By Lukas Pigott
The favorites for the men’s 10-kilometer interval-start classic race at the upcoming World Championships in Trondheim were all on the startline for today’s dress rehearsal in Falun, Sweden.
Iivo Niskanen, Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget, Harald Østberg Amundsen, and Johannes Høsflot Klæbo — all members of the men’s classic distance race winners club 2024/2025 — would be at the startline together for the first time since Davos to fight for the win and see where they are in their preparation for the World Championships. Would there be a new member of the club, or would one of the existing members claim the favorite status for themselves going into World Championships?
The course here consisted of three separate, largely distinct laps. The athletes would first go up little Mördarbacken on lap one before tackling the legendary climb in its entirety on the second lap, followed by a more rolling and shorter third lap. Finding a good pacing strategy would be key to succeeding on this slightly unconventional course, as proved by JC Schoonmaker who came through 2.4km in 54th place, 3.8km in 41st, and 6.7km in 28th before finishing in 23rd, showcasing a masterclass in racing negative splits.
When asked about his pacing, Schoonmaker, historically viewed as more of a sprinter — the 23rd today marked his first career top-30 finish in a World Cup distance race — wrote to Nordic Insights, “I was focusing on just staying awake out there and chasing every second I could. Felt like the pacing worked out really well to be able to ski the last couple laps with good energy. I wasn’t really planning to pace like that but I realized after the first lap that I had a good amount left in the tank so from there just really started pushing on the gas pedal.”
On the other side of the pacing spectrum, Mika Vermeulen said before the race that his plan was to “go full gas from the start and hope that it works out.” Well, it did. The Austrian skier based in Lillehammer would finish the day in a strong 7th place.
Already from the first checkpoint at 2.1km Niskanen took the lead, with many of the Norwegian favorites losing a handful of seconds. [see splits chart above from FIS results site] Erik Valnes and Klæbo stabilized the gap but were never able to pull back enough time on Niskanen to get on par with the Finn. Calle Halfvarsson raced aggressively on home snow, and despite losing a fair amount of time in the later stages of the race he managed to place 8th, his best result of a season in which he has struggled with injury.
Niskanen would ultimately take the win in a time of 24:54.3, 12.9 seconds ahead of Klæbo. Valnes presumptively secured his spot on the Norwegian team for this distance in the World Championships in a strong third place, 17.5 seconds adrift of the Finnish winner. He was followed by Nyenget, Lapalus, Edvin Anger, and Mika Vermeulen, in that order.
Pål Golberg finished 10th, but will probably have to watch the 10km in Trondheim from the sideline, as Amundsen, Klæbo, Nyenget, Valnes, and Simen Hegstad Krüger are likely to make up the Norwegian squad for that race. Tough crowd. (Krüger gets a free entry here because he won this race at 2023 World Championships, and so does not count against Norway’s four-athlete quota for each event.)
After the race, Niskanen told FIS, “It felt nice, tricky conditions today. Quite windy, snow in the track and a lot of skiing out of the classic lines.” Niskanen also explained that he had to be careful not to get a yellow card for technique violation, referring to his disqualification in the team sprint in Cogne two weeks ago for just that after he was judged to have doublepoled in a technique zone.
Zanden McMullen, who finished in 41st, agreed with Niskanen, telling Nordic Insights after the race, “Today was hard. Tricky snow conditions and yes, pretty windy. You definitely had to be very conscious about skiing for the faster snow on the course.”
This is the second win of the season for Niskanen; he also won the 10km classic in Ruka on the opening day of the season. The Finn managed to get revenge on Klæbo, who beat him on this course last year with 24 seconds, as well as to end Klæbo’s remarkable streak of six consecutive victories at Falun’s Lugnet ski stadium.
When asked about the rivalry with Klæbo, Niskanen said, “Yeah, I remember it really well. This year has been a bit better for me so far, and hopefully I will stay healthy until the World Championships. It will be an exciting game.”
Klæbo seemed to be content with Niskanen taking the win today, saying, “Iivo is strong. I’ve had many good duels with him in these types of races like this. Today he was the strongest. We’ll let him have this one, then we’ll try to turn it around in a fortnight.”
Eight days on the couch while recovering from recent illness didn’t seem to hurt Klæbo’s sprinting abilities, but has possibly put him a step back from where he would have liked to be when it comes to distance racing. When asked by Trondheim newspaper Adresseavisen how he felt today, Klæbo said, “I’m actually very happy. I have to say that. I was afraid it would go worse. Despite eight days in bed, there is hope. I don’t think it was that bad.”
Klæbo won’t be seen racing in tomorrow’s 20km mass start, as he’s leaving for his cabin for the final preparations ahead of what he himself has admitted to being the most important races of his life.
Many of the athletes who raced today are still in the middle of a tough training block, before planning to ease up on the training over the next ten days in hopes of finding their top form during the World Championships. Thinking toward the World Championships, Niskanen said, “I’ll try to improve a bit. I have still been training quite a lot, so hopefully the shape is at its best in the biggest games, but let’s see, of course every guy wants to be on top there. But biggest goal of the season waiting, so really looking forward to it”.
The 10km classic race at World Championships is likely to be one of the most open and exciting races on the men’s side, with a horde of Norwegians trying to get the better of Niskanen.
After Niskanen’s win in Ruka to open this season, he told the press, “I’m unbeatable if I stay healthy,” referring to his specialty, the 10km classic individual start at the World Championships in Trondheim. When asked by Norwegian national broadcaster NRK if he still feels this way after today’s win, he said, “Not quite, because William Poromaa is still at the top and he was so strong in Les Rousses. At the moment I’m behind him.”
Poromaa, the winner of the men’s 20km classic in Les Rousses earlier this year, was not racing this weekend, prioritizing training at altitude instead of racing at home. By “still at the top,” Niskanen is likely referring to Poromaa’s dominant win at the Swedish national championships last week in Borås.
The Norwegians disagree with Niskanen’s analysis, with Golberg putting bets on Klæbo beating Niskanen with 20 seconds in Trondheim (even though Klæbo states, perhaps diplomatically, that “Iivo is the man to beat”). The Norwegians and their coach Eirik Myhr Nossum agree that “It’s nice to have the pressure placed on him until the 4th of March,” referring to the day of both the men’s and women’s 10km classic races in Trondheim.
Since December, the World Cup circuit has been racing mostly on courses at medium altitude, but for the remainder of the World Cup season, racing will be at sea level. When asked about how he experienced the difference in racing at sea level versus at altitude, Schoonmaker said, “The main difference I notice at sea level is I feel like you can recover a little faster on the downhills. At altitude it’s just a bit harder to catch your breath so you have to feather it a bit more in certain spots.”
Gus Schumacher, a man from sea-level Anchorage, placed a strong 17th today, showing that he has good form going into the World Championships after spending some time at home in the new year. When congratulated on a solid race and asked how he felt today he wrote to Nordic Insights, “Thanks, it was a little weird actually, especially getting here just a couple days ago. Nice to have this weekend though to prep before champs. My body definitely feels ready. Excited for tomorrow and the last bit of training!”
The Canadians showed good form with Antoine Cyr placing 15th, 1:08 behind Niskanen, and Rémi Drolet in 22nd, placing in the top 30 for the first time in his career.
Will Koch finished in 45th in his first World Cup race of the season, which he earned with a strong third place in the 20km classic event at U.S. Nationals in January. Fellow Americans Zak Ketterson and Luke Jager followed in 48th and 66th. “On to the next one,” were the entirety of Ketterson’s thoughts on the day on Strava.
Racing resumes here tomorrow with the men’s and women’s 20km mass start skate races. With no Klæbo on the start line, it will be an open race. Looking ahead, it will also be a good indication of who is in good skating form, and who will likely be the main contenders in the skiathlon and skate races in Trondheim.
You’re reading this on Nordic Insights, one man’s labor of love dedicated to publicizing American nordic skiing. Last season’s GoFundMe is literally the only reason why I turned a profit in years one and two of Nordic Insights, and in turn the only reason why there is a year three of Nordic Insights for you to be reading now: I was okay with working for very little money to get this love letter toAmerican cross-country skiing off the ground, but I didn’t want to lose money for the privilege of doing so. If you would like to support what remains a brutally shoestring operation, last season’s GoFundMe may be found here. Thank you for your consideration, and, especially, for reading.
