NewRacing Outlook

January 20, 2025

Updates on upcoming races including citizen race for Mayor's Challenge and more reschedules and cancellations.

Bearskin Lodge Coaches Clinic March 14-16

January 19, 2025

Bearskin Lodge is hosting an educational coaches clinic March 14-16, led by Team Birkie coach Erin Moening. Check out the scenic Gunflint ski trails, and exchange tips and build your coaching skills.

Ski Hut: Nordic Race Wax Clinic Thursday

January 19, 2025

Ski Hut continues their wax clinic series, this Thursday, Jan 23, will feature demonstrations and information on Nordic race waxing.

MNHSNSCA: Round 3 High School Rankings

January 19, 2025

The Minnesota High School Nordic Ski Coaches Association (MNHSNSCA) has released their third round rankings for the Minnesota High School Nordic ski season. Returning champs Linnea Ousdigian and Logan Drevlow continue at top of the rankings, with St. Paul Highland girls overtaking Washburn while Brainerd boys remaining first.

Ariens Nordic JNQ Freestyle Results

January 19, 2025

Ariens Nordic hosted 5K freestyle JNQ races on a crisp Sunday in Brillion. The day's fastest times came from U18 skier Anders Giese (Norge Ski Club) with 12:33.8 in the men's field and U18 skier Krin Blegen (Peak Nordic) with 14:22.8 in the women's field. Division winners included: Connor Reckinger and Onika Colassacco (both Bay Nordic) in U16, and Sawyer Hansen and Ashley Derenne (both Bay Nordic) in U14. Bay Nordic showed impressive depth, claiming four division victories on the day.

World Cup Les Rousses: Classic Distance

January 19, 2025

A mass-start 20K classic event wrapped up World Cup racing in Les Rousses on Sunday with athletes competing on a challenging, climbing-centric course. It was ladies first for the day, and from the start Sweden's Frida Karlsson was eager to lead the charge as she set the pace and strung out the field. Her efforts would net her nearly a minute and a half lead by the time she crossed the line, with her teammate Ebba Anderson the next skier in in second, and a content Teresa Stadlober of Austria finishing just behind her in third. Similar tactics were at play in the men's event, but a later push led to a closer finish with the race being decided in a three-way sprint between William Poromaa of Sweden, Iivo Niskanen of Finland, and Simen Hegstad Krueger of Norway. They would finish in that order, with Poromaa collecting his first career World Cup victory. Top finishes for American athletes came from Ben Ogden in 12th, and Sophia Laukli in 16th. Hopping the border, next weekend's races will take place a few hours to the east in Engadin, Switzerland.

ABC Relays Coverage

January 18, 2025

St. Paul Central claimed a nail-biting boys' team victory at the 2025 ABC Relays in Mora, edging Winona by just one second (35:47 to 35:48), while Minneapolis Washburn took the girls' team title in 39:53. In individual racing, Tanner Benson (Winona) won the boys' freestyle in 8:13 and Anders Decker (Armstrong) claimed the classic title in 8:38; Chloe Angerman (Minneapolis Washburn) dominated the girls' freestyle in 9:07 while Anna Gilmer (Winona) took the classic race in 9:58. The event featured 33 teams across boys and girls divisions, with each team fielding four skiers for the 3.2km relay segments. Results posted, along with photos by our photographer Shannon Brault.

Lapham Loppet Results

January 18, 2025

Danny Sonnentag of Cambridge, WI captured the overall men's freestyle title at the 2025 Lapham Loppet Saturday morning with a time of 26:03, followed closely by Conner Nilsen just one second behind, while Madison's Alice House claimed the women's freestyle crown in 30:53. Gus Roche from Peak Nordic secured the men's classic division victory at the 10.5K event. The race drew 130 registrants with 108 finishers across multiple age groups and disciplines to Lapham Peak.

Ariens Nordic JNQ/CCSA Classic Results

January 18, 2025

Northern Michigan University's Victoria Dybwad Klevan and College of St. Scholastica's Leevi Tarjanne captured the overall victories Saturday at the Ariens Nordic JNQ/CCSA Invite, with times of 37:16.0 and 32:20.6 respectively. Dybwad Klevan led a strong NMU women's performance, while Tarjanne edged out NMU's Luke Fricker by just 6.4 seconds in the men's race. The U20 and U18 categories saw impressive performances from emerging talents, with UW-Green Bay's Lillian Franzen and Zaine Braaten taking top honors in their respective U20 divisions, while Lakeland Nordic's Stella Meza and Hayward Nordic's Neel Dums claimed the U18 titles.

She de Ski Results

January 18, 2025

Over 200 women competed Saturday morning in the She de Ski races on the snowmaking trails at the Birkie Trailhead in Cable. Margie Nelson captured the women's 20K classic title while Chelsey Youngberg won the 30K freestyle.

World Cup Les Rousses: Classic Sprints

January 18, 2025

After the fast conditions yesterday in Les Rousses, France, World Cup athletes were geared up for another round of rapid racing with classic sprints on deck for Saturday. In the women's competition it was a star-studded show with almost all of the favorites making the final, but chief among them was Sweden's Jonna Sundling and Norway's Kristine Stavaas Skistad who's rivalry had them neck and neck to the finish. Ultimately it was Skistad who would be victorious on the day, with a surprise surge from another Swede, Maja Dahlqvist, relegating Sundling to third. The men's final finished in a similar style, albiet with less history and the nations reversed as Edvin Anger of Sweden took home his first World Cup victory over two Norwegians, Ansgar Evensen and Erik Valnes. A slight deviation from the norm, the standout for the States was on the men's team with JC Schoonmaker also making the men's final where he finished 5th, while Ben Ogden just missed the cut, finishing 9th. Rosie Brennan led the women's team with a 26th place finish. Sunday wraps up racing in Les Rousses with a mass-start 20K classic race as the final event.

World Cup Les Rousses: Freestyle Distance; Diggins and Ogden Go 1-3

January 17, 2025

Period III of the World Cup circuit got under way in Les Rousses on Friday, but desipte the weekend's competitions taking place in France, it was a day to celebrate for Les Red, White, et Blues. Taking part in an interval-start 10K freestyle event, Jessie Diggins showed her mettle, fighting through foot pain to take the win over some of the season's strongest so far: Astrid Oeyre Slind of Norway and Victoria Carl of Germany. She would credit her performance to the impressive Ben Ogden on the men's team, who just a few hours earlier put in an incredible solo effort to secure a third place finish in the men's race, his second World Cup podium and first ever in a distance event. His finish would put him under 10 seconds back from the men's race winner, Iver Tildheim Andersen of Norway, and less than 5 seconds out from second, Paal Goldberg, also of Norway. American fans had at least one more name to celebrate on the day however, Sophia Laukli, who also bounced back from injury to an 8th place finish. Looking to tomorrow, classic sprints will be the subject for Saturday.

Noquemanon Ski Marathon Cancelled Due to Low Snow

January 16, 2025

The 2025 Noquemanon Ski Marathon in Marquette, Michigan has been cancelled due to insufficient snow and poor trail conditions. Organizers cited safety concerns for the 800 registered racers. The race plans to defer registrations to 2026. Skiers are encouraged to still visit the area and explore other trails like Big Bay, Saux Head, and Valley Spur.

World Cup Racing: Les Rousses Schedule

January 14, 2025

World Cup racing returns this weekend for Period III of the circuit, a prologue for World Championships which are just over a month out. A trip to Les Rousses, France will start off the cycle with competitions getting underway on Friday. First up is an interval-start 10K freestyle race which will be taking place at 6:30 AM CST for the men, and 8:45 AM CST for the women. Then classic sprints take center stage on Saturday, with qualifiers taking place at 5:15 AM CST, and the knockout rounds happening afterward at 7:45 AM CST. Finally, the weekend's activities come to a close on Sunday with a mass-start 20K classic race for both the women's and men's fields which will start at 4:20 AM CST and 8:45 AM CST respectively. In addition to Jessie Diggins and Alayna Sonnesyn who were present for Period II, the Tour de Ski, and will be returning for Period III, Midwest supporters should be on the lookout for Luci Anderson, Emma Albrecht, Erin Bianco, and Zak Ketterson who may all be making appearances in the coming weeks.