Kristine Stavås Skistad finished last in the pursuit — slow 20 km at Tour de Ski

Kristine Stavås Skistad finished last in the pursuit

Norwegian sprint specialist Kristine Stavås Skistad ended up 69th — last of the 69 finishers — in the 20 km pursuit stage of the Tour de Ski in Val di Fiemme. She crossed the line more than 14 minutes behind stage winner Jessie Diggins.

After the race Skistad, who is primarily a sprinter and among the world’s best over short distances and an Olympic gold contender in the sprint, was blunt about her performance: “Today it felt like I had never skied before,” she told SVT Sport. She also said she recognises she is not strong at distances beyond sprint.

The result drew sharp reactions in Norway. NRK’s skiing expert Fredrik Aukland described footage of Skistad’s final lap as ‘‘almost like a Sunday walk’’ and called it ‘‘comical to watch’’.

Coach Sjur Ole Svarstad told NRK that Skistad and teammate Ingrid Bergene Aabrekk were prioritising the upcoming sprint on Saturday on the Olympic course in Val di Fiemme. He said they focused on getting through the distance without being lapped and likely conserved energy for the sprint, though the team had been concerned during the race when they briefly saw the yellow leader’s jersey alone in the woods.

Skistad said she was disappointed and critical of herself after the event. There was no time cut during the race to be removed from the course; the only requirement was to avoid being overtaken by the leader.

Facts: Tour de Ski

The last two stages are held in Val di Fiemme

Saturday 3 January 12:15 — Sprint qualification (k) women/men 14:45 — Sprint finals (k) women/men

Sunday 4 January 11:30 — Final climb, 10 km mass start (m) 15:30 — Final climb, 10 km mass start (w)

The article includes a video and interviews with Tour de Ski participants and links to related coverage.