Tucker Hoefler (Park City Ski & Snowboard) jumping in Planica, Slovenia. (Photo: Ben Loomis)
In an effort to showcase the North Americans who competed at last week’s 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Switzerland, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 19-year-old Tucker Hoefler, of Park City Ski and Snowboard, who represented the U.S. at his second Junior Worlds.
This week in Kandersteg, Hoefler placed 51st and 55th in two individual competitions and seventh in the team event.
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“My full name is Tucker Greer Hoefler, but you can call me jediwarrior27.
I was born and raised in Burlington, Vermont, and I learned to ski in the womb.
Tucker Hoefler (Park City Ski & Snowboard) racing to 41st at the Nordic Combined Continental Cup in December in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. (Photo: Ben Pieper)
I spent the time between U.S. Olympic team trials in Park City and Junior Worlds living in snowless misery, then making some powder turns and training in Oberstdorf, Germany.
My favorite workout I did in the last training year to prepare for this was ski mountaineering in the Cascades.
This is my second time in Switzerland and ninth time racing internationally, and so far it’s been brutally realistic.
One difference I’ve noticed between Switzerland and the U.S. is the lack of political stupidity.
Skiing and racing in the Alps is a lot more scenic than Park City. Usually racing at altitude is fine for me, however, the Salt Lake City air quality is what you have to watch out for. There are perky mountains where I live.
One of the things I’m most excited about for Junior Worlds in Kandersteg is to see what a decent amount of snowpack looks like again.
One race I’m especially targeting there is the nordic combined 5 k.
I really hope I can chat/make friends with someone nice and ask them their favorite color.
My favorite thing at the breakfast where we are staying is the Vermont Maple Syrup I brought.
Fondue is dangerous. The cheese here is almost as good as cheddar. And the chocolate is best when you steal it from your team.
If I had a totally free day here and didn’t have to worry about race fitness or training, I’d spend it grazing the cattle and milking the cows.
The best way to follow me on social media is on Instagram is @tuckerhoefler.”
The U.S. men’s silver-medal relay at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, with (from left to right) Luke Jager, Hunter Wonders, Gus Schumacher, and Ben Ogden. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
(Note: This article has been updated to include comments from Americans Ben Loomis, Luke Jager and Gus Schumacher.)
Junior World Championships (Goms, Switzerland): Men’s and women’s relays
Two individual medals and a relay podium. That’s how the U.S. team fared this week at Junior World Championships in terms of a medal count, but the significance of its breakthroughs go way beyond the hardware.
Hailey Swirbul became the most successful American nordic skier at Junior World Championships with a silver and a bronze in the two women’s distance races. Then, on Saturday, the U.S. men took their turn in the spotlight, racing to second and almost first in the 4 x 5-kilometer relay for the best relay finish by an American team at Junior Worlds. Last year, the U.S. women placed third at 2017 Junior Worlds at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah.
Luke Jager started the team off on Saturday as the first classic leg, putting the U.S. men in sixth at the first exchange, 14 seconds behind Sweden in first.
While Sweden dropped to second on the next leg, the U.S. continued to move up, with Ben Ogden racing to fourth, 8.5 seconds out of first, behind Norway, Russia and France, respectively.
On the first freestyle leg, Hunter Wonders held the U.S. in fourth and tagged anchor Gus Schumacher in fourth, 31.3 seconds out of first. Norway continued to lead with France, and Russia skied about 5 seconds back in third with 5 k to go.
Schumacher then skied the fastest anchor leg to race up to second, passing France and finally Russia in the finishing straight, as he crossed the line 2.2 seconds behind Norway’s Jørgen Lippert — who eased up in the finish and secured the Norwegian gold with a total time of 50:04.2 minutes.
The men’s 4 x 5 k relay podium at 2018 Junior World Championships with Norway (c) in first, the U.S. (l) in second (Ben Ogden, Luke Jager, Gus Schumacher, Hunter Wonders), and Russia (r) in third. (Photo: Julia Kern)
The U.S. placed second, 3.3 seconds ahead of Russia in third (+5.5), and France finished fourth (+29.6).
Norway’s winning team included two men who won individual golds this week, Harald Østberg Amundsen (in the 20 k skiathlon) and Jon Rolf Skamo Hope (10 k classic), as well as Håvard Moseby and Lippert (who took bronze in two races).
Russia’s team was made up of Kirill Kilivnyuk, Sergey Ardashev, Yaroslav Rybochkin, and Alexander Terentev. Team France was Camille Laude, Hugo Lapels, Tom Mancini, and Pierre Tichit.
Canada placed 11th (+3:12.8) with Antoine Cyr, Ritchie Graham, Felix Longpre, and Etienne Hebert. Sixteen teams contested the men’s relay on the final day of Junior Worlds in Goms.
American Luke Jager (9) skiing with Norway’s Harald Østberg Amundsen (1), France’s Camille Laude (3), and Sweden’s Jacob Nystedt (8) during the first leg of the men’s 4 x 5 k relay on Saturday at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland. (Photo: Julia Kern)
In an email, Jager, who turned 18 last month, explained that he was grateful for the opportunity to race at his first Junior Worlds.
“I barely qualified for this trip after a tough week in Anchorage so my options for starts were super limited,” Jager wrote. “I got the sprint start last week which was pretty horrendous and then a guaranteed spot on the relay team. So I had the whole week to prepare and rest. Watching the boys all week we realized that a medal could be possible and we started targeting that super closely.”
But over the last week, Jager hadn’t been feeling well.
“I was feeling really really bad in the days following the sprint and could barely get out and ski for 60 minutes each day,” he recalled. “I had actually told [U.S. Ski Team Development Coach Bryan] Fish that if I continued to feel as bad as I had been I was gonna sit out the relay. But I started feeling better and better throughout the week and was feeling really good this morning.”
He had previously asked Fish if he could ski the scramble leg.
“Bryan was stoked about it too so that decision was easy,” Jager explained. “This group of dudes is perfect for each leg of a relay so we barely even needed to discuss order. I am definitely a stronger classic skier so I was stoked to be able to get some redemption for my poor form in the last month.”
Schumacher, 17, explained he found out the relay order on Friday night and “really started to get excited about it,” he wrote in an email. “We had some foreign friends say that they thought we could do well so that really helped confidence.”
From the gun, Jager expected a fast pace and pushed to put himself in the lead group while trying to conserve energy and avoid any tangles He locked onto Norway’s Amundsen and by the last climb on the second lap, found that the group was beginning to string out.
“I was thankfully able to hold on just enough to maintain connection with the leaders and put Ben in a position where he could do his thing,” Jager wrote. “I would have liked to be a little further up in the group when I tagged off to Ben but the Swedes’ first skier had done so much damage in the last minutes that we were all in single file and pretty much in survival mode up the last climb.”
Russia’s Alexander Terentev leading Norway’s Jørgen Lippert, American Gus Schumacher (9), and France’s Pierre Tichit (3) up a climb in the final leg of the men’s 4 x 5 k relay at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland. (Photo: Julia Kern)
Fast-forward to Schumacher getting tagged in fourth in the final exchange, 31.5 seconds behind Norway in first, 30.9 seconds behind France in second, and 26.2 seconds behind Russia in third. Despite the gap, he believed he could close it.
“I definitely thought those three were in reach, and I wanted to catch them, if for no other reason than to keep clear of 5th and 6th,” Schumacher wrote. “I focused on really holding steady for the first 2k, then starting to push more, and I was able to catch that lead pack and then recover with them for the last sprint, which did end up really hurting.”
While he had distanced himself from France and secured third by the final hill, he hadn’t anticipated catching Russia or Norway.
“By the time I got through the downhill corner, however, I was closing fast on the Russian and realized I was right there,” Schumacher wrote. “I popped around the last corner and was almost even with Russia, then after a few seconds of sprinting I pulled ahead and he slowed down and I knew I had it.”
While Jager explained he’s not one to get very nervous about racing, Saturday was completely different.
“… Watching the rest of the race progress was one of the most nerve wracking experiences of my life,” he wrote. “When Hunter tagged off to Gus I knew we were really really gonna be in the fight for a medal. I’ve been racing Gus for most of my life and I know when that kid is gonna throw down and produce a miracle and I could see it…
“This is something this group of guys has been dreaming of and training for for a really long time now,” he added. “To be able to watch that dream come into fruition today was indescribable. Probably the best day of my life since Cole Morgan added me on Snapchat. We came here this year to show the world that US skiing is the real deal and that we’re here to stay and I think we did that. To be able to be a piece of that history was an honor.”
“Experiencing the podium here has been so cool,” Schumacher wrote. “I thought it was possible, but actually getting it feels amazing. This whole trip has been really cool even without this success, it’s such an amazing place and the team is tight. I think individually I anticipated results maybe a little better, but this seems about right, and as a team I think we all surprised ourselves. Together we can make some big waves.”
Germany Wins Women’s Relay; U.S. 8th
In the women’s 4 x 3.3 k relay earlier on Saturday, Germany took the win by 8.6 seconds over Russia with a winning time of 39:17.4. Sweden finished third, 47.5 seconds out of first.
Germany’s Alexandra Danner, Celine Mayer and Lisa Lohmann await their teammate Anna-Maria Dietz at the finish of the women’s 4 x 3.3 k relay on Saturday at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland. Germany placed first and Russia finished second, 8.6 seconds later. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
Germany (Alexandra Danner, Celine Mayer, Lisa Lohmann, Anna-Maria Dietz) improved from third on the first leg, to second on the second and third legs, and final first on Dietz’s anchor leg.
Russia (Polina Nekrasova, Hristina Matsokina, Nina Dubotolkina, Maya Yakunina) led the race from the first through the third and final exchange, before slipping to second at the finish.
Sweden (Tua Dahlgren, Frida Karlsson, Alicia Persson, Johanna Hagström) rebounded from 13th and more than a minute and a half back at the first exchange to tag in fourth and 28 seconds out of first thanks to Karlsson’s fastest second-leg time. By the final exchange, they were up to third and they held that position to the finish.
The U.S. women’s 4 x 3.3 k relay at 2018 Junior World Championships, with (from left to right) Hailey Swirbul, Kathleen O’Connell, Hannah Halvorsen, and Molly Gellert. They placed eighth on Saturday. (Photo: Julia Kern)
The U.S. placed eighth (+1:08.1) with Kathleen O’Connell, Swirbul, Molly Gellert, and Hannah Halvorsen. After O’Connell put them in eighth and about a minute back on the first leg, Swirbul skied them up to sixth with the second-fastest second leg, 30.1 seconds out of first. Gellert held onto that position on the first skate leg, but Halvorsen slipped two places on the anchor leg to finish eighth.
Canada finished 15th (+4:47.8) out of 16 teams with Hannah Mehain, Natalie Hynes, Annika Richardson, and Alexandra Racine.
Slovenia’s Vid Vrhovnik (3) celebrates his win in the last nordic-combined competition of 2018 Junior World Championships, the individual normal hill/5 k, on Saturday in Kandersteg, Switzerland, while the Czech Republic’s Jan Vytrval, Austria’s Dominik Terzer and American Ben Loomis (r) battle for second. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
Nordic Combined Junior World Championships (Kandersteg, Switzerland): Normal hill/5 k Gundersen
In the final nordic-combined competition of Junior Worlds, American Ben Loomis nearly notched his second podium of the week, missing it by one-tenth of a second in fourth place.
American Ben Loomis (7) leads Austria’s Johannes Lamparter during Saturday’s 5 k at 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Switzerland. Loomis went on to place fourth and Lamparter finished eighth. (Photo: Romina Eggert)
Slovenia’s 18-year-old Vid Vrhovnik won the individual normal hill/5 k Gundersen by 4.9 seconds over Austria’s Dominik Terzer. After posting the third-best jump on the 106-meter hill, Vrhovnik started the 5 k race 6 seconds behind Germany’s Luis Lehnert in first. Terzer jumped to second and started just 4 seconds behind, while the Czech Republic’s Jan Vytrval jumped to fourth and started 10 seconds back. Loomis jumped to seventh (just as he did on Tuesday before racing to third place) and started 27 seconds out of first.
“I was happy with my jump being closer in time to the front,” Loomis wrote in an email about his his jump, which put him about 10 seconds closer to the leaders than on Tuesday. “I didn’t feel quite as lucky with the wind. I was hoping to jump around the top 5, but 7th, only 27sec back was good, too.”
Over the two-lap 5 k, Vrhovnik battled with Terzer, while Lehnert slipped to seventh at the finish, 23.5 seconds behind. The Slovenian took the win by nearly five seconds over Terzer in 11:28.8, and Vytrval outlunged Loomis for third place (+5.4). Loomis placed fourth (+5.5), well ahead of Norway’s Einar Lurås Oftebro in fifth (+18.4).
Ben Loomis (USA Nordic) on the last day of 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Switzerland. He jumped to seventh and moved up to fourth in the 5 k. (Photo: Romina Eggert)
“I was able to catch places 3-6 on the first lap and ski with them through the beginning of the second lap,” Loomis wrote. “Towards the end of second lap I closed down on second place (Jan Vytral) with Dominik Terzer. On the last corner we packed up in positions 2-4.
“The finish started with a sharp downhill corner followed by a quick stretch less than 100 meters,” he continued. “I came into the finishing lanes in second but unfortunately took the wrong line and was passed by Dominik and never quite caught Jan in front of me.”
While he had been hoping for another podium, Loomis acknowledged that he was pleased to ski the fastest race time and “be battling at the front”.
“Overall I am leaving Switzerland with my goals accomplished and feeling satisfied,” he wrote. “It would have been nice to walk away with a double podium but I am still very happy with how to week went. This week has been a huge confidence booster going into the Olympics next week. I am very excited to represent my country and enjoy my time at the games. I am looking to have fun, take in experience and not overthink the results.”
Also for the U.S., Stephen Schumann placed 18th (+1:18.6), up one place from 19th in the jump, Jared Shumate finished 40th (+3:05.7), up from 48th in the jump, and Tucker Hoefler was 55th (+5:50.5), after jumping to 55th.
The podium at Saturday’s Nordic Combined World Cup in Hakuba, Japan, with Japan’s Akito Watabe (c) in first, Norway’s Jan Schmid (l) in second and Germany’s Manuel Faißt (r) in third. (Photo: FIS/Flawia Krawczyk)
Nordic Combined World Cup (Hakuba, Japan): Large hill/10 k Gundersen
Many of the winter-sports World Cups were off this weekend before the Olympics start in earnest a week from today in PyeongChang, South Korea, but not nordic combined, which had a World Cup stop in Hakuba, Japan.
There, local hero Akito Watabe took the win in 24:14.6 minutes, a whopping 1:12.6 minutes clear of Norway’s Jan Schmid in second. Germany’s Manuel Faißt placed third, 1:22 back, and Estonia’s Kristjan Ilves finished 52 seconds later in fourth (+2:14).
The lone American competing in Saturday’s 10 k Gundersen, Ben Berend achieved his first individual World Cup top 30, placing 23rd (+4:31.7) after jumping to 16th on Hakuba’s 134-meter large hill.
Watabe led from the beginning of the day after jumping to first, ahead ofIlves in second, Faißt in third, and Schmid in fourth. Watabe started the 10 k with a 16-second head start on Ilves, while Faisst started 52 seconds out of first and Schmid started 1:08 behind.
Berend started the 10 k with a 2:36 deficit to first, with five others within 10 seconds of him. His teammate Adam Loomis did not start the 10 k after jumping to 38th.
Another individual large hill/10 k Gundersen will be held on Sunday in Hakuba. The first nordic combined competition in PyeongChang, the individual normal hill/10 k, is set for Wednesday, Feb. 14.
The men’s 15 k freestyle podium at 2018 Eastern Canadian Championships in Gatineau, Quebec, with Jack Hegman (c) in first, David Norris (l) in second and Tad Elliott (r) in third. (Photo: Rob Smith)
NorAm Eastern Canadian Championships (Gatineau, Quebec): 10/15 k freestyle
Americans swept the podium in both the men’s and women’s freestyle individual starts on Saturday at Eastern Canadian Championships in races that count toward both NorAm and SuperTour standings.
According to unofficial results, Jack Hegman, of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF), won the men’s 15 k by 9.1 seconds over David Norris, of Alaska Pacific University (APU), in 35:44.9. Tad Elliott (Ski Club Vail) placed third (+38.7) just ahead of the top Canadian, Jack Carlyle, of the Alberta World Cup Academy (AWCA), in fourth (+41.7).
The U.S. occupied eight of the top 10 in the men’s race, with Kevin Bolger (SVSEF) in fifth (+45.0), Ben Lustgarten, of the Craftsbury Green Racing Project (CGRP) in sixth (+52.3), Brian Gregg (Team Gregg/LNR/CXC) in seventh (+57.0), Rogan Brown (SVSEF) in eighth (+58.1), Canada’s Scott Hill (Barrie Cross Country) in ninth (+1:14.7), and Eric Packer (APU) in 10th (+1:18.6).
The women’s 10 k freestyle podium at 2018 Eastern Canadian Championships in Gatineau, Quebec, with Rosie Frankowski (c) in first, Becca Rorabaugh (l) in second and Erika Flowers (r) in third. (Photo: Rob Smith)
After placing second in a 10 k freestyle at last weekend’s SuperTour in Craftsbury, Vermont, Rosie Frankowski (APU) won the women’s 10 k freestyle on Saturday in Gatineau by more than 30 seconds in 27:07.3. Her teammate Becca Rorabaugh (who won the Craftsbury 10 k skate as well as Friday’s classic sprint in Gatineau) placed second (+37.1) on Saturday, and Erika Flowers placed third (+1:26.4) for the third-straight race.
Frédérique Vézina, of the Pierre-Harvey National Training Centre, led the Canadians in fourth (+1:46.2), while America Liz Guiney (CGRP) placed fifth (+1:52.2), and Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt (Rocky Mountain Racers) finished sixth (+1:56.4).
Also in the top 10, Kaitlynn Miller (CGRP) placed seventh (+1:57.8), Felicia Geisor (CXC Team) was eighth (+2:18.5), Zoë Williams (Carleton University) ninth (+2:39.6) and Annika Hicks (AWCA) 10th (+2:43.4).
Eastern Canadian Championships conclude Sunday with 10/15 k classic pursuits at the Nakkertok Nordic Ski Centre.
American Hailey Swirbul (University of Alaska Anchorage) leads Norway’s Lone Johansen up a climb during the second half of the women’s 10 k skiathlon on Thursday at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
(This article has been updated to include comments from Americans Hailey Swirbul and Gus Schumacher.)
Junior World Championships (Goms, Switzerland): 10/20 k skiathlons
Hailey Swirbul is 2-for-2 when it comes to podiums at this year’s Junior World Championships; in her second-straight race this week in Goms, the 19-year-old American earned a medal in a distance race. On Thursday, it was bronze in the women’s 10-kilometer skiathlon.
The women’s 10 k skiathlon podium at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, with Sweden’s Frida Karlsson (c) in first, Norway’s Lone Johansen (l) in second, and American Hailey Swirbul (r) in third. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
Swirbul, a sophomore at the University of Alaska Anchorage, closed the gap to the leaders over the final 5 k skate portion of Thursday’s race, doing so in tough, slow conditions with heavy snowfall. She ended up third in a sprint finish with Norway’s Lone Johansen, who took second by 0.7 seconds, as the two finished 35.5 seconds and 36.2 seconds behind the winner, Sweden’s Frida Karlsson, respectively.
Karlsson won it in 32:55.7 minutes. She had been second at the transition from classic to skate halfway through the race, just behind France’s Laura Chamiot-Maitral in first. Four women came through the exchange together within 2.6 seconds of first, while Swirbul was about 15 seconds back in eighth.
“Coming into the exchange I was right where I wanted to be,” Swirbul wrote in an email to FasterSkier. “I knew that some of the girls ahead of me would not be able to sustain their pace the entire skate leg. It was important for me to remember that and not try to close the gap too quickly with the Norwegian I was skiing with.”
While Karlsson broke away over the final 5 k, Swirbul helped lead the chase, moving into second and 31 seconds back on a long, steep climb at 6.7 k.
“I won’t lie, the skate leg was tough! I think everyone was suffering out there in the fresh snow,” Swirbul wrote. “I tried to conserve energy on the gradual downhill before the big climb to use on the hill.”
On the last lap, she worked to distance herself from fourth place.
“I knew that the fourth place skier was closing in on us the last lap,” she wrote. “Going up the final hill, I had to make a move to secure a podium spot and give what I had to ski away form the fourth place girl over the second to last big climb. The last few hundred meters were so intense! I didn’t have anything left to sprint it out for second place. Gotta work on that!”
Two days ago, Swirbul placed second in the 5 k classic for her first individual medal and the best-ever finish for the U.S. at Junior Worlds.
“This means so much,” she told race organizers after taking third in Thursday’s skiathlon. “I’m so happy to represent the United States here and show how we can improve in the future and what we have in our country.”
In her email to FasterSkier, Swirbul explained that she entered Thursday’s race confident yet calm.
“After my silver medal I believed in myself more than before,” she wrote. “However, I managed to stay calm and not put high expectations on myself for the skiathlon which allowed me to race my best. I was hoping to ski smart and relaxed and not be afraid to make it hurt! In a mass start that is really all I can control.”
For much of the first leg, about 4 k, she skied with what she described as “a huge pack of girls, which was kind of stressful for me.”
“It’s harder for me to match the stride of someone almost a foot smaller than I am in a classic track, so once the group broke up I was able to find my rhythm,” Swirbul wrote. “The snow storm made the tracks super slow where they weren’t skied in, so it was a waste of energy to try to pass people outside of the skied in track. I made that mistake a few times and ended up not passing anyone, just wasting energy plowing through powder.”
But her skis felt fast in both the classic and skate legs, she noted. “The wax techs have been killing it!”
With one race left, the women’s 4 x 3.3-kilometer relay on Sunday, Swirbul wrote that she was eyeing another podium.
“I think it is fair to think that our relay team has a good shot at the podium. That would be the cherry on top :)”
Karlsson told organizers that she was focused solely on the gold on Thursday.
“It was very fun today and my body felt very good, then I was just going for the gold today,” Karlsson said. In her first Junior Worlds, she had previously placed third in the skate sprint earlier in the week.
“It means a lot,” Karlsson, 18, added. “This is a very good sign that I’m doing the right thing. I have one more year left as a junior so I’m looking forward to next year’s Junior World Championships as well.”
Also for the U.S., Kathleen O’Connell (Montana State University) placed 20th (+2:18.2), Molly Gellert was 40th (+3:59.4) and Sofia Shomento was 58th (+6:25.7).
Canada’s Natalie Hynes (University of Alaska Anchorage) placed 24th (+2:40.0), Hannah Mehain was 37th (+3:54.9), Alexandra Racine 51st(+5:16.1), and Catherine Reed-Metayer 62nd (+7:17.7).
Norway’s Harald Østberg Amundsen winning the men’s 20 k skiathlon at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
In the junior men’s 20 k skiathlon that followed, Harald Østberg Amundsen pulled out a 34.7-second victory over fellow Norwegian Jon Rolf Skamo Hope, who won the 10 k classic two days ago. Norway swept the podium with Jørgen Lippert in third, 1:00.1 minutes back, two days after Lippert placed third in the 10 k individual start.
The win was Amundsen’s first individual gold after he was on Norway’s winning 4 x 5 k relay at last year’s Junior Worlds in Utah, where he placed third in the 10 k skiathlon. On Tuesday, he was fourth in the 10 k classic.
“Unbelievable,” he said during a post-race arena interview. “I tried to keep calm on the classic part, and on the skate part just tried to keep the speed up. … I tried to go fast on the beginning and end of the uphills, and a bit controlled in the middle. I think the final was great, unbelievable.”
American Gus Schumacher (Alaska Winter Stars) raced to 15th (+2:43.6) besting his two previous top 20’s this week (19th in the freestyle sprint and 17th in the 10 k classic) at his first Junior Worlds. He skied much of the race with Ben Ogden (Stratton Mountain School), who finished 18th (+2:51.2) for his second-straight top 20 (after placing seventh in the 10 k).
“My classic skis were great today,” Schumacher wrote in an email. “The techs nailed it and I had really solid kick and good glide. I was able to run up the steepest hills and kick the buildup off right at the top and glide right with everyone. During that first 10k I think I did a good job staying relaxed and now letting myself push too hard up the big climbs. The pace in the pack wasn’t bad, definitely a little rushed at the beginning but I was able to settle in well.
“On my second half I was still just focused on not pushing too hard and staying relaxed, while also keeping the pace fast and carrying speed through the corners,” he continued. “Generally I felt pretty good, but my body was just getting tired and I was hanging in there.”
While he dropped Ogden over the last kilometer, Schumacher wasn’t able to shake Italy’s Luca Del Fabbro, who finished half a second ahead of him in 15th.
“I pushed really hard up the last hill into first [ahead of Del Fabbro] but was a little weak over the top and he pulled up alongside me and crossed in front of me on the corner then almost fell,” Schumacher recalled. “Pulled up alongside on the flat, but had to get back on the inside and just couldn’t get past.
“Overall I’m pretty happy, I think I paced well and I generally executed well,” he concluded. “I think it wasn’t my best possible, but it was definitely a well-executed race.”
Also for the U.S., Hunter Wonders (Alaska Pacific University) placed 26th (+3:56.0), and Karl Schulz finished 60th (+8:30.3).
Félix Longpré led Canada in 28th (+4:07.0), Etienne Hebert followed in 30th (+4:33.3), Antoine Cyr was 32nd (+4:45.4), and Reed Godfrey 54th (+7:18.4).
The Austrian team (from left to right: Johannes Lamparter, Florian Dagn, Dominik Terzer, and Mika Vermeulen) celebrates its win in the normal hill/4 x 5 k team event on Thursday at 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Germany. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
Nordic Combined Junior World Championships (Kandersteg, Switzerland): Normal hill/4 x 5 k Team Event
In the nordic combined team event at Junior World Championships on Thursday, Austria stole the show, jumping to first then finishing the 4 x 5 k relay first by nearly 48 seconds over Germany in second.
On the 106-meter normal hill in Kandersteg, Austria’s Johannes Lamparter, Mika Vermeulen, Florian Dagn, and Dominik Terzer combined for the best jumping score of the day, 11.8 points ahead of Norway (Simen Kvarstad, Andreas Skoglund, Jens Lurås Oftebro, and Einar Lurås Oftebro) in second. Germany jumped to third with Constantin Schnurr, Julian Schmid, Tim Kopp, and Luis Lehnert another 26 points back.
That put Norway 16 seconds back for the start of the 4 x 5 k relay, and Germany 50 seconds out of first in third.
The four Americans in the event, Tucker Hoefler, Jared Shumate, Stephen Schumann, and Ben Loomis, jumped to 11th out of 13 teams, and started the relay 2:46 minutes back.
Germany celebrates its silver medal in the normal hill/4 x 5 k team event on Thursday at 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Germany. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
Austria went on to hold its lead throughout the race, crossing the finish line first in 56:33.0 for the gold. Norway held onto second first Jens Oftebro’s first leg, then slipped to second behind Germany on the second leg. Ultimately, Germany claimed second, 47.8 seconds back, and Norway was third (+1:53.2).
The field remained largely strung out, as the Czech Republic finished fourth (+2:39.7) after starting fourth, France placed fifth (+3:07.7), up from eighth at the start, and Finland finished sixth (+3:27.6), after starting ninth.
The U.S. men improved to seventh (+3:36.4) thanks to a strong first leg from Loomis, who put them in seventh with the fourth-fastest first-leg time. Schumann then skied the fastest second leg and picked off two more places to tag in fifth at the second exchange. Hoefler slipped to seventh on the third leg, and Shumate held them there with the third-fastest anchor leg.
Nordic combined has one more event at Junior Worlds: the individual normal hill/5 k on Saturday.
The women’s 5 k classic podium at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, with American Hailey Swirbul (r) in second, Russia’s Polina Nekrasova (c) in first, and Finland’s Anita Korva (l) in third. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
(This article has been updated to reflect that American Hailey Swirbul was in second for most of Tuesday’s 5 k race, not over one minute back as previously reported based on a live timing error. It has also been updated to include comments from Americans Hailey Swirbul, Ben Loomis, Stephen Schumann, and Gus Schumacher, Canada’s Antoine Cyr, University of Alaska Anchorage nordic head coach Andrew Kastning, and U.S. Ski Team Development Coach Bryan Fish.)
Junior World Championships (Goms, Switzerland): 5/10 k classic
Hailey Swirbul became the second American cross-country skier to earn an individual medal at Junior World Championships and first to take silver (Katharine Ogden claimed bronze in last year’s skiathlon) in the women’s 5-kilometer classic individual start on Tuesday in Goms, Switzerland.
Swirbul, a 19-year-old University of Alaska Anchorage sophomore, also tallied the best American finish at a Junior/U23 World Championships since Jessie Diggins earned silver in 2014 in the freestyle sprint. It was Swirbul’s second medal the last two Junior Worlds after she teamed up with Hannah Halvorsen, Julia Kern, and Ogden to take bronze in last year’s relay.
Going into this week’s championships, Swirbul, a Colorado native, explained she was aiming for a top 10 in one of the distance races. U.S. Ski Team Development Coach Bryan Fish pointed out that she wasn’t sure she’d feel up to racing on Tuesday.
“She had been feeling under the weather so she didn’t come up and ski yesterday,” Fish said on the phone Tuesday. “It was a little bit of a shock to Hailey herself that she skied so fast because there was some contemplation of whether she would race or not.”
“I made it a goal to stay relaxed and ski the race I would ski in a lower pressure race,” Swirbul wrote in an email. “I often find that I, and others, change their good race habits when at a high pressure event, so I was hoping to pace the race evenly and not start out too fast.
“The key for interval starts for me is to only think about skiing smoothly and powerfully for the first few kilometers of the race, and I’ve been discovering that that usually leads to decent splits throughout my race,” she continued.
She ended up racing to second place on Tuesday in the second race of 2018 Junior World Championships. The 61st starter (out of 84), Swirbul skied in second for most of the race, just behind Russia’s Polina Nekrasova, according toFish.
“She was basically tied for second and really had a strong second half of the course, and really skied solid in particular the last kilometer,” Fish said. “Always in the top five for sure, and well within striking distance [of the podium].”
The women’s 5 k classic podium at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, with American Hailey Swirbul (r) in second, Russia’s Polina Nekrasova (c) in first, and Finland’s Anita Korva (l) in third. (Photo: Bryan Fish)
She initially crossed the finish line in first place, more than a minute faster than the previous race leader. Her time remained faster than all but one of the women who started behind her — as Russia’s Polina Nekrasova (bib 71) took the win in 13:58.7 minutes, 14.4 seconds ahead of Swirbul.
Finland’s Anita Korva started 77th and finished third, 25.4 seconds out of first.
The Czech Republic’s Barbora Havlickova (bib 81) followed in fourth (+26.8), and Norway’s Kristine Stavås Skistad (bib 67) finished fifth (+31.9), and France’s Laura Chamiot-Maitra (bib 83) placed sixth (+34.9).
“… I honestly had no idea I was in the running for the podium during my race, because about 20 girls had yet to finish, so it wasn’t until the last girls came in that I knew I claimed a spot!” Swirbul wrote.
“It was a special moment when I ran down off of the course and I knew her split,” Fish said of Swirbul’s finishing time. “I knew she was sitting in second and they kept announcing and kept announcing, and I told her, ‘You will be second today,’ and it was kind of a combination facial expression of shock and elation. She really couldn’t believe it, but [I said], ‘You’ve got a big enough gap over third place and no one’s catching you.’
“It’s our best Junior Worlds result ever,” Fish added. “Last year was the first individual medal we had ever won or team medal at Junior Worlds and to follow that up with a silver is incredible.
“She was obviously on our podium relay last year, but she came in from U.S. nationals skiing well, qualified very high and she skied incredibly well today,” he explained. “Very fluid stride and did a great job shifting gears and doing a bit more running during the second half of the course.”
“The result hasn’t hit me yet,” Swirbul wrote. “It was beyond what I expected, so my brain is still catching up to the reality! I’ve been dreaming of racing how I know I could for the past 3 years or so, and this season has finally been my chance to break through. I’m so fortunate that things aligned for me on the day that really counted. I couldn’t have done it without Bryan Fish’s unwavering belief in us athletes, and my mom and dad’s support all these years, of course.”
Fish emphasized that while snow conditions have been “very, very good” and “very stable” in Goms, which received 1 1/2 meters (nearly 5 feet) of snow a week and a half ago, the waxing had been a bit challenging due to a temperature range of around -9 degrees to 5 degrees Celsius each day.
“I’m sure there were some teams on klister, some on klister covered with hard wax,” he said of Tuesday’s classic race. “Our techs did a really good job and they were clever with what they came up with when I heard what they were trying. … They’ve been right in the ballpark the last few days and I think they really dialed it in today, and it was impressive kick and glide. To get a podium you ned to have everything going right and I definitely think we had the skis in our favor.”
Halvorsen was the second-best American in 22nd on Tuesday, 1:10.1 out of first, Kathleen O’Connell finished 38th (+1:33.5) and Hannah Rudd was 59th (+2:24.1).
Canada’s Natalie Hynes placed 36th (+1:30.5), Hannah Mehain was 45th (+1:53.3) and Annika Richardson was 67th (+2:53.7). Catherine Reed-Metayer did not finish.
Hailey Swirbul (University of Alaska Anchorage) navigating a downhill while racing to second place in the women’s 5 k classic at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
Andrew Kastning, head coach of the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) nordic team, stayed up late the night before Alaska time to watch three UAA skiers (Swirbul, Rudd and Hynes) race on the Junior World Championships livestream.
“Hailey has made classic technique a priority since she stepped on UAA’s campus because that’s where she had the most potential for gain,” Kastning wrote in an email on Tuesday. “She has been working hard on a more powerful and smooth stride on the uphills while getting over elbow pain when double poling. The course looked like it played well to her strengths and that strategy.
“I saw one clip of her entering the big climb and could see that she was relaxed and striding really well,” he continued. “I knew then she was going to have a really good race.”
He noticed that the course had some intimidating downhills and corners, but he knew Swirbul wouldn’t have a problem navigating them.
“Hailey has a solid alpine skiing background and I figured if anyone would be willing to straight line the descents and flatten the corners then a massive amount of time could be saved,” Kastning wrote. “Hailey must have done that because she put 47 seconds on a Russian she was tied with at the high point. I was sort wondering if I was dreaming at moments and had to refrain from yelling and screaming because I’d wake up three daughters and a wife if I did. What a night, what a day. Seawolf Nation and USA are very proud this morning.”
Ogden 7th, Cyr 12th
In the men’s 10 k classic that followed, the excitement continued for Team USA, with 17-year-old Ben Ogden, of the Stratton Mountain School, racing to seventh in his Junior World Championships debut.
The men’s 10 k classic podium at 2018 Junior World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, with Norway’s Jon Rolf Skamo Hope (c) in first, Russia’s Sergey Ardashev (l) in second and Norway’s Jørgen Lippert (r) in third. (Photo: JWSC2018.ch)
Ogden started 72nd and crossed the finish line in first, 16.6 seconds faster than previous race leader Alexander Terentev of Russia. Six later starters ultimately bumped Ogden to seventh, and Norway’s Jon Rolf Skamo Hope took the win in 24:58.8, 40.5 seconds ahead of Ogden.
Russia’s Sergey Ardashev placed second, 9 seconds back, and Norway’s Jørgen Lippert reached the podium in third (+27.9). Norway put four in the top five and Russia had two in the top six, making Ogden the first non-Norwegian or non-Russian male finisher on the day.
According to race splits, Ogden skied an extremely consistent race, clocking the eighth, ninth or 10th fastest times throughout the 10 k.
Canada’s Antoine Cyr placed 12th (+1:07.7) in the second race of his career at Junior World Championships. Two days ago, he finished 30th in the freestyle sprint. Cyr, 19, started 78th and also skied a consistent race, hanging mostly within the top 12 throughout it.
“I knew that classic 10 km was good race for me,” Cyr wrote in an email. “On a good day I was hoping for top 30 but the course was hard and I knew that if I played it smart and paced myself I would be happy with my race.”
He focused on skiing powerfully on his first lap, with big strides and strong double poling, and tried to attack the A-climb and “punchy climb towards the end of the loop” on the second and last lap.
“A top 12 for us in Canada means a lot and with a 25th place in the [skate sprint qualifier] and a 12th place today I think it makes me realize that I have my place on the world level scene,” Cyr wrote. “… This race was a good redemption after my crash in the sprint. I am really happy with the results !!”
Gus Schumacher notched his second top 20 of the week in 17th (after placing 19th in the skate sprint), finishing 1:19.1 out first first, Hunter Wonders placed 22nd (+1:39.1), and Canyon Tobin was 37th (+2:17.2) for the U.S.
In an email, Schumacher, of Alaska Winter Stars, explained he had been aiming for a top 10.
“For this race I really focused on keeping the first quarter super relaxed and then picking it up after that,” he wrote of his pacing. “During the race I felt like I raced the first lap well but somewhere on the second lap I must’ve pushed just a little too hard and gone over my threshold, because I really faltered in the middle of that one on the big sprint hill. Other than that I felt like I skied the flats and most of the gradual uphills well, especially before 7.5k.”
Overall he added that he was “fairly satisfied … but I know that I can do better and that kind of hurts me. I just didn’t feel like I had the spark that I normally have towards the end of a race like this.” Moving forward, he had similar goals for the skiathlon and was excited for the relay.
Canada’s Etienne Hebert finished 44th (+2:42.3), Ty Godfrey was 57th (+3:29.5), and Felix Longpre 58th (+3:29.7) out of 96 finishers.
“It’s really exciting when you look at our day in general,” Fish noted. “We had two young boys with 2000 birth years; there was only three boys in the top 40 that had a 2000 year of birth and we had two. … That’s just really exciting for U.S. skiing in general, that we have athleetes showing up not just to participate, but to really perform.”
The men’s individual normal hill/10 k Gundersen podium at the first Day of Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Switzerland, with American Ben Loomis (r) in third, the Czech Republic’s Ondrej Pazout (c) in first, and Norway’s Einar Lurås Oftebro (l) in second. (Photo: Josh Parker)
Nordic Combined Junior World Championships (Kandersteg, Switzerland): Normal hill/10 k Gundersen
In the first competition of 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Switzerland (about 75 kilometers west of Goms), American Ben Loomis achieved the first podium of his career in his fifth Junior Worlds (counting his first in straight-up ski jumping), racing to third in the individual normal hill/10 k Gundersen on Tuesday.
Ben Loomis (USA Nordic) jumping to seventh on Tuesday at 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Switzerland. He went on to place third in the 10 k for his first Junior Worlds medal. (Photo: Josh Parker)
Loomis, a 19-year-old U.S. Nordic Combined national team member who grew up in Wisconsin, was recently selected to compete at his first Olympics next month in PyeongChang, South Korea. In an email, Loomis explained he found out just over a week ago, which motivated him to compete at a high level, but it didn’t change his plans or goals for his last Junior Worlds.
“My focus of the winter has always been the Junior World championships so my Olympic nomination has not changed my training in the last few weeks,” he wrote. “Going into this week, and for the last 2 years now my goal was always a podium finish.”
He started out Tuesday by jumping to seventh on the 106-meter “normal” hill, then started the 10 k race 38 seconds out of first.
“The hill here in Kandersteg is very new which is nice because it feels similar to other modern jumps,” Loomis explained. “I was satisfied with my competition jump but not 100% happy. There are still a few things I need to fix on the technical side of my jumping.”
The Czech Republic had the two best jumpers on the day, with Ondrej Pazout leading after the jump portion, followed by his teammate Jan Vytrval in second. Pazout started the 10 k with an 11-second head start on Vytrval and ended up holding off his challengers to secure gold, finishing first in 22:58.3. Norway’s Einar Lurås Oftebro raced from 10th after the jump to second at the finish, just 2.3 seconds behind Pazout, with the second-fastest 10 k time.
Loomis passed four skiers to finish third, 8.3 seconds out of first, with the third-fastest time. Norway’s Johannes Lamparter slipped from third to fourth overall (+16.2), and Vytrval finished fifth (+21.6).
“I knew with a good race a podium was still possible from 38 seconds back,” Loomis wrote. “The track here is really tough with technical decent which leaves good opportunity to make up time.”
Working within a group, he caught up to third place on the first of four laps and was up to second on the second lap.
American Ben Loomis (7) racing with Norway’s Einar Lurås Oftebro (l) during the 10 k Gundersen on Tuesday at 2018 Nordic Combined Junior World Championships in Kandersteg, Switzerland. Loomis went on to finish third for his first Junior Worlds medal and Oftebro placed second. (Photo: Josh Parker)
“We had 5 or 6 guys in this group and on the 3rd lap I took the lead,” Loomis explained. “Towards the last hill on the 4th lap, I made a move alongside Einar Oftebro. Einar was strong on the last stretch and able to beat me as well as almost catching the leader Ondra.
“Taking a step on the podium was an excellent feeling today,” he added. “I have been working very hard, especially towards this specific race for a long time now. Accomplishing this is a huge relief and very motivating for the future.”
The U.S. had two in the top 15 with Stephen Schumann in 13th (+1:29.1). Schumann was 29th after the jump and started the 10 k 1:47 out of first, then posted the fifth-fastest course time to pick off 16 places.
“Going into today I was really just hoping to put together a solid jump and a good race and hopefully finish within the top 10 like last year,” Schumann wrote in an email. “Unfortunately I did not have the jump I was hoping for. I was about 1 meter late off the end of the take off, taking away some of the power and height that my legs otherwise would have given me. Luckily the conditions on the hill were pretty consistent today so I knew about where I would be standing after jumping going into the race.”
Given his starting position, he believed a top 15 was within reach. He ended up catching Italy’s Aaron Kostner, who started 27th, and the two worked together to catch one group after another.
“I felt pretty good but he got me on the last lap,” Schumann wrote of Kostner, who finished about 20 seconds ahead of him in 11th place. “But over all it was a pretty good race and I finished with the 5th fastest time. Behind Aaron with the 4th fastest.
“Overall I feel that had I had a little bit better jump on the hill I could have contended for a top 10 maybe top 5 but was happy with my race and my 13th place finish,” he added. “Coming across the line I was pretty sure Ben had finished in the top 5 at least, as I could see him going up the last hill as I was staring down it. But when I actually crossed the line and saw him I could tell he had gotten to the podium and I was psyched for him, went and gave him a hug and congratulated him.”
Looking ahead to the rest of the week, Schumann’s hoping for a medal in the 4 x 5 k team event.
“And personally I hope to finish in the top 10 in the 5km race with a better jump and another solid race,” he wrote.
Also for the U.S., Jared Shumate placed 35th (+4:06.3), up from 49th in the jump, and Tucker Hoefler was 51st (+6:37.4), up from 53rd.
The Russian men finishing in unison to take first, second and third in the men’s 30 k skiathlon, the final race of 2017 U23 World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. Alexander Bolshunov (8) was deemed the winner, Alexey Chervotkin (1) was second, and Denis Spitsov (11) third. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)
FIS Nordic Combined Junior World Championships (Park City and Midway, Utah): Normal hill/5 k
American Ben Loomis (6) leads Norway’s Lars Ivar Skaarset (7) during the third leg of the nordic-combined 4 x 5 k team event on Thursday at 2017 Nordic Junior Worlds at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. Loomis brought the U.S. from ninth to seventh, and his team ultimately finished seventh. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)
[UPDATED] In the individual normal hill/5-kilometer Gundersen on Saturday, the last nordic-combined competition of 2017 Nordic Junior World Championships, American Ben Loomis captured his first top 10 in his third Junior Worlds in ninth place.
Eighteen-year-old Loomis jumped to 10th then picked off one place in the 5 k to finish ninth, 1:22.3 minutes behind the winner, Germany’s Vinzenz Geiger.
Geiger led after the jump and started the ski race 4 seconds ahead of Japan’s Yuto Nakamura in second. Geiger was able to hold off Finland’s hard-charging Arttu Mäkiaho, who raced from ninth to second, by 22.6 seconds. France’s Laurent Muhlethaler raced from fifth to third (+23.9) for the final spot on the podium, while Nakamura slipped to fourth (+42.8).
The U.S. had two in the top 15 with Stephen Schumann in 15th (+1:44.3), up from 20th after the jump. Grant Andrews placed 33rd (+2:40.0) and Tucker Hoefler finished 46th (+3:56.9).
FIS Nordic U23 World Championships (Midway, Utah): 15/30 k skiathlon
It was a Russian affair and a head scratcher for the photo-finish crew at U23 World Championships on Saturday, with three Russians putting enough time on the rest of the field in the men’s 30-kilometer skiathlon that they had time to slow to a stop and inch across the line in unison.
The jury ultimately had to decide who won, awarding it to Alexander Bolshunov in 1:15:31.5 hours, 0.2 seconds ahead of Alexey Chervotkin in second. Denis Spitsov was listed as third (+0.5). France’s Jules Lapierre came closest to the Russians in fourth, finishing 11 seconds later.
The field was considerably strung out by the end of the race, with Switzerland’s Jason Rueesh finishing 14.3 seconds out of first in fifth and Norway’s Gaute Kvaale crossing the line in sixth (+33.0), ahead of France’s Valentin Chauvin in seventh (+49.1), and Andorra’s Irineu Esteve Altimiras in eighth (+56.8).
American Paddy Caldwell (SMS/USST) placed ninth for the second-straight race at U23s, finishing 1:24.4 behind the winner.
The U.S. men had three in the top 15 for their best day of the championships, with John Hegman (SVSEF) placing a 11th (+1:53.5) and Adam Martin (NMU) 15th (+2:23.3) for their best results at U23 Worlds.
Evan Palmer-Charrette (NTDC Thunder Bay) led the Canadian men in 26th (+5:44.6). Alexis Dumas (CNEPH) finished 33rd (+9:02.7) out of 36 finishers. Several North Americans did not finish, including Canada’s Julien Lamoureux and Julien Smith, and American Cal Deline.
In the women’s 15 k skiathlon, Lotta Udnes Weng achieved her first gold of U23 Worlds, holding off Finland’s Johanna Matintalo by 3.8 seconds and crossing the line in 40:50.9 minutes. Russia’s Yana Kirpichenko reached the podium in third (+13.9), fewer than two seconds ahead of Weng’s twin sister, Tiril Udnes Weng in fourth (+15.6).
Dahria Beatty, of the Alberta World Cup Academy and Canadian National U25 Team, led the North Americans in 19th (+2:18.1), and teammate Katherine Stewart-Jones (NTDC Thunder Bay/NST U25 Team) was 21st (+2:29.3) for her best U23 Worlds result.
The Czech Republic’s Petra Hyncicova (University of Colorado-Boulder) followed in 22nd (+2:30.7), and three Canadian women finished in the top 30 with Frederique Vezina (CNEPH) in 29th (+3:36.2). Jenn Jackson did not finish.
Jesse Knori (University of Colorado-Boulder) was the top American in 30th (+3:40.1), Alayna Sonnesyn followed in 31st (+3:42.5), Nichole Bathe (University of Alaska Fairbanks) in 33rd (+4:36.9), and Corey Stock (Bridger Ski Foundation) in 36th (+5:42.1).
Mathilde Petitjean, who races for her native Togo but trains with the Quebec-based CNEPH, finished 38th (+6:04.8) of 38 finishers.
FIS Cross-Country World Cup (PyeongChang, South Korea): 15/30 k skiathlon
The women’s 15 k skiathlon podium at the PyeongChang World Cup in South Korea, with Poland’s Justyna Kowalczyk (c) in first, American Liz Stephen (l) in second, and Japan’s Masako Ishida in third. (Photo: FIS Cross Country/Twitter)
The second day of World Cup racing in PyeongChang, South Korea, took place this Saturday, with a skiathlon event for both genders. The women raced a total of 15 kilometers, the first 7.5 k leg classic and the second 7.5 k leg freestyle. Poland’s Justyna Kowalczyk came away with the women’s win (her first in three years), getting back to her old ways of breaking away from the pack to finish first in 43:54.7 minutes. Liz Stephen of the U.S. Ski Team (USST) claimed second place (+56.0), while Japan’s Masako Ishida took third (+1:14.8).
For Stephen, second matched her best individual result in a from two years ago, when she placed second in a 10 k freestyle in Rybinsk, Russia. This year at the Tour de Ski, Stephen posted the second-fastest time up the final climb in Val di Fiemme, Italy. For Ishida, it was her first podium since 2009.
Caitlin Patterson, racing for the U.S., finished just off the podium with a career-best fourth (+1:21.4) for her first top 20 on the World Cup, and American Liz Guiney placed 13th (2:21.7) for her first top 20 as well. Jessica Yeaton, who trains with Alaska Pacific University and races for Australia, came in 24th (4:58.6).
Two Canadian women competed with Annika Hicks leading the team in 26th (+5:17.8) followed by Sadie White in 29th (+6:54.7) for their first World Cup top 30s.
In the men’s 30 k skiathlon that followed, Russia’s Petr Sedov broke away during the skate leg to take a decisive victory over Norway’s Daniel Stock and Mathias Rundgreen, finishing in 1:18:49.6 hours, 22.5 seconds clear of second place. It was Sedov’s first World Cup win and podium, and the first individual podiums for Stock and Rundgreen as well.
Rundgreen edged Russia’s Konstantin Glavatskikh for the final spot on the podium, with both being listed as 42.1 seconds behind Sedov.
While Rundgreen held off three others for third place, including Sweden’s Gustav Eriksson in fifth (+46.8), Japan’s Keishin Yoshida in sixth (+47.1), and Russia’s Alexander Utkin in seventh (+49.0), American Noah Hoffman kept his distance ahead of the second chase group to finish eighth (+1:06.2) for his best result in a non-World Cup stage since placing eighth in a 2012 skiathlon in Canmore, Alberta. (Hoffman won the time of day in the 15 k pursuit four years ago in Kuusamo, Finland.)
Also for the U.S., Scott Patterson was next across the line in ninth (+1:28.4) for his first World Cup points, and Matt Gelso finished 19th (+5:00.8) for his first top 20.
Brian McKeever of Canada’s Para-Nordic Ski Team was the lone Canadian finisher in 29th (+8:48.9). Bob Thompson was listed as placing 32nd of 37 after being lapped, and Simon Lapointe did not finish.
NorAm Eastern Canadian Championships (Cantley, Quebec): Classic interval start
The NorAm mini tour at the Nakkertok Nordic Centre continued on Saturday with Eastern Canadian Championships with classic individual start races.
In the men’s 15 kilometre, Lappe Nordic’s Andy Shields took a lead in the first lap and held on to win in 39:14.7, just 0.7 seconds ahead of CNEPH’s Ricardo Izquierdo-Bernier. Team R.A.D.’s Russell Kennedy collected his second bronze of the weekend, 24.7 seconds back.
SMS Elite’s Anne Hart won the women’s 10 k in a reversal of Friday’s sprint podium. Hart’s 30:03.3 finish gave her a 9.3 second edge on CNEPH’s Sophie Carrier-Laforte and 20.0 seconds on AWCA’s Maya MacIsaac-Jones.
For the 123 men and 77 women doing the full distance, the weekend is a mini tour. For the younger categories, it is three separate events allowing the kids who couldn’t skip school on Friday to race Saturday and Sunday.
There should be over 700 finishers today with 768 on the start list. The volunteers will have more hours of work even after the open categories have finished.
Results will update continuously as more categories start.
Tucker Hoefler (Park City Nordic Ski Club) jumping at Junior Worlds trials this year. (Photo: Clint Jones)
In an effort to showcase the North Americans competing at this week’s International Ski Federation (FIS) 2017 USANA Nordic Junior World Championships and U23 Cross Country World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 18-year-old Tucker Hoefler, of the Park City Nordic Ski Club and U.S. Nordic Combined development group, who’s representing the U.S. at his first Junior Worlds.
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“My full name is Tucker Greer Hoefler but you can call me Tucki or Slat Rat. I was born in Burlington, Vt., raised in Williston, Vt., and the one thing you should know about my hometown is the liberal agenda and The Sox.
I started skiing when I was in the womb, and jumping when I was 10, thanks to my dad who forced me into the sport. I currently train in Park City, Utah, with the Park City Nordic Ski Club/ USA NoCo Development.
If I’m not skiing, you might find me brapping a sled, skinning a peak, or climbing a rock. If I had to pick a favorite book, it would be the Toyota Highlander Owners Manual.
American Tucker Hoefler at a Nordic Combined Youth Cup last year in Trondheim, Norway. (Photo: Paul Loomis)
One of the things I’m most excited about for U23/Junior Worlds at Soldier Hollow is driving 27 minutes from my house to the race course. One race I’m especially targeting there is the NoCo 5 k.
The best advice anyone ever gave me about skiing or racing was ‘Don’t make me look bad’ – Coach. One of the best race memories I have is almost getting 2nd at two World Junior Qualifiers this year.
If I could meet one World Cup skier, it would be Sabina Berend’s sister.
If I don’t end up being a professional skier, I’ll probably be a ski bum living alone in a cabin in Montana.
I’m missing zero days of school to be here, and my teachers are probably thinking, ‘I’m surprised Tucker was able to graduate this fall.‘
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![The Russian men finishing in unison to take first, second and third in the men's 30 k skiathlon, the final race of 2017 U23 World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. Alexander Bolshunov (8) was deemed the winner, Alexey Chervotkin (1) was second, and Denis Spitsov (11) third. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)](http://fasterskier.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2017/02/Russias-Chervotkin-Spitsov-and-Bolshunov.jpg")
![American Ben Loomis (6) leads Norway's Lars Ivar Skaarset (7) during the third leg of the nordic-combined 4 x 5 k team event on Thursday at 2017 Nordic Junior Worlds at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. Loomis brought the U.S. from ninth to seventh, and his team ultimately finished seventh. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)](http://fasterskier.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2017/02/ben-loomis-relay.jpg")
![The women's 15 k skiathlon podium at the PyeongChang World Cup in South Korea, with Poland's Justyna Kowalczyk (c) in first, American Liz Stephen (l) in second, and Japan's Masako Ishida in third. (Photo: FIS Cross Country/Twitter)](http://fasterskier.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2017/02/C3zPZkaUcAADYaB.jpg-large.jpeg")
![Tucker Hoefler (Park City Nordic Ski Club/U.S. Nordic Combined development group) jumping at Junior Worlds trials this year. (Photo: Clint Jones)](http://fasterskier.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2017/01/FullSizeRender-3.jpg")
![American Tucker Hoefler at a Nordic Combined Youth Cup last year in Trondheim, Norway. (Photo: Paul Loomis)](http://fasterskier.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2017/01/PastedGraphic-2.png")