Diggins Wins Tour de Ski
Jessie Diggins capped off a historic week by taking second place in the final climb and winning the overall title at the 2025–26 Tour de Ski, marking the third time in her career that the Stifel U.S. Ski Team star has claimed victory in cross country's most prestigious stage race.
On the men’s side, Gus Schumacher delivered a breakthrough performance for the Stifel U.S. Ski Team, finishing 16th and securing seventh overall in the Tour de Ski. Schumacher’s result stands as the best overall finish by an American man in the history of the event, surpassing the previous mark of 13th set by Ben Ogden at the 2022–23 Tour de Ski.
“I'm psyched,” said Schumacher. “My goal was to get top 10 coming in and it was nice to have a solid tour with some like really bright spots with the 5k.”
Diggins took the overall win by two minutes and 17 seconds, and only added to her lead on the iconic Final Climb up Alpe Cermis, a brutal uphill pursuit. The climb begins in the Val di Fiemme stadium before ascending straight up a ski resort, featuring gradients that reach up to 28 percent—comparable in steepness to Killington Resort’s Outer Limits or Deer Valley’s Champion trail. In her final appearance on the famed climb, Diggins once again proved her combination of endurance, power and tactics.
"We had such amazing help from so many people, such great cheering today," said Diggins. "We've had an amazing team vibe, great energy and I've had great skis every day of the tour and it really takes everything from everyone to make it happen and so I'm just so thankful for my team. It was so fun to close it down with a good one today and it'll be a great team celebration tonight!
It was Diggins’ final Tour de Ski title, as she announced her retirement from the World Cup after the 2025-26 season. Her win continues to solidify her legacy as one of the greatest cross country skiers in U.S. history—and one of the sport’s defining athletes of her generation.
"Honestly, the Tour de Ski is one of the hardest things to win," said Diggins. "When we won the Olympics, it's amazing, it's really special, but that's one race and the Tour is day after day after day after day after day. You have to put it together back to back, you have to be on, and you have to keep together under cumulative pressure and that is really hard. It's hard on you and it's hard on the team and I am so proud of the team for winning."
Behind Schumacher and Diggins, Ogden was 22nd and Zak Ketterson 35th in the 10k to finish 25th and 36th in the overall standings, respectively. Julia Kern took an impressive 14th on the day and 17th overall in the Tour de Ski, besting her previous 20th place overall Tour de Ski result.
The 2025-26 Tour de Ski opened in Toblach, Italy, with four stages before concluding in Val di Fiemme for the final two stages. Val di Fiemme will also serve as a host venue for cross country skiing at the upcoming Milano Cortina Olympic Winter Games, adding further significance to the Stifel U.S. Ski Team’s strong performance on Olympic terrain.
RESULTS
Women’s 10k mass start skate
Men’s 10k mass start skate