Just six days after her historic silver-medal performance in the 30k freestyle at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, Jessie Diggins was back on snow, finishing fourth in the FIS World Cup Cross Country Freestyle Sprint - leading four of her teammates into the top 28 in Lahti, Finland, Saturday.

Olympic gold medalist Jonna Sundling led a Swedish sweep of the podium with Emma Ribom in second and Maja Dahlqvist in third. Diggins's fourth-place result closed the gap on Russia’s overall World Cup leader Natalia Nepryaeva, who finished sixth. Diggins moved up to second in the overall World Cup standings, 209 points behind Nepryaeva.

Julia Kern was eighth, Rosie Brennan 13th, and Hailey Swirbul 28th. Both Diggins and Kern advanced to the semifinals, finishing 1-2 in the quarterfinal heat five. In the second semifinal, Diggins was second and Kern just missed advancing to the finals, finishing fourth.

“Today was a lot of fun,” Kern said. “The conditions were great, the stadium and course were filled with lively spectators and I was really excited to get back to racing the World Cup! I felt like I had a lot of great energy today, skied well, and enjoyed the awesome atmosphere while racing side-by-side with Jessie in the heats! I was stoked to put down maybe my best World Cup qualifier and see that my body is ready to fire after the Olympics.”

Up next, the women will compete in a 10k Classic, the men in a 15k Classic Sunday in Lahti.

RESULTS
Women’s Freestyle Sprint
Men’s Freestyle Sprint

The strength of the U.S. Cross Country development program continues to shine as the next generation has already made their mark on the world stage. On Wednesday, the junior men’s relay team won the bronze medal at the 2022 Junior/U23 World Championships in Lygna, Norway.

The team of Michael Earnhart, Brian Bushey, Walker Hall, and Will Koch finished just 22.4 seconds off the winning time of Russia in the 4x5k relay. Norway just edged USA at the line to take the silver at 21.8 seconds back. This was the fourth time in the past five World Championships that the USA men’s relay team has won a medal. 

In the women’s 4x3.3k team relay, the U.S. team of Kate Oldham, Samatha Smith, Nina Schamberger, and Sydney Palmer-Leger finished fifth, 1:32 off the winning time of Norway.

In Tuesday’s 15k Mass Start Freestyle, Palmer Leger was the top U.S. finisher in sixth. In the men’s 30k Mass Start Freestyle, Earnhart was the top U.S. finisher in 10th. 

The 2022 Junior/U23 World Championships continue Thursday with the U23 10k classic for women and the 15k classic for men. 

RESULTS
Men's 4x5k Team Relay
Women’s 3.3k Team Relay
Men’s 30k Mass Start Freestyle
Women’s 15k Mass Start Freestyle

Jessie Diggins turned herself inside out to win the silver medal in the women’s 30k freestyle Sunday - her second medal of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games. But just as impressive as her gutsy performance, all four Team USA athletes finished in the top 18 on another extreme weather day at the Kuyangshu Nordic Center, in Zhangjiakou, China.

Rosie Brennan just missed the podium for the second time at these Games, finishing fifth; while Sophia Laukli was 15th in her Olympic debut and Novie McCabe was 18th - the best-ever cross country performance by American women at the Olympic Winter Games. Norway’s Therese Johaug won her third gold medal of the Games, finishing with a time of 1:24:45. Diggins was 1:23 back, while Finland’s Kerttu Niskanen led a strong chase in the closing kilometers to take the bronze at 2:43 back.

Despite suffering a bout of food poisoning on Saturday, Diggins came out firing on all cylinders Sunday. She matched the early pace and eventually made the front group selection on the first of four 7.5k laps. “I went from having not the race prep I had envisioned - laying in bed, force-feeding myself oatmeal and soup from a can - to here we go,” she said. “But I just wanted to race because I love to race.”

With wind gusts in excess of 50mph and temperatures in the low teens, Johaug threw down an attack on the second lap, grinding her nose into the wind and building a lead of 27 seconds over Diggins at the halfway point. Meanwhile, Diggins clawed out a 49-second advantage over Sweden’s Ebba Andersson in third, while Brennan led the charge in the chase group.

“I felt really good, but it was a frustrating race,” Brennan said. “I really wanted to bridge up that top group, but nobody was really interested in working with me, which is always hard. I really just had to do it on my own, and that was hard and I really paid the price at the end, and that was hard to swallow.”

As the final event of the Games, Diggins, Brennan, Laukli, and McCabe had a ton of support not only from their cross country teammates but members of the U.S. Biathlon Team, and other Team USA athletes, coaches, and staff. “The cheering was insane,” Diggins said. “I felt like the whole world was cheering and helping me get up those hills.”

With Johaug and Diggins off the front, the battle was on for the bronze. Andersson was eventually caught by the chase group, finishing eighth, while Brennan just missed a medal by 

5.4 seconds. Meanwhile, Laukli and McCabe - who finished fifth and eighth respectively in the final stage of the Tour de Ski last month - moved up throughout the race, proving that the next generation of USA skiers are ready to step up to the world stage. 

Diggins’ silver medal matches the best-ever American cross country performance of Bill Koch from the 1976 Olympics, also won in the 30k mass start.

Up next, Diggins and Brennan fly to Finland Monday for next weekend’s FIS Cross Country World Cup in Lahti - a freestyle sprint and a 10k classic. Laukli and McCabe head back to the U.S. Monday and will compete in upcoming NCAA races for the University of Utah.

RESULTS
Women’s 30k Mass Start Freestyle

On a cold, blustery day at the Kuyangshu Nordic Center, in Zhangjiakou, China, Team USA’s Scott Patterson turned up the heat, finishing eighth in the shortened Freestyle mass start. Patterson’s finish was the second-best ever Olympic result for an American man behind Bill Koch’s silver medal at the 1976 Games.

Originally slated as a 50k race, the race jury made the decision to cut the race distance to 30k to reduce the time of exposure for the athletes due to the extreme conditions, which saw temperature in the single digits and winds gusting to 40+mph.

“I certainly could have used that extra 20k today,” said Patterson, who thrives in challenging conditions and longer races. “I would have liked it if they would have run us a 50k, even with these conditions. I wanted the grinding instead of the punches. But I am psyched with how it went. Eighth is pretty special.”

Patterson was in the mix throughout the race, protecting himself from the wind and going with the early surges to find himself among an elite lead group of 10 midway into the race. With one lap to go on the four-lap 7.5k circuit, he moved into the third position. 

 “With 5k to go, those guys started punching pretty hard,” Patterson said. “I didn’t have a ton of response for that.” 

The Russian Olympic Committee’s Alexander Bolshunov won his second gold medal - and his fifth medal of the 2022 Games - with a time of 1:11:32. Countryman Ivan Yakimushkin took the silver at 5.5 seconds back, with Norway’s Simen Krueger winning the bronze at 7 seconds off the winning time. Patterson was 33.9 seconds back from the Russian winner. 

“In the end, this worked out pretty well,” Patterson said of the shortened race distance. “The 50(k) is kind of iconic and it feels like a half measure to run a 30k, but…I’m not exactly sure it would have changed the results a ton. Those top guys were strong and they probably would have been strong with another 20k.”

Patterson walks away from the 2022 Games with three top-11 results, including 11th in the 30k Skiathlon, and ninth in the 4x10k men’s relay with JC Schoonmaker, Gus Schumacher, and Luke Jager.

The women’s 30k Freestyle, the final cross country event of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, has been moved up to 11:00 a.m. Sunday (10 p.m. EST Saturday). Jessie Diggins, Rosie Brennan, and Novie McCabe will be joined by Sophia Laukli, who will be making her Olympic debut. Laukli finished fifth in the final stage of the 2022 FIS Tour de Ski in Italy last month.

The race will stream live on Peacock at 10 p.m. EST Saturday, with same-day broadcasts offered on both USA Network and NBC at 2:30 p.m. EST Sunday. The medals ceremony for the women’s 30k will take place at the Closing Ceremonies in Beijing Sunday night.

RESULTS
Men’s 30k Freestyle Mass Start

Four Team USA athletes came into Wednesday’s classic team sprint ready to go full-throttle. All four walked away with empty tanks knowing they had left everything out on the course at the Kuyangshu Nordic Center in Zhangjiakou, China.

Jessie Diggins and Rosie Brennan finished fifth in the women’s final. At the same time, JC Schoonmaker and Ben Ogden were ninth in the men’s final - along the way, gaining a ton of experience that will carry them forward in international competition for many years to come. 

Diggins and Brennan easily advanced to the women’s final, finishing second in the semi-final heat, while Schoonmaker and Ogden battled in the second men’s semi-final, finishing sixth, but advancing to the finals as one of two lucky losers.

“It was fast,” Ogden said of the semifinal heat. “It felt pretty good the first couple of laps. I think that was where I wasted some energy too because I thought the pace was easy when it was actually faster than it was. So I took the lead a little on my first lap, and then the last one coming into the stadium, then it hit me like a wall. But fortunately, it ended up being pretty fast.

“If we were a little smarter, and with a little bit of experience, we can be a lot better,” he added.

In the women’s race, Germany surprised everyone by winning the gold medal, with Sweden taking the silver and the Russian Olympic Committee taking the bronze. In the men’s race, Norway skied to another gold medal, with Finland taking the silver and the Russian Olympic Committee taking the bronze.

“It was good…a solid day,” Brennan said. “I think it was one of my better classic races this week, so I’m really happy to have put it together by the end of the Olympics. I did what I could to stay in contact to give Jessie her best shot.”

“It was really cool seeing Rosie crushing, and I went as hard as I could and there was no doubt in my mind that I could not have tried harder,” Diggins added. “I finished with zero sugars left, and I was dizzy and sick, and I’m currently wearing all the clothes of Team USA (to stay warm).”

Up next, the men’s 50k freestyle takes place Saturday with Scott Patterson representing Team USA. On Sunday, the women’s 30k freestyle takes place with Diggins, Brenna, Movie McCabe, and Sophia Laukli making her Olympic debut.

RESULTS
Women’s Classic Team Sprint
Men’s Classic Team Sprint

With a strong finishing kick, Kevin Bolger powered Team USA to ninth-place in the Men’s 4x10k Team Relay at the Kuyangshu Nordic Center, in Zhangjiakou, China, Sunday.

The Russian Olympic Committee team skied away from the field early in the 12-lap race on a cold, snowy day to win the gold with a time of 1:54:50. Norway’s Johannes Klaebo dropped Maurice Manicat on the final lap to secure the silver medal for the Norweigan team with a time of 1:55:57, while France took the bronze with a time of 1:56:07.

Luke Jager opened up the first 10k classic leg for Team USA. Jager was comfortably in the lead group until Russia’s Alexey Chervotkin dropped the hammer and blew up the lead group. 

“The course was really hard, the altitude was really hard, and 10k, it is a lot different than say 5 or 7.5k,” said Jager, who is competing in his first Olympic Winter Games and was a member of the two-time U.S. Junior Men’s World Championship winning relay team. “I learned a lot from it, and now I feel like I need to go home and train a lot more.”  

Jager tagged off to Scott Patterson in 13th, who picked off two places before tagging off to Gus Schumacher. “That was a hard race,” said Patterson, who found himself in no man's land for most of the second leg. “It would have been nice to have a group to ski with out there today.”

Patterson tagged off to Gus Schumacher, who skied a solid 10k. He tagged off to Bolger who picked off Canada’s Remi Drolet and then set his eyes on Japan’s Haruki Yamashita, catching him on the final climb into the finish arena, and easily putting 50 meters on him at the line.

Three races remain on the Cross Country program for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games. The Classic Team Sprint takes place Wednesday, followed by the men’s 50k mass-start freestyle on Saturday, and the women’s 30k mass-start freestyle on Sunday, Feb. 20.

RESULTS
Men’s 4x10k Team Relay

HOW TO WATCH
*All times EST.

Please note: Streaming services and apps are third-party services and subject to such parties’ terms of use and data privacy. U.S. Ski & Snowboard disclaims any and all liability for use of third-party services and apps.

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022
4:00 a.m. Cross Country Skiing - Team Sprint Classic Semifinals, Finals, Kuyangshu Nordic Center, Zhangjiakou, CHN, Streaming Peacock, NBCOlympics.com
6:00 a.m. Cross Country Skiing - Team Sprint Classic Semifinals, Finals, Kuyangshu Nordic Center, Zhangjiakou, CHN, USA Network

Sport-specific broadcast and streaming schedules are available below:

• Alpine
• Cross Country
• Freeski
• Freestyle
• Ski Jumping
• Nordic Combined
• Snowboard

Broadcast and streaming schedules are updated on a daily basis throughout the season.

Novie McCabe may be the new kid on the team, but she skied like a wily veteran for Team USA in Saturday’s 4x5k women’s Team Relay at the Kuyangshu Nordic Center, in Zhangjiakou, China.

“It was so cool to be part of a team with three legends,” the 20-year-old McCabe said of her teammates Jessie Diggins, Rosie Brennan, and Hailey Swirbul. “I had a lot of fun doing it, even though I was extremely nervous beforehand.”

McCabe skied the third leg for Team USA and posted the sixth-fasted freestyle time, which was 10 seconds faster than Diggins’ fourth lap time, as Team USA finished sixth. The Russian Olympic Committee took the gold, with Germany winning a surprise silver, and Sweden taking the bronze.

“I’m really, really proud of this team,” Diggins said. “Every one of these girls went out and skied so hard...and we gave it everything we had. Some days that ends up with the result of your life, and some days it doesn’t. But either way, the only thing we can control is going out there and skiing as hard, and as smart as we can, and this team did that!”

Following the race, the team was surprised with an Athlete Moment, an opportunity to connect with friends and family back home in the U.S. on a big screen in the finish area.

“Some of my friends from high school, and also some of our former teammates - Holly Brooks and Sadie Bjornsen - they had a watch party with my boyfriend (Tyler Kornfield) in Alaska, so we got to wave and say hi to them,” Brennan said. 

As is customary on relay day, the team wears special relay socks. And, ironically, Bjornson had on a pair of relay socks at the watch party - she competed on the U.S. relay team at the World Championships in Oberstdorf, Germany, last season. 

“Honestly, I wouldn’t expect anything less from her,” Brennan said of Bjornsen. 

“We have been missing a pair,” Diggins added. “That explains a lot!”

Fun and games aside, the women have a few days of rest and recovery before Wednesday’s classic team sprint. Team USA will be announced on Tuesday for Wednesday’s event. Up next, the men compete in the 4x10k relay Sunday. Luke Jager and Scott Patterson will ski the classic first and second legs, with Gus Schumacher and Kevin Bolger skiing the freestyle third and fourth legs.

RESULTS
Women’s 4x5k Relay