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By Peter Minde
A half-second doesn’t sound like much, but it translated into two ski lengths for Coletta Rydzek as she successfully brought home the win for Germany in Friday’s women’s skate team sprint in Goms. It marked the first of three days of racing in Switzerland in the final World Cup weekend before the Olympics.
Rydzek combined with teammate Laura Gimmler for a winning time of 20:33.34. Norway I, consisting of Astrid Øyre Slind and Julie Bjervig Drivenes, was 0.52 back for second. Rounding out the podium was Norway II, Karoline Grøtting and Tiril Udnes Weng, in third, 0.72 seconds off the pace. Behind Finland in fourth, USA I, with Sammy Smith and Julia Kern, was fifth, 7.23 seconds back.
Goms lies in Switzerland’s Valais Canton at 1251 meters (4104 feet) elevation, just shy of the Italian border. The ski trails sit a bit above the village, with the high point of the sprint course clocking in at 1374 meters, or 4508 feet. While not appearing to be as technically demanding as Oberhof the previous week, there are definitely spots where one wants to pick a line.
After a flattish start, the main climb tops out at the 500-meter mark, roughly a third of the way through the course. At 30 meters of gain this is a full-on A-climb, notable for a sprint course. There’s a long descent from here and a shorter climb featuring a hairpin right turn at the top. Then one drops back down, and there is a long stretch of flat terrain to the finish of the 1500-meter loop.
On top of all this, the altitude could also come into play. Athletes did not look happy at the close of the qual.
Interviewed on TV, Swiss women’s coach Guidon said of the course, “The first uphill is maybe a little too early [to make a move], and the last climb of the first uphill is steeper than the beginning. The second uphill and how you come out is really important. It’s really not finished until they’re over the finish line.”
At the start, air temperature was 17 degrees (-8.3 C), with snow temperature nearly the same. Humidity 95 percent, with hard-packed snow. Some notable athletes weren’t in the mix today. Jessie Diggins chose not to race, her standard practice for team events with no World Cup points available (relays and team sprints) for several seasons now. Sweden had a last-minute substitution due to illness.
Following qualification — both American teams were among the 15 teams out of 22 that made it through — fifteen leg-one skiers toed the start line for the final. The race started conservatively. Through the first lap, the group stayed together, with multiple lead changes. No point in trying to be a hero here. Coming into the first exchange, Smith was well placed in fourth.
Further back, Lauren Jortberg, starting for USA II, took a tumble coming into the stadium.
“Unfortunately, I came around the turn into the stadium with another skier who took the turn really wide — causing me to either crash into her or ski off the course,” Jortberg wrote in an email. “That was a huge bummer because then we were no longer in the conversation. I feel really bad for my teammate because I didn’t give her an opportunity to show what she could do.”
Nevertheless, Jortberg took positives away from her day: “The qualification went really well — it was probably my best World Cup qualification to date. It is a smaller field but time back wise as well as place. I really love the course here!”
The group was fairly close together as they came into the tag zone for the first exchange. Gimmler tagged off to Rydzek, who led the second lap out of the stadium. Then it was Norway II, Sweden I, and Finland I. Smith tagged off to Julia Kern in fifth place. Jortberg handed off to Kendall Kramer in 15th, roughly 13 seconds back of the leader. Kramer would gradually work her way back into the scrum, logging the day’s fifth-fastest leg-two time in the process.
Lap two would be one of carnage. After the sweeping left turn at the foot of the first hill, France I’s Melissa Gal tangled with someone — possibly Drivenes — and fell. Weng led over the top of the first climb. Behind her, Federica Cassol and Nicole Monsorno, of Italy I and Italy II, respectively, tangled and fell. A brutta figura, as they were sixth and seventh at that time.
Weng led down the hill, the skiers stringing out in a line as they approached the second hill. Followed by France II and Switzerland, Weng led into the stadium for the second exchange. But it was Switzerland who led out of the stadium for the third lap, followed by Norway II. Nadja Kaelin of Switzerland put up a strong showing to lead Grøtting (Norway II) over the first hill. Smith was towards the back of this lead group, but still in a good position as they were still close together.
Coming into the third exchange, it was Norway II, Switzerland, and Germany I. Then, a gap back to France I and Sweden I. At this point, USA I had dropped back to 10th place. In another mishap, Iris de Martin Pinter and Cassol of Italy I collided in the exchange zone. They’d finish 12th on the day, 59.3 seconds back.
On the fourth lap, a pack of ten went off the front going up the first climb. France I led up the second hill, but at the hairpin’s apex, Norway II pulled into first. Coming into the stadium to exchange yet again, it was Norway II, France I, and Germany I. Initially strung out, the pack of ten tightened up here.
When Kern handed off to Smith for the fifth lap, USA I was sixth, 2.1 seconds off the pace. At the base of the first climb, Smith bridged up to the leading group of five.
If anyone had been holding back, now would be the time to burn a match or two. Norway II and Norway I led over the top of the first hill. On the descent, they gained only a ski length of daylight to the next skiers. But jumpskating over the second climb, they controlled the tempo. Norway II’s Grøtting led down into the stadium, with Smith in fifth place. From six time zones away, it appeared that Smith’s skis weren’t quite as fast as those of the leaders. Into the exchange Norway II led from Germany, Norway I, and Switzerland, with a slight gap back to Smith.
As they left the stadium for the final time, Kern and France I’s Gal worked to bridge up to the leading four. At the foot of the first climb, Germany I’s Rydzek led, separated from Kern, in sixth, by just 3.4 seconds. All day, Norway had been controlling the pace, but controlling the pace and winning the race are two different tins of wax. Weng led over the second climb, but Rydzek hunted her down.
Coming into the final turn in the stadium, Rydzek was second, the filler in a Norwegian sandwich. Weng of Norway II led; then Rydzek, then Drivenes of Norway I. In the finishing straight, Rydzek ramped up the tempo, and neither Norwegian could match her. She Rydzek, with Drivenes (+0.52) nipping Weng (+0.72) for second place.
Kern came across the line in fifth, 7.23 seconds back, after losing contact over the close of the final lap.
In a TV interview afterwards, Rydzek said, “I’m happy I had such a good finish. It’s not always as easy as it looks.”
Both Rydzek and her teammate Gimmler are from Oberstdorf, Germany. “It was a pretty hard race,” Gimmler said. “We tried to slow it down. It worked.” Asked if they’d be paired for the team sprint in the Olympics, both women demurred.
In a message after the race, Julia Kern wrote, “Today went pretty well. Given that it was a hard course, Sammy and I planned to stay as relaxed as possible and keep contact with the leaders. Then, see what was left in the final lap and let it rip. For the most part, we were able to execute. The last lap was really hard and I didn’t have quite enough left in the tank to keep contact. I’m proud of how we skied and how we left it all out there!”
Following her qualification round, Smith told a TV reporter, “It was good, it was fun, it’s a hard course. Great conditions, fun to be racing.” Asked by the FIS correspondent about the possibility of competing in this event at the Olympics next month, Smith politely said only, “I’m super excited to be with Jessie and Julia and support them.”
Writing to Nordic Insights afterwards, Smith said of her day, “It was a hard race. There’s a lot of climbing; definitely one of the more challenging sprint courses I’ve ever raced! I tried to think about skiing smooth and composed; to ski as hard as I could while conserving energy. The conditions were great, fast skiing, great weather, can’t ask for anything more!
“Julia and I talked about trying to stay patient and match moves for the first two laps. We wanted to stay in contact with the front of the group and then give everything we had for the final lap. Both of us were happy with how the day went!”
Racing continues in Goms tomorrow with a classic sprint. The American women send a full six athletes to the start line: Kern, Smith, Jortberg, Rosie Brennan, Jessie Diggins, and Hailey Swirbul. Smith was born in 2005. Brennan was born in 1988. There’s a lot of different paths to the top in this sport.
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