Sprint shock in Davos: Klæbo knocked out in quarterfinal; Chanavat wins, Skistad disqualified

Johannes Høsflot Klæbo exited the Davos World Cup sprint in the quarterfinals after an uncharacteristic loss of balance and technical errors in key corners. NRK expert Torgeir Bjørn noted that the usually composed “King Klæbo” looked unsettled and came close to crashing. Although Klæbo fought back through the field, another poor turn before the finish left him fourth in his heat and out on time as a “lucky loser.”

The result breaks several long streaks: it is Klæbo’s first quarterfinal exit since his World Cup debut day in Drammen on 3 February 2016, and his first sprint without a win since January 2024, ending a 21‑race sprint winning streak (including two national races, 18 World Cups, and last winter’s World Championship sprint). According to commentator Jann Post, Klæbo left the finish area visibly angry, throwing his poles, before leaving the venue as national sprint coach Arild Monsen followed to speak with him.

With Klæbo out, Lucas Chanavat captured the victory on a photo finish ahead of Federico Pellegrino, with Norway’s Oskar Opstad Vike in third.

The women’s event brought its own drama. In the final downhill into the finishing straight, Kristine Stavås Skistad made contact with Nadine Fähndrich, impeding the Swiss skier. Skistad initially crossed second in her heat but was relegated for obstruction, and because it was her second yellow card of the season, she was later disqualified from the race. Skistad said she arrived with high speed and lightly touched from behind as those ahead slowed, calling it “a boring way to go out,” while experts debated the severity; some suggested it could be seen as a race incident, but the jury took a strict view.

Without Skistad in the final, Mathilde Myhrvold came within eight hundredths of her first World Cup win, losing to Jonna Sundling in a photo finish.

This sprint also marked the first World Cup competition allowing neutral Russian and Belarusian athletes since 2022. Neither Saveliy Korostelev nor Daria Nepryaeva advanced from the prologue. Korostelev, competing as a neutral, called it a harsh World Cup re‑entry and said a distance race might have suited him better. The athletes have been absent from the circuit since they were expelled while in Holmenkollen nearly four years ago.

The Davos sprint concluded with high‑profile exits, a controversial disqualification, and a notable return of neutral athletes under strict eligibility rules.