Latest from Tour de Ski: Mathilde Myhrvold withdraws with shoulder injury

Cross-country sprinter Mathilde Myhrvold has withdrawn from the Tour de Ski after dislocating her left shoulder in a fall during Sunday’s sprint in Toblach, Italy. Speaking to NRK the next morning outside the team hotel, Myhrvold said she initially feared the worst and now doubts she will be ready for the Olympics in February. She will return to Norway for MRI scans and a rehabilitation plan.

Women’s national team coach Sjur Ole Svarstad urged patience, noting her condition already looked better the day after the crash. Team doctor Ove Feragen confirmed the dislocation happened when Myhrvold braced herself with her left arm during the fall. The shoulder was put back in place, but continuing the Tour is out of the question, and she is currently in a sling.

NRK cross-country expert Fredrik Aukland called the timing “very critical,” with only about five and a half weeks until the Games, warning the injury poses a risk of recurrence and will cost her key training and race opportunities. The incident occurred on the final downhill into the stadium; Myhrvold finished last in the final after the crash and was visibly in pain at the finish.

Elsewhere in Toblach, Kristine Stavås Skistad controlled the women’s sprint from the front and won convincingly after dictating the pace and tactics throughout the heats. In the men’s sprint, Johannes Høsflot Klæbo held off countrymen Oskar Opstad Vike and the fast-finishing Lars Heggen, who took second, underscoring Norway’s depth; only Erik Valnes missed the semifinals among the top Norwegians.