Nordic Skiing/Biathlon Thread

[BullsFan22]

If Andersson and Karlsson don’t race the TDS, I am afraid it’s Diggins’s tour to lose. There’s nobody else that can challenge, apart from maybe Brennan, lol. Theres only two Geemans that could challenge, Carl and Hennig, and Hennig isn’t a sprinter and her skating is hit or miss.

Who will challenge from the Norwegians? Heidi Weng? Anne Kjersti Kalvå?

Finns haven’t had a good season and I don’t see them challenging either, maybe for a stage or two, but not the whole tour. Stadlober isn’t a sprinter.

Nepryaeva wasn’t allowed to defend her 2022 title last season, and she’s had two other overall TDS podiums before that, in 2019 and 2020. She’s, in my opinion, the most versatile skier. She’s not the best sprinter or distance skier, but she’s very good at everything, classic, skate, sprint, mass start, individual, and had improved her hill climbing since 2019. Too bad she isn’t there to contend. Hopefully next season.

 

[iBanesto]

Is it OK to say that I find Diggins quite fit?

Quite.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

If Andersson and Karlsson don’t race the TDS, I am afraid it’s Diggins’s tour to lose. There’s nobody else that can challenge, apart from maybe Brennan, lol. Theres only two Geemans that could challenge, Carl and Hennig, and Hennig isn’t a sprinter and her skating is hit or miss.

Who will challenge from the Norwegians? Heidi Weng? Anne Kjersti Kalvå?

Finns haven’t had a good season and I don’t see them challenging either, maybe for a stage or two, but not the whole tour. Stadlober isn’t a sprinter.

Nepryaeva wasn’t allowed to defend her 2022 title last season, and she’s had two other overall TDS podiums before that, in 2019 and 2020. She’s, in my opinion, the most versatile skier. She’s not the best sprinter or distance skier, but she’s very good at everything, classic, skate, sprint, mass start, individual, and had improved her hill climbing since 2019. Too bad she isn’t there to contend. Hopefully next season.

Finns also have people who can sprint OR people who can do distance. Nobody that can do both.

Without the Swedes it's going to be an intolerable propaganda offensive I'm afraid. The format this year with only the one interval start and half the races being in Diggins' backyard means that she would likely have been the favourite even before their removal, with it it's just going to be a nauseating festival of sycophancy and myth-making and I'm probably best off not watching at all.

She's won a World Cup overall and a Tour de Ski where basically 3/4 the competition weren't there at all, which are treated in retrospect like she beat peak Bjørgen and Johaug to do so, and now it looks like she'll get another huge slice of fortune in filling out the palmarès.

Maybe it's that vaunted "power of positivity" that Winterton keeps going on about. After all, during the biathlon at Lenzerheide he was going on about how if she took up biathlon, she'd be able to knock the targets down out of her pure positivity.

Yes - you can't even get away from the commentators going on about how wonderful she is by watching an entirely different sport.

 

[dobrien]

If Andersson and Karlsson don’t race the TDS, I am afraid it’s Diggins’s tour to lose. There’s nobody else that can challenge, apart from maybe Brennan, lol. Theres only two Geemans that could challenge, Carl and Hennig, and Hennig isn’t a sprinter and her skating is hit or miss.

Who will challenge from the Norwegians? Heidi Weng? Anne Kjersti Kalvå?

Finns haven’t had a good season and I don’t see them challenging either, maybe for a stage or two, but not the whole tour. Stadlober isn’t a sprinter.

Nepryaeva wasn’t allowed to defend her 2022 title last season, and she’s had two other overall TDS podiums before that, in 2019 and 2020. She’s, in my opinion, the most versatile skier. She’s not the best sprinter or distance skier, but she’s very good at everything, classic, skate, sprint, mass start, individual, and had improved her hill climbing since 2019. Too bad she isn’t there to contend. Hopefully next season.

Agree on Nepryaeva; one of my absolute favorite skiers to watch. XC desperately needs the Russians back, both from a sporting perspective and (for me at least) because they add an intangible factor skiers from other nations do not. Big fan.

 

[dobrien]

Finns also have people who can sprint OR people who can do distance. Nobody that can do both.

Without the Swedes it's going to be an intolerable propaganda offensive I'm afraid. The format this year with only the one interval start and half the races being in Diggins' backyard means that she would likely have been the favourite even before their removal, with it it's just going to be a nauseating festival of sycophancy and myth-making and I'm probably best off not watching at all.

She's won a World Cup overall and a Tour de Ski where basically 3/4 the competition weren't there at all, which are treated in retrospect like she beat peak Bjørgen and Johaug to do so, and now it looks like she'll get another huge slice of fortune in filling out the palmarès.

Maybe it's that vaunted "power of positivity" that Winterton keeps going on about. After all, during the biathlon at Lenzerheide he was going on about how if she took up biathlon, she'd be able to knock the targets down out of her pure positivity.

Yes - you can't even get away from the commentators going on about how wonderful she is by watching an entirely different sport.

In fairness to Jessie, she is certainly someone who would vastly prefer racing against the best of the best, not the watered down field we're likely to see at the TdS. In her current form she can clearly ski with anyone, but that fact isn't going to make swallowing this Tour any easier. It's obviously not Jessie's fault and she can, as they say, only beat who shows up, but if Ebba isn't there (not including Frida as she has just looked shaky this year) my interest in this race just plummets. My big hope is an epic Claudel/Laukli battle in the Alpe but even that may be unlikely; Claudel has looked a cut above all season and Sophia missed the last WC.

My viewing option is 'skiandsnowboard.live' , decent enough coverage with Chad Salmela and Kikkan Randall. Obviously they are big Jessie fans but not overly sycophantic and they won't shy from pointing out the 8000 pound gorilla in the room (namely the weakened field). It's not as unbearable at least as the coverage you're stuck with; I couldn't listen to that either

Anyone have thoughts on what in the heck is going on with the Swedes? Are they just unlucky or do they just not adhere as tightly to COVID safety protocols?

 

[OJRvE]

Halfvarsson confirmed starter in Tour de Ski despite recent covid-infection. He”ll travel to Toblach today.

 

[OJRvE]

And now both Frida Karlsson and Ebba Andersson conffirmed their respective participation on Instagram.

 

[dobrien]

And now both Frida Karlsson and Ebba Andersson conffirmed their respective participation on Instagram.

Very good news indeed!

 

[BullsFan22]

Finns also have people who can sprint OR people who can do distance. Nobody that can do both.

Without the Swedes it's going to be an intolerable propaganda offensive I'm afraid. The format this year with only the one interval start and half the races being in Diggins' backyard means that she would likely have been the favourite even before their removal, with it it's just going to be a nauseating festival of sycophancy and myth-making and I'm probably best off not watching at all.

She's won a World Cup overall and a Tour de Ski where basically 3/4 the competition weren't there at all, which are treated in retrospect like she beat peak Bjørgen and Johaug to do so, and now it looks like she'll get another huge slice of fortune in filling out the palmarès.

Maybe it's that vaunted "power of positivity" that Winterton keeps going on about. After all, during the biathlon at Lenzerheide he was going on about how if she took up biathlon, she'd be able to knock the targets down out of her pure positivity.

Yes - you can't even get away from the commentators going on about how wonderful she is by watching an entirely different sport.

Oh absolutely. That Covid season was strange, you could tell before it started it was gonna be strange with a lot of question marks. There were talks that it may not even take place.

Diggins’s closest competitor in 2021 was Stupak, and she came back after pregnancy and after missing almost a year of training, certainly a good chunk of the training. Nepryaeva wasn’t in form, Karlsson sustained a dumb injury playing pull ups in the hotel room, Andersson struggled with poor skis and perhaps some attitude issues, the Norwegians weren’t there and Parmakoski didn’t have a good season at all.

I actually think her third place in 2018 was more impressive than her win in 2021.

I’ve read that Andersson is healthy now and will race. Haven’t heard anything on Karlsson. If in good form, Sundling could be a strong challenger, but I don’t think she’s ever completed the entire tour.

 

[BullsFan22]

And now both Frida Karlsson and Ebba Andersson conffirmed their respective participation on Instagram.

Well, there we go, Karlsson will race

 

[Mayomaniac]

Oh absolutely. That Covid season was strange, you could tell before it started it was gonna be strange with a lot of question marks. There were talks that it may not even take place.

Diggins’s closest competitor in 2021 was Stupak, and she came back after pregnancy and after missing almost a year of training, certainly a good chunk of the training. Nepryaeva wasn’t in form, Karlsson sustained a dumb injury playing pull ups in the hotel room, Andersson struggled with poor skis and perhaps some attitude issues, the Norwegians weren’t there and Parmakoski didn’t have a good season at all.

I actually think her third place in 2018 was more impressive than her win in 2021.

I’ve read that Andersson is healthy now and will race. Haven’t heard anything on Karlsson. If in good form, Sundling could be a strong challenger, but I don’t think she’s ever completed the entire tour.

A dumb injury by doing pull ups on an ornated, wooded dorframe instead of going down to the gym. That and posting herself giving the middle finger to the broken doorframe afterwards made me really question her inteligence...

 

[OJRvE]

Klaebo and Kreuger out with illness.

Same goes with Iivo Niskanen

 

[KZD]

Klaebo and Kreuger out with illness.

Same goes with Iivo Niskanen

Its a shame, but for Amundsen and Golberg is the opportunity of a lifetime to win the World Cup.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Klaebo and Kreuger out with illness.

Same goes with Iivo Niskanen

Man, not Iivo and Krüger!

 

[Miss Violet Smith]

Klaebo and Kreuger out with illness.

Same goes with Iivo Niskanen

That makes me sad.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Maybe they should make them do the Alpe in classic one year to see if Iivo can be tempted.

Oskar Svensson's arms already screaming in pain.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Maybe they should make them do the Alpe in classic one year to see if Iivo can be tempted.

Oskar Svensson's arms already screaming in pain.

Slind would crush it double poling after last years win on the Plätzwiese in the ski classics (6kms at 9 percent).

I do have a soft spot for Svensson.

 

[BullsFan22]

Slind would crush it double poling after last years win on the Plätzwiese in the ski classics (6kms at 9 percent).

I do have a soft spot for Svensson.

No way would anyone try to double pole that route in a World Cup race

 

[Mayomaniac]

No way would anyone try to double pole that route in a World Cup race

Yeah, you're right about that one.
It was more about a hypothetical scenario with everyone going full Svensson.

 

[iBanesto]

What happened to Fillon Maillet after 2022?

 

[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.

He's been selected for the Tour de Ski, but I agree on wondering what he expects other than languishing in 40th place. Just another athlete that doesn't know when to retire gracefully?

 

[Mayomaniac]

He's been selected for the Tour de Ski, but I agree on wondering what he expects other than languishing in 40th place. Just another athlete that doesn't know when to retire gracefully?

His interviews sound rather ambitious, he wants to leave his mark.

I saw Golberg on the tracks between Innichen and Toblach today.

 

[search]

Vermeulen has been sick the past week, so he doesn't aim for the overall anymore. If he manages to recover, he hopes to fight for the podium on the final day.

 

[Miss Violet Smith]

Crossing my fingers for Chanavat!

 

[Mayomaniac]

Lol at the Austrian commentator calling the first climb super hard (I can V2 that one all the way with normal conditions) while not mentioning the steep climb over the stadium, where Sundling got a gap.
That said, the conditions are really deep on the first climb.