By Adele Haeg
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Norway’s Kristine Stavås Skistad claimed the first stage of the 20th Tour de Ski this morning in Toblach, Italy, doing what she does best: sprinting.
Skistad’s prowess as a sprinter is by now well-proven. She doesn’t have the all-around versatility of a Diggins or a Klæbo, but she excels as a sprint specialist. The 26-year-old only had her first World Cup victory about three years ago, in a Les Rousses sprint during the 2022/2023 season. Since then, she’s racked up 13 wins total, all of them sprints. That’s more sprint wins than Jonna Sundling.
Skistad told reporters in Toblach today after her win that “it was a hard final.” Too true. She also said, “It’s good to be back.”
Skistad may be fast but she is not talkative, at least in English. Though I find it hard to imagine that she is particularly loquacious in any language. Chad Salmela called her an “enigma” on the live broadcast.
What made it a “hard final” was the course and Skistad’s competition. Alayna Sonnesyn, who did not qualify for the heats today, told Nordic Insights that the Toblach course is “three minutes of going absolutely balls to the wall.” Julia Kern, who was 15th in the qual and finished 17th in the heats, said it is “annoying skiing,” with much “haggling” and turning.
As for the competition, Skistad won the final in 2:49.79, with Germany’s Coletta Rydzek in second (+0.24) and Sweden’s Maja Dahlqvist in third (+0.35), both less than half a second behind Skistad. Diggins, favorite for the Tour, came in fourth (+1.32). It was Diggins’s best sprint result of the season so far.
The stakes were of course higher today than they would be in any other World Cup. The winner, Skistad, received a bonus of 60 seconds in the overall Tour de Ski standings. Rydzek got 54 seconds, and Diggins 46. That goes a long way towards the overall standings, though Skistad is not necessarily a contender for that trophy. If it was all sprints, maybe. Among the top four finishers today, Diggins certainly has the best shot at the overall.
Today, with top competitors Linn Svahn and Jonna Sundling out of contention for the Tour, it was really down to a duel between sprinters Skistad and Sweden’s Johanna Hagström, who had qualified in sixth and fourth, respectively. In the final, Hagström took a fall right out of the gates. She recovered to finish in fifth, ahead of Norway’s Mathilde Myhrvold. The Norwegian unfortunately had an even worse fall on the day, ultimately withdrawing from the Tour with what would be diagnosed as a dislocated shoulder.
With Hagström out, Skistad seemed poised for victory, taking a lead from the start. Diggins made a move on the first hill of the course to outpace her, but could not keep up into the finish.
Nonetheless, Diggins raced with confidence, qualifying in fourth and finishing in fourth. “Anytime Jessie Diggins qualifies in the top five, that’s always a really good sign that she’s in good form,” said Randall, her former teammate, on the broadcast. It shows a certain self-knowledge — it’s rare that one finishes in precisely the same spot one qualifies, unless that spot is first.
Six out of Diggins’s 30 World Cup victories have come on this course in Toblach. She knows it well, and it showed in her skiing today. Still, she could not match Skistad and Dahlqvist’s efforts today — she tried to free-skate to catch up with them near the end of the sprint, but their glide down the final hill was faster.
Diggins said, in audio shared with multiple media outlets, “It’s fun to feel like my speed is coming and the race sharpness is starting to come into place and I’m just excited for one last Tour de Ski.” (hear more from Diggins below)
Last year, after Diggins won the opening skate sprint in Toblach, she told reporters on site: “I kind of thought I was getting old and not ready to have another sprint victory in my life, so this was an amazing surprise.”
For extra motivation, Diggins spent Christmas this year with her family and Europe, and they were in Toblach today too. “I heard my parents and my sister out there cheering, which was honestly the highlight,” she said. “It’s super cool to have them here.”
As for the other American women, Julia Kern qualified in 15th, and raced against Diggins in the fourth quarterfinal heat, finishing 17th overall. Neither Luci Anderson nor Alayna Sonnesyn, both of Team Birkie, qualified for the heats, finishing in 35th and 66th respectively.
Julia Kern told Nordic Insights, “I’m proud of the qualifier. I think qualifying fast is hard for me.” On the question of whether Olympic considerations were affecting her strategy for the Tour, Kern said “usually the Tour is when things start turning a corner” in terms of fitness. She said it’s a “crucial part” of her overall training plan. She has now raced the Tour eight times. Hear her full comments here:
Following the race, Sonnesyn announced her withdrawal from the Tour. “Not quite the race I was hoping for today,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “I’ve made the decision to forgo the rest of the Tour de Ski and head back to America for US Nationals. I’m sorry to say goodbye to the Tour AND I’m so excited to have this smile plastered on my face for a week while racing on home soil and seeing so many friends and family. Can’t wait to see you in Lake Placid! 🩷”
Sonnesyn also shared more thoughts with Nordic Insights today:
The second stage of the Tour will take place tomorrow with a 10-kilometer interval-start classic race. Diggins has been drawn in bib no. 54, an advantageous position near the end of the seeded field. Diggins has positioned herself well for a bid at a third Tour trophy, and the quest continues tomorrow.
Results: skate sprint | Tour standings
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