Nordic Skiing/Biathlon Thread

[Mayomaniac]

The Swiss, the Germans, the French and Sweden all hard great skis. Things seem a lot more even after the Fluor ban.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Also, the Japanese talent Ryo Hirose 15th today, he'll be one to watch tomorrow.
I can see a stage top 10, or even top 5 by him.

 

[search]

The Swiss, the Germans, the French and Sweden all hard great skis. Things seem a lot more even after the Fluor ban.

the Swiss have had the best ski all week, at least going by what Nadine Fähndrich said. But to see Cyril up there was obviously still a massive surprise - I was more thinking about Klee to have an ouside shot maybe.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

Tomorrow will be interesting.
Moch clear favorite for second in my eyes. Lapalus most likely for third. Dønnestad is an unknown quantity in the climb, Nyenget and especially Valnes should suffer.
Klee the dark horse, he’s never been good up there before but he’s never been in this form before either. He looks to be pretty light.

On the stage I’m thinking Lapierre, Moch, Vermeulen and maybe Amundsen as the ones who will fight for the victory. Lapalus and Burman should do well also. I’m very interested in seeing what Jenssen can do also.

 

[BullsFan22]

It looks to be tricky conditions today, so I expect big ski differences. I wouldnt be very confident about my skis if I was Diggins and Brennan, in my memory the Americans are among the ones that more often have troubles on conditions like this.

It wouldn’t be the skis, it would be technique that fails them.

 

[BullsFan22]

The short lap in Val di Fiemme just sucks, it took a thermonuclear Klaebo to create legit gaps here in 2022.

Bolshunov fell on the Zorzi climb and lost time that he never recovered.

 

[BullsFan22]

The short lap in Val di Fiemme just sucks, it took a thermonuclear Klaebo to create legit gaps here in 2022.

Too bad they barely had any snow just a couple days ago, otherwise I think they could have used a 5km loop and it would have been a much better test.

I didn’t watch the races, but It seems that the snowfall had an impact again, as one would expect. No way Diggins hangs on and loses so little on a race like today, on a course where she’s lost 1:30 (and when it was only 10km). Too bad that Davos and now Val Di Fiemme are impacted by snow.. looking at the forecast, tomorrow may be ad well.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Too bad they barely had any snow just a couple days ago, otherwise I think they could have used a 5km loop and it would have been a much better test.

I didn’t watch the races, but It seems that the snowfall had an impact again, as one would expect. No way Diggins hangs on and loses so little on a race like today, on a course where she’s lost 1:30 (and when it was only 10km). Too bad that Davos and now Val Di Fiemme are impacted by snow.. looking at the forecast, tomorrow may be ad well.

Snow tomorrow might make the race a lot harder on those slopes...

Tbf, Diggins tried to prevent her technique from breaking down, Brennan on the other hand was suffering like a dog.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

I didn’t watch the races, but It seems that the snowfall had an impact again, as one would expect. No way Diggins hangs on and loses so little on a race like today, on a course where she’s lost 1:30 (and when it was only 10km). Too bad that Davos and now Val Di Fiemme are impacted by snow.. looking at the forecast, tomorrow may be ad well.

First of all, Diggins is much better in classic this season than previous years. She’s made a huge step forward in her diagonal technique.

Second, the fact she has lost 1:30 on this course previously means a lot less than what she has shown in other classic races this year. It’s been times where she’s been doing this race in bad form (like the last two years), it’s been times when her skis has been bad and it’s been times where she’s just not been good enough. The “not good enough” part has she clearly solved this year, with stable strong classic performances in most races.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

All in for Claudel and Laukli tomorrow. It's the only thing that can save this absolute s**t-show of a race.

Edit: well, or Eiduka getting on the podium, because I'd mark out like anything for that, but I think that's a bit too far-fetched.

 

[BullsFan22]

First of all, Diggins is much better in classic this season than previous years. She’s made a huge step forward in her diagonal technique.

Second, the fact she has lost 1:30 on this course previously means a lot less than what she has shown in other classic races this year. It’s been times where she’s been doing this race in bad form (like the last two years), it’s been times when her skis has been bad and it’s been times where she’s just not been good enough. The “not good enough” part has she clearly solved this year, with stable strong classic performances in most races.

She was in fine form the last two years. Others were just better. When were ‘her skis bad?’

You sound like the British Eurosport cheerleaders. “Oh her skis were slipping.” “Oh her form isn’t good.” “Oh she didn’t sleep well enough.” “Oh she misses her teddy bear.”

The ski conditions the last two races haven’t allowed for major pace changes and therefore the gaps aren’t there.

 

[frenchfry]

Awful, brick-through-the-TV spectacle.

FIS are happy though because they got what they wanted.

In many ways it reminded me of a sprint stage in cycling, of which I rarely watch anything but the finish.

 

[frenchfry]

I mean, he’s 37 now, I don’t know what he expects to get from racing the world cups, if he even qualifies to make the French team.

I think we have our answer about Manificat, even if todays race wasn't the best judge he finished 6th of the French team. To his credit he finished ahead of Chanavat and I fully expect him to do so again tomorrow as well (irony intended).

 

[BigCoward]

Norway should have to put 2 teams in the biathlon relay and split their best athletes.
They would come 1 and 2 probably but at least we would have a race.

 

[BigCoward]

Just catching up on the women's pursuit. The final shoot was comically bad.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

She was in fine form the last two years. Others were just better.

Sure, she was in fine form and had no problems during the Tour de Ski last year when she got beaten with 4 and a half minute overall. You probably think she was in normal good form that Tour just because she had the fastest time in the chasing start in Oberstdorf where she skier in a massive pack (11 girls finished together) and didn’t do very bad in the final climb.

The section where you compare me with cheerleaders I find funny. Funny because I think it’s ridicilous. The easy thing would be to just laugh it away and call you a hater. But Ive read enough posts from you in here now to make up my opinion that I personally think you don’t really know what you’re talking about when it comes to cross country.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

All in for Claudel and Laukli tomorrow. It's the only thing that can save this absolute s**t-show of a race.

Edit: well, or Eiduka getting on the podium, because I'd mark out like anything for that, but I think that's a bit too far-fetched.

Claudel and Laukli are really good bets for tomorrow. Together with Weng and Diggins they are clearly the most likely top 3.

Eiduka, it will be hard for her to get a podium tomorrow. I'm thinking about 5-8. In the overall she should be able to pass Hennig (only 4 seconds ahead) and maaybe Parmakoski if Krista isn't that motivated, but even if she pass those two Claudel is only 21 seconds behind, so it will be very difficult for her to reach a top 10. But this tour has been good for her after a though season start. 3 top 15s (should be 4 after tomorrow) and likely a 11th or 12th place in the overall is pretty good. And I think we will see an (even) better version of her in the last half of the season.

 

[search]

As a lightweight, Bergane should be a contender as well, I guess. Hard to say how much she has improved since last year, though.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

As a lightweight, Bergane should be a contender as well, I guess. Hard to say how much she has improved since last year, though.

If i remember correctly she paced really bad last year and lost a lot in the last part, so if she gets the pacing right she should do a lot better with the same physical level. However, she doesn’t strike me as a very tactical skier, so it wouldn’t surprise me if she does the same mistake tomorrow. But she definitively have huge potential for this stage.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Claudel and Laukli are really good bets for tomorrow. Together with Weng and Diggins they are clearly the most likely top 3.

Eiduka, it will be hard for her to get a podium tomorrow. I'm thinking about 5-8. In the overall she should be able to pass Hennig (only 4 seconds ahead) and maaybe Parmakoski if Krista isn't that motivated, but even if she pass those two Claudel is only 21 seconds behind, so it will be very difficult for her to reach a top 10. But this tour has been good for her after a though season start. 3 top 15s (should be 4 after tomorrow) and likely a 11th or 12th place in the overall is pretty good. And I think we will see an (even) better version of her in the last half of the season.

Yea, the Eiduka pick is very much a heart over head thing. I'm a big fan of hers. I think Claudel and Laukli are the main stage threats and are more realistic "outsider" winners (in that they are not people who typically threaten World Cup wins but their skillset and build particularly suits this stage), over Weng (she hasn't shown the kind of form to suggest she will win, but I'll never write her off since historically she's the second best climber of the mountain after Johaug). Diggins is an outside bet but I think she'll be more interested in managing the Tour overall GC lead than the stage so not risk going into the red chasing the likes of Claudel or Laukli for whom this is absolutely the kind of day their season is built around.

I bet Liz Stephen wishes they did this stage as a mass start when she was active. She was always my favourite American skier before, and used to set top 3 times on the Alpe regularly, but when it was done as a pursuit so it would often be off camera. Laukli has rather taken her mantle both in terms of skillset and in terms of my affections, and this stage affords her the chance to show herself at the head of the pack with the mass start.

 

[dobrien]

Yea, the Eiduka pick is very much a heart over head thing. I'm a big fan of hers. I think Claudel and Laukli are the main stage threats and are more realistic "outsider" winners (in that they are not people who typically threaten World Cup wins but their skillset and build particularly suits this stage), over Weng (she hasn't shown the kind of form to suggest she will win, but I'll never write her off since historically she's the second best climber of the mountain after Johaug). Diggins is an outside bet but I think she'll be more interested in managing the Tour overall GC lead than the stage so not risk going into the red chasing the likes of Claudel or Laukli for whom this is absolutely the kind of day their season is built around.

I bet Liz Stephen wishes they did this stage as a mass start when she was active. She was always my favourite American skier before, and used to set top 3 times on the Alpe regularly, but when it was done as a pursuit so it would often be off camera. Laukli has rather taken her mantle both in terms of skillset and in terms of my affections, and this stage affords her the chance to show herself at the head of the pack with the mass start.

I'm still not 100% convinced Sophia has recovered fully from being sick over the holidays; Claudel has looked a step above her most of the Tour IMHO (though hoping Sophia has just been skiing smart and not digging too deep..). Sophia needs to get to the bottom of the climb with Delphine; last year she was not well positioned and it cost her.

Eiduka winning would be amazing but I can't see her beating the very top climbers. I'd love to see Bergane get a big result; that would be really fun.

I think Diggins in this form would be in with a shot but agree with you that she'll be more focused on the overall. That said, given that Frida looks to be her main rival for the overall and will likely be very aggressive if she's feeling good, Diggins will have to be near the front by default. Frida pushed pretty hard Saturday; recovery will be big.

Very much agree with your thoughts regarding Liz Stephen; this race is way more fun as a mass start and I think she would have gotten a lot more recognition for her climbs had she not been coming from the pack.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Imo the Tour lacks a skating individual start, so just make Alpe Cermis an individual start.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

Imo the Tour lacks a skating individual start, so just make Alpe Cermis an individual start.

An intervalstart with start list where overall leader starts at last and one minute gap between every skier (maybe even put 2 minute for the last 10) could work well. Kind of a copy of the Giro stage to Monte Lussari.
However i don't think that is a realistic change.

I think with the Tour being around 7 race days (I had prefered a few more, but that seems unrealistic given how people seem to not prioritize the Tour in Championship seasons) it would be a realistic and balanced program with something like this:

1 classic sprint / 1 skate sprint
1 classic intervalstart 10-15 km / 1 skate intervalstart 10-15 km
1 classic masstart 20km+ / 1 skating masstart 20km+
Skating masstart up Alpe Cermis.

But I expect the chasing start to still be involved during the tours in the future.

 

[dobrien]

Imo the Tour lacks a skating individual start, so just make Alpe Cermis an individual start.

I think the Alpe Cermis stage works best as a mass start; just (IMHO) much more exciting to see who wins the stage outright and I like seeing the pure climbers get their day in the sun. I'm with Eddy E regarding his idea of a balanced Tour route.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Tarjei Bø deciding to make the relay a little more exciting by almost missing the start.

The difficult conditions might still ruin it for the Norwegians, but I doubt the other teams will have that amount of luck themselves.