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By Gavin Kentch
LAGO DI TESERO — Fans wishing to show their support for either country or athlete at the Olympics, which is most of them, have a tougher row to hoe when it comes to cross-country skiing than, say, hockey. Hockey jerseys are a thing, and while the company that makes them (and most other fan apparel) in this country lowkey sucks, at least you can buy them. Fans of cross-country skiing, by contrast, are left with either something commercially available like the NNF face bibs (which are awesome; major shoutout to whoever came up with that idea), or a more DIY approach.
Here is a very unscientific look at some of the fan outfits seen around the venue through the first seven days of racing. Pictures are presented in the order of nations’ standings in the cross-country skiing medal count after the relays and coming into the team sprint, a ranking in which the United States currently sits ahead of traditional nordic powers Finland and Italy. Hells yeah Ben and Jessie.
You can decide for yourself what to make of this gallery. It is clearly a fun roundup of different fans’ outfits. But I would submit that there is actually something poignant about this, too: the Polish village that traveled to cheer on one of their own as she finished far back of the medals, the supporter of a Spanish skier whom I had frankly never heard of, the fan of Russian neutral athlete Saveliy Korostelev who had to carefully craft his sign so that it would be allowed inside the venue (i.e., not mention Russia in any way whatsoever). Klæbo being cheered on by his gorgeous fiancée as he wins everything in sight is an easy story to tell; there are other stories here, too, and it was important to these fans that they tell them. Enjoy.
In tiled galleries, click on any image to enlarge.
Norway
This is Johannes Høsflot Klæbo’s fiancée, Pernille Døsvik. I’m going to pretend that I knew what when I took this photo, rather than just reasoning, “I know I know this person from somewhere; I’m sure I can figure that out later.” So pro here.
Døsvik is admittedly most famous for being Klæbo’s betrothed, but she is also studying civil engineering and marine technology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and is by all accounts, if possible, even kinder than Klæbo. Which is saying something.
From Devin Ward, on course: “A very drunk Norwegian man in jorts”
Bonus fan submission: These two came in over the transom from reader Øystein Vereide, who wished to be included. I deeply respect the hustle. File under Norway, obviously, but also Sweden, so let’s put them here as a transition:
Sweden
From Devin: “They are wearing IKEA bags”
France
United States
Some Jessie Diggins supporters:
Sammy Smith family and friends. This is really wholesome. Look at those personalized hats.
Lauren Jortberg family and friends:
Julie Ensrud, spouse of Zak Ketterson (and a fine skier and coach in her own right, but the Zak connection feels relevant here):
Bridging the Alaska–Minnesota divide. Also, I went to elementary school with the person on the far left of this photo (which I didn’t even take), in case you were ever curious how few people really live in Alaska.
Didn’t track down the person behind this flag, but it’s got to be connected to either Jessie Diggins (born to Canadian parents and married to a Canadian) or Lauren Jortberg (dating Antoine Cyr, as shown above in the Team Lauren photo).
I can’t end the American section with anything other than Andrea Ogden, Ben’s mom, on classic sprint day (orange hat, center). Thanks for the hug when I tried to interview you but kept on crying, Andrea; I needed it. Possibly I am getting choked up again when I just look at this photo. Never apologize for caring.
Finland
[Somehow didn’t photograph any Finnish fans yet, sorry. Will look tomorrow and update this as I can.]
Italy
Other
Team Katharina Hennig (now Katharina Hennig Dotzler) of Germany:
Poland:
“Ola, we are with you!
“Residents of the Mszana Dolna commune”
Skier Aleksandra Kołodziej is portrayed on the banner. It took me a while to track down that one, so please appreciate that insight.
Also, this family was exceedingly kind. And when I told them, truthfully, that my middle name is “Orlansky” and that my family immigrated from the old country in 1906 (at which point the middle name was Fudelowitz, which is even more Polish), they told me that I was “basically Polish” and that I should come back and visit soon, which was a nice departure from me apologizing about Trump all the time at these Games. Big shoutout to the kind residents of Mszana Dolna.
Additionally: In a too-good-to-be-true bit of kismet, my eSIM for this month is somehow tied to Poland, so my computer thinks that I am about 30 kilometers away from Mszana Dolna as I write this, and is always bringing me “local” search results in Polish. I was not expecting the Olympics to break down international barriers in this precise manner. Also, if you are at these Games and get a text from a +48 number with a media question, please answer it. Thanks.
Fan of Spanish athlete Bernat Sellés Gasch:
Савелий, or Saveliy (Korostelev), the Russian skier competing here as a neutral athlete. I have complicated feelings about this one, but the kid was proud of his (scrupulously neutral) sign, and the father was proud of his kid, holding him up for the photo, and those at least are easy things to get behind.
Haiti: This is National Olympic Committee staff, not fans per se, but the horse on the jacket goes incredibly hard here; I could not resist. It is a symbol of Haitian revolutionary hero Toussaint Louverture, but not too much of a symbol; this article gives helpful background on the attempt to visually evoke Louverture, while not running afoul of IOC rules prohibiting political imagery on Olympic uniforms. Because one thing that international sport is not is political!
You’re reading this on Nordic Insights, one man’s labor of love dedicated to publicizing American skiing. We started with nothing and now we’re at the Olympics. You can read more about our first three years here, and donate to the Olympics fund here. Thank you for consideration, and, especially, for reading.
