I took a lot of photos in Houghton last week. Most of them were not very good, because I had a borrowed camera, don’t really know what I’m doing with it yet, and was primarily there as a print reporter, anyway. Like realistically, there’s no way I’m going to improve on the hundreds of photos that Bruce Adelsman took over at SkinnySki with his superior camera and years of experience. Know your strengths. That said, a few of my shots came out somewhat decently. Please enjoy this roundup of some of the better ones, organized in roughly chronological order over the course of a race.
My sincere thanks to Anna Engel, aka cat mom to Skaði previously featured in these pages, for the use of her camera. I appreciate it. (All photos in this article: © Gavin Kentch for Nordic Insights.)
Skiers about to start skiing
Skiers skiing
(click on any image below for slideshow)
Skiers falling
(The fall in the women’s heat did lead to relegation for the athlete who interfered with Karianne Olsvik Dengerud of the University of Utah. Again, click on any image below for full-screen slideshow.)
Skiers hugging or fistbumping
Skiers being done skiing
N.b., I thought about every photo here, and decided that every finish line photo used felt respectful to the athletes portrayed. That said, if you are shown here and think that an image is violative or just unfair, just email me (info at nordicinsights.news) and I will take it down right away. There’s clearly a balance between portraying raw emotion at the finish and respecting the athletes; I like to think that I erred pretty strongly on the side of respect here, and one can certainly find more intrusive images in some European media. But if you disagree, just let me know, and I will take it down. Thanks.
— Gavin Kentch
