Diggins Wins in Trondheim, Earns 30th Career World Cup Victory
The Stifel U.S. Cross Country Ski Team capped off a standout day in Trondheim with Jessie Diggins taking a commanding win—her first victory of the season, second podium of the year and the 30th World Cup win of her career. With the result, Diggins remains third in the Distance World Cup standings and continues to lead the Overall World Cup standings. Gus Schumacher led the men in 21st.
For Diggins, the day was about gratitude for the wax technicians and the staff behind the athlete, and of course, the execution in the race.
“I know I sound like a broken record, but we win as a team,” she said. “We have success as a team and it takes all of us. I had such good kick in classic, such good skate skis… I was doing it for the wax truck today.”
The hard, fast course in Trondheim required smart tactics, especially in the final kilometers. In the last two kilometers, Diggins focused on positioning, avoiding leg cramps and timing her final sprint. She read the field, trusted her body and struck at exactly the right moment, around the hairpin corner and into the finishing straight. Crossing the line in first, Diggins takes home her first win of the year on a course that holds bittersweet memories from the 2025 Trondheim World Championships. Norway's Heidi Weng finished second, and Sweden’s Ebba Andersson finished third.
“It was so good to come here and have a race I was capable of,” Diggins added. “Since it’s the last year here, it’s always fun to leave a place with a good memory.”
The win comes in a race format that will be part of the Olympic program in February, giving the U.S. team confidence heading into the Games. Julia Kern and Rosie Brennan also broke into the top 30, finishing 24th and 29th.
"I was happy with how I was skiing today," said Brennan, post-race. "During the exchange, I just caught a pack I was excited to ski with, then fumbled big time in the exchange and came out in the next pack, so that was a huge bummer. But, I am happy to have fared OK for 20k and feel every race I do will help me build the fitness I need to be better later."
On the men’s side, Gus Schumacher led the Americans in 24th, in a challenging and Norwegian-dominant race. Schumacher held his own during the 20k, with a position in the lead & chase pack the majority of the laps; however, in the final push, Norway's men charged, landing eight men in the top eight. Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo took home his 101st victory, with Harald Oestberg Amundsen in second and Emil Iverson in third. For the rest of the U.S. team, Ben Ogden was 35th, Kevin Bolger 51st, JC Schoonmaker 52nd, Zanden McMullen 53rd and Luke Jager 55th. For the women, Alayna Sonnesyn was 44th and Kendall Kramer 48th.
Diggins reiterated how much the result meant to her and the staff behind the scenes:
“I was really motivated to put together a really good race, especially for the wax techs. I had amazing kick, I knew my skate skis were good.... When we win, we win as a team. It was really cool to have all the puzzle pieces together—from tactics and strategy to my finishing sprint. I was exceptionally proud of the entire team today.”
The U.S. team continues their push in Norway, with one final race on the calendar. Tomorrow's 10k skate, for both men and women, kick off at 3:30 a.m. ET for the women and 5:55 a.m. ET for the men. Watch LIVE on skiandsnowboard.live.
