By Adam Bodensteiner
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The Arctic sun came out for an exciting final day of the World Cup opening weekend on Sunday afternoon. The midday sunrise/sunset shone over a day of highs and could’ve-been-betters for the American men in the 20-kilometer mass start skate race.
Seven men started for the U.S.: Kevin Bolger (Team Birkie), John Steel Hagenbuch, Luke Jager (APU), Zak Ketterson (Team Birkie), JC Schoonmaker, Zanden McMullen, and Gus Schumacher. McMullen and Schumacher were both defending top-10 finishes from last year’s 20km skate race at this venue.
The field lined up for five laps of the 4-kilometer course, featuring three notable climbs per lap. At -1 degrees Celsius following warm temperatures the day before, the conditions were right for a fast and slick race.
The pack was largely all together for the first two-and-a-half laps. They looked relaxed and in control despite fast times and screaming descents, setting up a tactical race.
The Americans were in the mix from the start, with Ketterson and Schumacher both consistently skiing in or near the top ten. Positioning was key, according to Bolger, who said, “It was an interesting day — icy fast, slippery conditions. I thought I skied decently. The conditions and start positions played a massive role in the day. It was just really tough to move up.”
The race started to heat up at the halfway point. Carrying speed through the intermediate sprint at 9.1km, a three-person breakaway formed consisting of Edvin Anger (SWE), Mika Vermeulen (AUT), and Hugo Lapulus (FRA). An eight-second gap grew to as much as 12 seconds as the trio maintained their lead into the final laps.
After a lap off the front, Lapulus was the first to crack and was dropped. With around 5 km to the finish, Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (NOR) was the first to show interest in chasing down the break. With the increased pace in the front, the main group stretched, leaving about 25 skiers still in contention.
This is where things got interesting for Schumacher. “I felt I was doing a great job with my positioning and relaxation in a generally hectic race,” he told Nordic Insights. “[I] felt really strong.”
Schumacher was in contention, and indeed looking in control for the majority of the race, as he and Ketterson skied within the top 15 spots. In the penultimate lap, he reported that he was forced off-course and broke the tip of his ski. Schumacher said he was able to carry on, skiing with a damaged tip for a full additional lap, until it fully broke in deeper snow with 1.6km remaining. (The effects of this break are seen in the screenshot above. Schumacher is at far left, near the orange safety netting. The photo in the below Strava post shows the aftermath.) An unlucky incident in a promising race.
Schumacher reflected, “I feel it was as close to being out of my control as possible, and maybe in the future when I’m feeling good I’ll just go off the front with Mika.”
While Schumacher was fighting the structural integrity of his skis, Ketterson remained in the mix. A trio of Norwegians, led by defending Ruka 20km skate champion Harald Østberg Amundsen, took over the work from Klæbo to bring back the leading duo with 2km to go.
It was Amundsen who ultimately made the decisive move and crested the final climb into the stadium in the lead, allowing him to repeat his victory from the previous year. Completing the podium was biathlete-turned-cross-country-skier Einar Hedegart (NOR) in second. Holding on from the breakaway to prevent a Norwegian podium sweep, Edvin Anger was third.
Zak Ketterson, after skiing a smart and consistent race, earned a career-best ninth-place finish, just 13 seconds back. It was the day’s top finish for the American men, and the second time in three races that Ketterson logged a career-best individual World Cup result.
Regarding Ketterson’s result, Kevin Bolger told Nordic Insights: “[I’m] just beyond stoked for my Team Birkie teammate ‘the Zak’ — just putting down a massive weekend!”
“I have had a ton of mass start races, both on World Cup and elsewhere, where I just was frantic and wasting energy for large parts of the race,” Ketterson told USSS. “That meant I’d always reach the critical stage at the end of the race with no energy left. I think I’m finally learning to be calmer and spend energy more efficiently.”
“It feels amazing,” he added. “My previous career best was from the end of the 2021-22 season, and I wasn’t able to come close to it for the next three seasons. It really wore at my confidence and self belief that I wasn’t able to beat that mark despite working my butt off year-after-year. To feel now that I finally got rewarded for years of hard work is the best feeling an athlete can ever feel.”
After getting back up from his crash, Gus Schumacher crossed the line in 39th place. Kevin Bolger and John Steel Hagenbuch finished in 44th and 45th, respectively. Zanden McMullen in 57th, JC Schoonmaker in 62nd, and Luke Jager in 64th rounded out the American results.
The American skiers who spoke to Nordic Insights are leaving Ruka with confidence for the upcoming race weekends in Trondheim and Davos.
“I’m feeling like I’m in a good place,” Bolger said. “Ruka is one of, if not the hardest weekend of World Cups. Everyone is in shape and firing. And to know I’m knocking on the door, I’m carrying a lot of confidence into Trondheim next weekend.”
Schumacher felt much the same, adding: “My body felt better and better with each race, just bummed to miss out on a couple distance races.”
Based on this weekend’s results, the American men should have plenty to be proud of, alongside a few moments from which to draw motivation in the coming months. For those spectating at home, some things never change (Norwegian men winning a ski race), but if today’s race is any indication, there will be no shortage of exciting skiing this season.
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