Cross Country Skiing
Cross-Country TD Seminar in Val di Fiemme Brings Together 25 Nations
October 22, 2025 / FIS (International Ski & Snowboard Federation)
FIS hosted a Cross-Country Technical Delegate seminar in Val di Fiemme, Italy, on October 17–19, 2025, drawing nearly 90 participants from 25 nations. Sessions covered jury work, rule updates, homologation, rollerski, popular and Para Cross-Country, and course/stadium preparation, with contributions from athletes, officials, and external experts. The venue, which will host the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic and Paralympic events, underscored the focus on harmonizing standards across FIS competitions.
Finnish Ski Association chief welcomes FIS decision to keep Russians out; ex-biathlon star’s nuclear threat remark draws outrage
October 21, 2025 / Yle
Finnish Ski Association chair Sirpa Korkatti says the FIS board’s decision to continue banning Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competitions is welcome and the result of sustained Nordic advocacy. Her firm stance—also warning Russians would not be allowed at the Ruka World Cup opener due to entry bans—triggered fierce reactions in Russia, including a shocking comment from four-time Olympic biathlon champion Aleksandr Tikhonov suggesting a nuclear strike on Finland. Korkatti says most feedback in Finland’s sports community has been positive, and she now looks ahead to the Ruka World Cup and the Milan–Cortina 2026 Olympics.
Guide: Cross-Country World Cup 2025/2026
October 21, 2025 / SVT Sport
SVT’s season guide outlines the full FIS Cross-Country World Cup calendar for 2025/26, beginning in Ruka in late November and ending in Lake Placid in March. It lists Sweden’s national team squads and recaps the overall World Cup standings from 2024/25, when Johannes Høsflot Klæbo and Jessie Diggins won the overall titles. The schedule includes classic and freestyle sprints, interval starts, skiathlon, mass starts, and the Tour de Ski in Toblach/Val di Fiemme.
Russian and Belarusian skiers barred from Winter Olympics: “My country is always right”
October 21, 2025 / Sveriges Radio - Radiosporten
FIS has announced that Russian and Belarusian cross-country skiers will not be allowed to qualify for the Milano–Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. The decision sparked an angry response from Russian skier Veronika Stepanova, who wrote that Vladimir Putin is her president and "my country is always right." Russian and Belarusian skiers have been excluded from international competition since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Russian star Veronika Stepanova: “Vladimir Putin is my president and my country is always right”
October 21, 2025 / SVT Sport
The International Ski Federation (FIS) announced that Russian and Belarusian skiers will not be allowed to compete at the Milano–Cortina 2026 Olympics. Russian cross‑country skier Veronika Stepanova reacted by affirming support for Vladimir Putin and accusing FIS of political discrimination, saying she is willing to pay the price of being barred. Swedish FIS board member Karin Mattsson countered that Russia and Belarus have long instrumentalized sport, which is why this war is treated differently.
Anders Blomquist on FIS barring Russians from the 2026 Olympics: “The only ethically defensible choice”
October 21, 2025 / SVT Sport
SVT expert Anders Blomquist welcomes the International Ski and Snowboard Federation’s decision to bar Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing at the Milano–Cortina 2026 Olympics. He argues it is the only ethically defensible outcome given the ongoing war, a view echoed by athletes such as Sweden’s Calle Halfvarsson. The piece notes Russia will appeal the FIS ruling.
Cross-country: Mika Vermeulen on meeting Russian skiers in Austria: “Fuck off”
October 21, 2025 / SVT Sport
Austrian cross-country skier Mika Vermeulen says several Russian athletes are training in Ramsau, Austria while awaiting a FIS decision on Olympic eligibility for Russians and Belarusians. Vermeulen told the podcast “Skirious Problems” he was happy to see some young Russians but was disturbed by meeting Veronica Stepanova, who openly supports Vladimir Putin, saying it felt wrong and his reaction was “Fuck off.” The debate comes as FIS was set to decide whether Russians/Belarusians could try to qualify for the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympics, with Sweden, Norway, and Finland opposing their return.
Decision on Russia’s Olympic status could affect Linn Svahn’s participation
October 21, 2025 / Sveriges Radio (Radiosporten)
The International Ski Federation (FIS) is set to decide whether Russian and Belarusian skiers may compete at the 2026 Olympics under a neutral flag. Sweden’s Linn Svahn says the Games should be boycotted if they are allowed to participate, while former Swedish federation chair Karin Mattsson and Norway’s national team leadership back maintaining the ban. The outcome could directly impact Olympic cross-country fields and Svahn’s own decision to compete.
Norwegian expert surprised by continued Russia ban – Russian coach alleges Nordic boycott threat
October 21, 2025 / Yle
The International Ski Federation (FIS) decided to continue banning Russian and Belarusian athletes from its competitions, drawing praise from stars like Johannes Høsflot Klæbo and agreement from Halvor Egner Granerud. NRK commentator Jan Petter Saltvedt was surprised, believing FIS leadership under Johan Eliasch had been working to enable a return. Russia’s head cross‑country coach Yuri Borodavko claimed Nordic nations threatened a boycott if Russians were readmitted, a claim Finnish FIS Council member Martti Uusitalo denied; Sweden’s Karin Mattsson cited politicization of sport by Putin and Lukashenko, and referenced Veronika Stepanova’s pro‑Kremlin stance.
No Russian skiers at the 2026 Olympics – stars react: “The right decision”
October 21, 2025 / SVT Sport
FIS has ruled that Russian and Belarusian skiers cannot qualify for the Milano–Cortina 2026 Olympics. Top athletes Johannes Høsflot Klæbo and Calle Halfvarsson support the decision, saying no participation should be allowed while the war in Ukraine continues. Halfvarsson acknowledges the sporting unfairness for individuals not involved in the war but maintains the stance is necessary; the ban applies across all FIS sports and Paralympics.
FIS rules Russian and Belarusian skiers out of international competitions and the 2026 Olympics after six-hour council meeting
October 21, 2025 / Yle
The FIS Council decided that athletes from Russia and Belarus remain barred from World Cup events and from the Milano–Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, even as neutral athletes. Finnish council member Martti Uusitalo said the debate was open and lengthy before an anonymous vote, aligning with Finland’s long-standing stance against readmission. While other federations in skating and ski mountaineering have allowed neutrals, biathlon’s IBU and the international bobsleigh federation have taken similar exclusionary positions; FIS President Johan Eliasch had advocated for reinstatement but was overruled.
NRK reveals FIS leaders’ letter seeking support to re‑admit Russian and Belarusian skiers
October 17, 2025 / Yle
Norwegian broadcaster NRK obtained a confidential letter from FIS leaders—president Johan Eliasch, secretary general Michel Vion and CEO Urs Lehmann—aiming to secure member support to bring Russian and Belarusian athletes back to competitions this winter under neutral status. Norway’s ski federation and Finland’s ski federation oppose the move, with Finnish chair Sirpa Korkatti saying Russians will not be allowed at the Ruka World Cup opener due to entry bans. FIS’s council will decide on October 21; athletes linked to the military or who supported the war would remain excluded, and team events would still be off‑limits.