Nordic Roundup: 13 U.S. worlds team, capitol sprints, Yank ladies jump well

Nordic Roundup: 13 U.S. worlds team, capitol sprints, Yank ladies jump well{mosimage}The U.S. Ski Team named eight men and five women Sunday to compete next month at the nordic World Championships, which return to Oberstdorf, Germany, site of the 1987 championships when cera-F wax made its official – and surprise – debut.

With some athletes already in Europe for a return to the World Cup during the January 22-23 races on the Olympic trails in Pragelato , near Sestriere, U.S. nordic chief Luke Bodensteiner announced the Worlds team Sunday night following SuperTour classic technique Capitol Square Sprints around the state capitol in Madison, Wisconsin. Final determination of the team was made following the U.S. Cross Country Championships at Utah’s Soldier Hollow. Among the picks: 37-year-old Sarah Konrad, a strong skater who went to Soldier Hollow after having qualified for the biathlon team at that sport’s World Championships in Hochfilzen, Austria, March 4013. Seven of the eight men, two of the five women, raced at the 2003 Worlds in Val di Fiemme, Italy.

SuperTour winner’s mom flew home to watch him

Former University of Utah racer Zach Simons won the men’s Capitol sprint Sunday despite ch-ch-chilling, single-number, “shouldn’t-we-be-ice-fishing?” cold. Perhaps the only person in the crowd of faux Green Bay Packers fans who was happier than he was his mother, a native of Madison, who made plans to fly from her Park City home back to her original hometown as soon as she heard the SuperTour would be in Madison.

The women’s winner – in a breeze (by 100 meters or more) – was Lindsay Williams, one of the “Sten-cats” at the Northern Michigan University (the Wildcats are coached by Sten Fjeldheim) and the newly crowned women’s sprint champion from at the U.S. championships earlier this month at Soldier Hollow, Utah. Seems as though classic skiing agrees with her. Named to compete at Worlds, Williams is considering whether to go since she would have to leave Oberstdorf early so she can get back to classes and college racing before NCAA Championships in March, hosted in Stowe by the University of Vermont.

The course included 100,000 cubic feet of snow, which was made by Tyrol Basin Ski Area and hauled onto the site, starting late Friday night. Luke Bodensteiner, U.S. nordic director who grew up skiing in Wisconsin (before winning two U.S. titles and competing in two Olympics), said the response from the crowd, braving the cold to see the races “was just what we were after. We’ve tried city sprints before, and – except for the weather – this was a textbook example of what we were seeking.”

U.S. women sparkle in jumping opener

This is the first season in which women’s ski jumping has a Continental Cup schedule; previously, the women’s events have been Grand Prix contests, but FIS agreed last year to upgrade the sport to Continental Cup. The first official meets were held last July at Utah Olympic Park .

The women’s schedule got underway Sunday in Planica, Slovenia, and three U.S. women were in the top 10. Anette Sagen of Norway, the world junior champ a year ago and the Grand Prix champion, won the opener, jumping 104.5 and 102.5 meters for 279.0 points. Second place went to Lindsey Van, who won one of last year’s events and was second overall; she jumped 99.5 and 96.5m (263.0 points) while Jessica Jerome was fifth and Alissa Johnson eighth. Other Yanks in the field: Brenna Ellis was 22nd and Karla Keck 25th.

Marcialonga cracks 4,000 entries

The racers will range from a just-turned-18-year-old to an 86-year-old man January 30 when the Marcialonga is staged from Moena (in the Val di Fassa) to Cavalese (in the Val di Fiemme) in Italy. Officials say the field of 4,000-plus will include some 850 Norwegians, including Athens kayaking gold medal-winner Veraas Larsen.

A year ago, the Marcialonga, a 70km classic technique race, was part of the World Cup schedule. This season, it’s a Marathon Cup race but not part of the World Cup.

3rd Great Nordeen&Shortnord race Jan. 22

It’s one of the most unusual race courses anywhere – how many have lava flows? The 3rd U.S. Bank Great Nordeen&Shortnord Nordic Ski Race will be held January 22 at Mount Bachelor, Oregon.

There are two race lengths – 30 kilometers and a 42km route – in this fundraiser for the Nordic Department of the Mount Bachelor Ski Education Foundation; it honors central Oregon skiing pioneer Emil Nordeen. The action begins at Sunrise Lodge and traipses over lava flows, hemlock and pine forests. Adding to the fun, misery, chuckles, torture and yuks is the fact the course is groomed only once a year. For details, call the NBSEF (541-388-0002) or go the foundation website.