third place, reflecting in an email to multiple news outlets:
“I was getting too many splits but I knew it was really tight so I really tried to let loose the last lap and trust my strength. I had great skis and was able to hold pace all the way to the finish while others faded.”
Brennan’s podium finish capped a day that showed the depth that the North American women have built for the present and the future on the World Cup. Off her 2nd place finish in the freestyle sprint yesterday, Jessie Diggins finished in 18th place today (+1:07.4). That result early in the season will help her stay near the top of the overall points list as she looks to defend her World Cup overall title from last year.
Jessie Diggins skis to 18th in the Lillehammer 10k skate. (Photo: NordicFocus)Just missing the top-30, Hailey Swirbul skis to 32nd in the individual start 10k freestyle in Lillehammer, NOR. (Photo: NordicFocus)
The young American women showed their continued development, with Hailey Swirbul finishing in 32nd (+1:38.2) and Julia Kern in 36th (+1:43.1). Swirbul was less than three seconds off the top-30 time needed to score World Cup points, and Kern was less than eight seconds back of 30th. With Norway receiving additional nation’s group starting slots for hosting in Lillehammer this weekend (Norwegian women took five of the top-10 spots and put ten athletes total in the points), cracking a top-30 was perhaps one notch harder than usual, and these women were as on-the-cusp as you can get.
After the race, Swirbul shared the following sentiments on her day via email.
“I thought I skied a strong race, but I definitely faded in the end. When my muscles started to hurt, I tried to remind myself that my legs are strong and that I know I can keep going! It takes a special day for everything to line up perfectly to pull off a great result, but results aside I am proud of the way I raced today.”
On whether she contextualizes a result just outside the Top-30 differently with additional Norwegians included, Swirbul seemed indifferent, focused on her own race and her team’s success.
“To be completely honest, I forgot to look at final results, so I don’t know where all the Norwegians ended up, but this is certainly a super competitive field. I am so impressed with Rosie and my other teammates today because they are SO tough!”
Sophia Laukli, at just 21 years old, finished in 46th (+2:00.0), with Novie McCabe in 52nd (+2:19.8), Caitlin Patterson in 53rd (+2:22.7), and Katharine Ogden in 56th (+2:37.6).
Sophia Laukli skis to 46th in the individual start 10k freestyle in Lillehammer, NOR. Laukli was just 25 seconds outside the top-30 on the day. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Tomorrow in Lillehammer, we shift to thinking in terms of countries rather than individuals, with the 4 x 5k relay. The results today build on Friday’s evidence for what may happen then. Again, it’s a Swede, a Norwegian, and an American on the podium in Lillehammer. Call that a preview, but also a testament to where American skiing has come so far in this still-new season, and yet another hopeful sign for where this the women of the U.S. Ski Team may go.
Katherine Stewart-Jones (CAN) skis to 54th in the 10k individual start freestyle in Lillehammer, NOR. (Photo: NordicFocus)
The Canadian woman also had a strong showing on Saturday. Cendrine Browne finished 45th (+1:58.1), with Katherine Stewart-Jones in 54th (+2:24.6), and Dahria Beatty in 63rd (+3:14.3).
Julia Kern (top) and Katharine Ogden (boom) keep race strong while on-the-go. (Photo: NordicFocus)
As the World Cup season winds down, FasterSkier caught up with two U.S. Ski Team athletes who’ve been living on the road all winter to learn about their strength routines during COVID. Even without a global pandemic, on-the-go strength training can be a challenge. Julia Kern and Katharine Ogden shared their approaches in the following interview:
FasterSkier: In a typical week how many times are you doing strength? What does this look like?
KO: I do strength 1-2 x per week and it usually involves a jog, some activation stuff like band walks etc. and then some pretty basic leg and arm exercises like weighted lunge, dips, push-ups and pull-ups. Then I do some core exercises and some indoor floor core.
JKern: In a typical week, I do strength twice a week. One session is more powered oriented, which I do before a race weekend and the second session is more strength oriented, which I do after the race weekend. Usually I hop on the spin bike to warm up, and then do my PT exercises and activation before moving into plyometrics. If I can find somewhat dry ground outside, I prefer to do them outside, but if that is not possible on the icy roads and sidewalks, I do more stationary plyometrics inside or up and down staircases in the hotel. After that, I move into the strength specific upper and lower body exercises mostly outside except when I use the pull up bar wedged in a door frame inside somewhere. For core, I usually do TRX exercises hanging off the pull up bar inside or on a bar outside before moving inside for some final floor core exercises.
Julia Kern enjoying sunny Davos for some outdoor strength, seen here using TRX bands. (Photo: Kern’s IG)
FasterSkier: I would imagine there’s already some variability in access to quality gyms or gym equipment while on the road, how much have new COVID protocols changed how you would normally do strength throughout the winter?
JKern: In a way Covid has actually made strength on-the-go easier. In the past, we had our go-to gyms at every venue on the World Cup that we would have to schedule in advance on specific days. Often these were public gyms which are filled with the general public and germs, and had limited scheduling opportunities. This year our team decided not to step foot in a single gym. Instead, the team purchased two door frame pull up bars, two TRX, two sets of free weights, bands, sliders, and a med ball to make an at home/on the road gym set up. We would write in our team training plan document what day and time slot we would use the equipment, staggering by pod and disinfecting between every use. It actually allowed for a lot more flexibility since we could do strength any day at any time pretty much right out of our room. It doesn’t take a lot of equipment to get in a good workout. Body weight strength [sessions] have been some of the hardest strength workouts I have done.
FasterSkier: Seems like you’ve been doing a number of strength workouts outside, on a scale from adventure to annoying where does this fall?
KO: I like the outdoor workouts. It’s nice to not have to wear a mask outside and it’s kind of fun and a creative challenge. It sucks when it is really cold though.
JKern: I absolutely love doing strength outside! We were lucky enough to spend a cumulative five weeks in Davos this year, where we were outside but had a deck above us so that if it was snowing we were still covered. Stuffy, germ filled public gyms are easy to beat with strength in the fresh air.
Katharine Ogden racing the 30 k classic mass start event at the 2021 World Championships in Oberstdorf Germany. (Photo: NordicFocus)
FasterSkier: What’s the most creative/innovative/interesting strength exercise or setup you’ve done this winter?
KO: I haven’t been doing a ton of innovating but I do like doing push ups with my feet elevated on things like an uphill, a snowbank, a bench, etc.
JKern: Side plant slider exercises in the middle of the ski trail while doing band pulls with the band attached to a ski trail sign. This was not my idea, my teammate suggested it when I was struggling to find a smooth surface to do sliders on besides pavement.
FasterSkier: Favorite on-the-road exercise?
Jkern: Med ball slams! Nothing is as satisfying as slamming a med ball down as hard as you can…plus it can also act as a very heavy basketball or soccer ball.
Eyes on the clock, the leaders prepare for a 10-kilometer pursuit start classic race in Stage 5 of the Tour de Ski. (Photo: NordicFocus)
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.
We have entered the back half of the 2021 Tour de Ski. With five of eight races complete, roughly 45 kilometers raced and a little under 25 remaining, fatigue has set in. While it might be easy to think the storylines are set, in such a grueling feat of endurance, nothing is certain. Crashes happen, wax is blown, recovery compromised.
Whereas Jessie Diggins and Rosie Brennan had the advantage of chasing splits in yesterday’s individual start freestyle, in today’s pursuit start classic the hunters became the hunted. The women took to the course in Toblach, Italy in order based on their results in Stage 4, with their chasers starting behind with the deficit they attained only from the previous day’s race. This put Diggins first out of the gate with Brennan 15 seconds back, Sweden’s Ebba Andersson +22, Russia’s Yulia Stupak +26 and Finland’s Krista Pärmäkoski rounding out the top five starters +31 back. (Start list)
Striding away from the stadium with a target on her back, Jessie Diggins is the first athlete on course during Stage 5 of the 2021 Tour de Ski, a pursuit start 10-kilometer classic. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Her yellow bib like a target on her back, Diggins set out solo with her usual high tempo. Behind her, Brennan was chased by the charging duo of Stupak and Andersson, who caught her by roughly 3k. Brennan hopped onto their tails as the group worked their way toward Diggins.
As head coach Matt Whitcomb predicted in his interview after Stage 4, conditions near freezing made for icy and glazed tracks which led through a variety of sun exposures, meaning athletes could kick up some hills in the tracks, but had to hop out and run to make it up others. In summation: it makes things a little funky out there.
Perhaps this was what caused Diggins to fall just before the 4 k mark. The crash was relatively minor and she was able to quickly bounce back upright, however, it gave the chasing threesome the opportunity to catch and pass the leader.
Stupak and Andersson seemed to try to capitalize on the opportunity, surging as they skied smooth and strong up the subsequent climb with Brennan and Diggins hanging on in their wake.
Russia’s Yulia Stupak charges ahead for the win in Stage 5 of the 2021 Tour de Ski. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Try as they might, the two could not quite lose the Americans, who matched every push to prevent gaps from forming. Living up to her reputation, Diggins worked the downhills in the final kilometers making up for any small amounts of space between her skis and those in front of her that were created on the climbs.
In the final rolling climbs before descending into the stadium, Diggins found a new gear, overtaking Andersson and challenging Stupak for the lead. Coming into the lanes, Stupak’s double pole could not be matched, allowing her to pull ahead by a ski length while Diggins and Andersson fought side-by-side to the line for a photo finish. It was determined that Andersson edged out the American by centimeters, Sweden in second (+0.7) and USA in third (+0.8).
The leading trio: Julia Stupak, Ebba Andersson, and Jessie Diggins enter the finish-straight. (Photo: NordicFocus)Down to the final meters, the top three women — Yulia Stupak (RUS), Ebba Andersson (SWE), and Jessie Diggins — fight for position in Stage 5 of the 2021 Tour de Ski. (Photo: NordicFocus)Yulia Stupak of Russia with the win, as Ebba Andersson (SWE) and Jessie Diggins (USA) lunge for the line. (Photo: NordicFocus)
“So proud of our techs for the skis they made us in tricky warm conditions today!” wrote Diggins in an email after the race. “Wow, that was a tough fight out there. I was really proud of myself for hanging tough and just gritting it out until the end! It was a good test of mental toughness for me after a little fall and getting caught to be able to refocus, stay calm and ski as smart and smooth as I could! It was really important for me to stay with those girls today in terms of overall tour time, and I was just able to hang in there. Super pumped for our team and for another good classic race!”
Fighting hard through another strong 10-kilometer classic performance, Jessie Diggins takes third in Stage 5 of the 2021 Tour de Ski in Toblach, Italy. (Photo: NordicFocus)After a string of podiums in the Tour de Ski, Jessie Diggins is rich with cheese, flowers, and a variety of regionally-significant memorabilia. (Photo: NordicFocus)
After falling back from the leaders in the final k, Brennan held on for fourth place (+17.3).
“Today was a very tough fight,” wrote Brennan in an email to news outlets. “My goal was to lose as little time as possible and then see what I had in me. I went out hard hoping I could find Jessie to ski with but got caught before I found Jessie. It’s the kind of course that is much easier to draft so once we got caught, it was nice to settle in a bit, however, the pace was still high. I fought as best I could but couldn’t keep contact over the top of the big hill. I fought as hard as I could to regain contact but it’s just so much faster in a pack. I fought with all I had today and am proud of that and happy to maintain second in the overall tour.”
Fighting the clock for a solo finish, Rosie Brennan takes 4th in Stage 5 of the 2021 Tour de Ski. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Working together throughout the day, Finland’s Pärmäkoski and Russia’s Tatiana Sorina skied to a strong fifth (+37.3) and sixth (+38.3), respectively.
The women’s podium of the 10-kilometer pursuit start classic of Stage 5 of the 2021 Tour de Ski in Toblach, Italy. Russia’s Yulia Stupak took the win ahead of Sweden’s Ebba Anderson in second and Jessie Diggins in third. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Though margins for the overall TdS standings were narrowed as her win streak came to an end, Diggins remains in possession of the yellow bib with a cumulative time of 1:54.15. Brennan holds strong in second place (+22), with Stupak in third (+58), overtaking Sweden’s Frida Karlsson who was a favorite for the win.
Frida Karlsson drops to 13th after the Stage 5 of the 2021 TdS, a 10-kilometer pursuit start classic in Toblach, Italy. (Photo: NordicFocus)Frida Karlsson, struggling with a tailbone injury sustained from a dislodged pull-up bar, finishes 13th in Stage 5 of the Tour de Ski, sliding back to 4th in the overall standings. (Photo: NordicFocus)
It is unclear whether Karlsson will be able to lodge a counterattack on her seemingly increasing deficit. FasterSkier learned that in an unfortunate accident involving a pull-up bar that let loose from the door frame it was affixed to, the 21-year-old sustained an injury to her tailbone and leg. According to an interview with Swedish news outlet Expressen, Karlsson was not sure whether she would race in Stage 4, let alone finish the tour. This may explain her fall from podium contender to 9th place in the 10 k skate and 13th (+1:20.1) in today’s classic pursuit. Karlsson holds onto fourth place in the overall (+1:29), with Stupak in 5th (+1:53). (This incident is also discussed in The Devon Kershaw Podcast from Stage 4.)
Consistently demonstrating her talent and fitness, Katharine Odgen finishes 20th in Stage 5 of the 2021 Tour de Ski. (Photo: NordicFocus)Steadying herself on her poles, Hailey Swirbul finishes Stage 5 of the 2021 in 22nd with a string of consistent distance results. (Photo: NordicFocus)
Further into the pack, Katharine Ogden and Hailey Swirbul skied to 20th (+2:05.8) and 22nd (+2:07.5). The two started amidst a relatively dense group of ten women in the range of 1:10 to 1:36 behind Diggins. This larger chase group stayed together through much of the course with a few exceptions breaking off the front and back. Both Americans maintained their position in the body of the group, with only a handful of seconds separating a subset of six at the finish. As they were 18th and 20th in Stage 4, Ogden and Swirbul demonstrated remarkable consistency in their solid performances.
Wrapping things up for Team USA, Caitlin Patterson skied to 39th (+3:57.3) while Julia Kern took 41st (+4:04.3).
Modeling the cumulative fatigue of the Tour de Ski, Caitlin Patterson finishes 39th in Stage 5. (Photo: NordicFocus)
