A Team Effort Type of Day: Diggins Second in Falun Skiathlon; Kramer Secures Career-Best Result
In the final race Jessie Diggins will ever race in Falun, she delivered. In an all-out sprint to the finish, with three women vying for the top spot, Diggins crossed the line .01 behind Norway's Heidi Weng to claim second place and her 88th career World Cup podium. Kendall Kramer also had a stand-out day, crossing the line in ninth place, a career-best result for the young Alaskan and Gus Schumacher continued his strong streak of results in seventh, respectively.
It was a team-effort type of day - from the wax technicians to the support staff, and all who wear the Stifel U.S. Ski Team badge on their jackets. A skiathlon, which features both skate and classic skiing in one race, mixed with variable snow and weather conditions, was one of those challenging days that keep wax technicians up at night. But the team put together strong skis for the field, with techs making upwards of 20 pairs per athlete to find the perfect ski. At the end of the day, their work paid off, with a podium finish for Diggins, Schumacher in seventh and Kramer in ninth.
For the women, it was a true race from the start line to the finish line. The lead pack never ventured too far ahead of the chase, and there was a new leader nearly every kilometer. Sweden's Frida Karlsson was back in the mix after recovering from the Olympic-sickness and Heidi Weng was on a mission to take home her first World Cup win since 2022. Then there was Diggins. In the first 10k of the race, Diggins raced conservatively, sitting behind the leaders and drafting on the long downhills and hammering over the top of the massive climbs that the Falun course is known for. With a clean transition to skate, there was 10k to decide who would take home the victory. In that time, Kramer made a decisive move and managed to ski up to the pack that had the leaders in sight, showing that she deserved to be there. For her, a career-best result was in sight, and she wasn't going to let it go.
"It was so enjoyable to feel I was skiing to my potential," said Kramer. "Even the top 20 felt like a ceiling for me this year, and today surprised me. I was sticking with girls I thought I’d never be around in my ski career. Everything just went right in a way you can never predict in ski racing because you prepare to do your best every single day, but the stars aligned today. A lot of confidence was gained today and I’ll be chasing the feeling of feeling this good during a race for a while!"
The pace quickened with 5k to go with Weng turning on the jets. Diggins, Weng and Karlsson gapped themselves from the field and it was just a matter of which of the three would win. With 1k left in the race, Weng was right behind Karlsson, and Diggins was behind Weng.
"For me, I was just trying to ski a gutsy race and ski smart," said Diggins. "I kept telling myself, 'just try and be there' at the finish, and then you can dig deep and see what's at the bottom of the tank. I pushed myself really hard and was psyched that the energy and the fitness are still there."
Into the final downhill section and the final right-hand turn into the home straight, the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic team sprint moment was coming back to life, with "Here Comes Diggins" happening right before everyone's eyes. Weng and Diggins managed to surpass Karlsson and across the line, Weng lunged to just beat Diggins by .01 seconds. It was Weng's first World Cup victory since 2022 and her 144th of her career.
"That was a really cool last race here in Falun," said Diggins. "My first thing to say is a huge thank you to our technicians. I don't know if you could tell from the broadcast, but the weather was crazy for the classic half of the race. I am so grateful to have competitive skis; they make such a big difference. And it was truly a team effort out there."
Schumacher's seventh-place finish is a testament to his strong form this late in the season. Kevin Bolger, racing in his "second home," was behind Schumacher in 36th, Hunter Wonders was 47th, JC Schoonmaker 58th and Zanden McMullen 61st. For the USA women, Hailey Swirbul was just outside of the top 30 in 33rd, Rosie Brennan 35th, Novie McCabe 42nd and Emma Albrecht 44th.
The men's podium was a Norwegian sweep, with Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo first in both races in Falun, Harald Oestberg Amundsen second and Martin Loewstroem Nyenget third. Weng was first for the women, Diggins second and Karlsson third.
