It's time for cross-country skiing fans to get some traditional New Year's entertainment - for ten years now, the best athletes on the planet have been coming together to test themselves in a busy multi-day race schedule and culminate this forced march with the famous uphill race in the Italian Val di Fiemme. But to get there, participants will have to go to the starting line six more times over the next eight days.

This year, the path to that same mountain began in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, where, as usual, a sprint was chosen as the prologue to the multi-day race - one of two included in the start program this season. At the same time, the proximity of the Olympic Games, which can be felt literally in every movement of every athlete, could not but leave its mark on the Tour de Ski - several famous athletes at once chose to skip the grueling complex start in order to prepare for the Games. This was not the first and certainly not the last time this happened.

The women's part of the competition suffered especially, being left without , and . And for men, the leader of the overall World Cup standings refused to come to the Tour Johannes Klebo. The Russian team also suffered a loss - they dropped out of the application at the last moment, breaking their nose and injuring their neck as a result of an unfortunate fall in training. But if we remember that theoretically a couple of days ago there was still a possibility that all Russian skiers would be removed from competition, then such a loss is an even lesser evil.

ONE FOR ALL

The morning qualification brought two main news to Russian fans - good and bad. Let's start, as usual, with a good one - he began his defense of the title at the Tour de Ski with the best time in qualifying, where he was ahead of the Italian and the Frenchman. The young hope of the Russian national team showed the 11th time, and three more of our skiers were in the top 30 - , and . As for the bad news, of our six girls, only 12th was able to reach the quarterfinals. The rest of the Russians found themselves in the basement of the protocol, with three of them taking last places.

I had to fight for the honor of the country alone Nepryaevoy, but from this test, forgive the tautology, she came out with honor. It wasn't easy for her already in the quarterfinals, where after the start she found herself in the last rows in a position that was not very convenient for attack. But then along with Nepryaeva went on the offensive on the climb and ended up in the top three after the first lap. In the second, she had to repel the Norwegian attacks most of the time.

Thanks to her good speed at the finish line, the Russian woman made it to the semi-finals, which was even easier and more successful for her than the first round of the playoffs. The decisive race turned out to be extremely dramatic for almost all of its participants. The German woman fell, and the American woman broke her stick for the second time that day. Nepryaevoy it was difficult, she was fourth with a noticeable gap between herself and the leaders. But Natalya fought to the end. She even managed to enter into a fight for a place on the podium with the eminent Norwegian, but this was obviously a losing cause. However, fourth place is a very good result for us.

The victory, the first in her career, and even in front of her own stands, was won by the Swiss Van Den Graaf. Quite unexpectedly, she performed very strongly in all rounds, and in the final she staked her claim to first place with a powerful push. Silver Sophie Caldwell from USA.

KEEP THE MARK

However, all the ups and downs of the women’s fight were just a prelude for us before the first victory of the season Ustyugova. After success in qualifying, the current title holder carried out the first elimination race like a grandmaster, constantly staying in the group of leaders and only in the last meters giving way to the Norwegian, who powerfully rolled to the finish line. However, this is not to say that these 1.2 kilometers were easy for Sergei - at the end he spent quite a long time trying to catch his breath. Larkov could have ended up in the semi-finals, becoming third in the same start, but in the end he lost the place of “lucky loser” to his compatriot Bolshunov.

Certain hopes were pinned on him before the Tour de Ski, but Alexander is still only 20 years old, and the lack of experience cannot but affect him. Problems with Bolshunova arose already in the first round of the playoffs, during the second round he rolled back from second position to fourth and was forced to attack the positions of the leaders because of their backs on the last straight. It didn't work out quite well - fourth place in a photo finish. But he managed to qualify for the semifinals.

At this stage, both Russians started in the same race. Moreover Ustyugov at first he stayed behind, but thanks to a jerk supported Pellegrino, came in second place after Krogh. Having chosen a convenient position for the spurt, Sergey left his competitors behind on the last straight. Bolshunov This time it was not possible to maintain the pace set by the others, and he ended up fifth in this warm company. The start of the Tour de Ski at our season opener turned out to be quite good, but nothing more. Surely Alexander himself wanted more.

But who knew exactly what he wanted and how to achieve it - Ustyugov. He conducted the final in an exemplary manner, not allowing anyone to doubt his own superiority and leading throughout almost the entire distance. The start turned out to be leisurely, but by the end of the first lap Sergei rolled out and seriously raised the pace. He worked in this mode for the rest of the race. The highest speed of the rest of the participants in the medal race was withstood Pellegrino And Shanava. But Ustyugov blocked their trajectory in the last turn and left no chance for anyone at the finish line. Here it is, the first success of the season!

Starting this Tour de Ski the same way as last year, Ustyugov will try to maintain the brand further. The second stage will take place on Sunday - before the New Year celebrations we will have a “classic” race of 15 km for men and 10 km for women.

Men. Sprint (C). 1. USTYUGOV (Russia) - 2.57.28. 2. Pellegrino (Italy) - gap 1.00. 3. Chanava (France) - 2.76. 4. Hakola (Finland) - 5.91. 5. Krogh (Norway) - 14.39. 6. Jouve (France) - 21.01.
Women. Sprint (C). 1. Van der Graaf (Switzerland) - 3.25.80. 2. Caldwell (USA) - gap 1.42. 3. Falla (Norway) - 1.86. 4. NEPRYAEVA (Russia) - 3.17. 5. Diggins (USA) - 4.33. 6. Ringwald (Germany) - 31.68.

Ustyugov became second in the pursuit at the Tour de Ski stage, Bolshunov was third

Russian skier Sergei Ustyugov took second place in the 15-kilometer freestyle pursuit race as part of the Tour de Ski stage race in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, another Russian Alexander Bolshunov took third. On Monday, Ustyugov finished with a result of 35 minutes 14.2 seconds, losing 17.6 seconds to the Swiss Dario Cologne. Bolshunov was 45.5 seconds behind the winner. Another Russian Alexey Chervotkin (+49.9) became eighth, Andrey Larkov (+1.21.9) - 12th, Andrey Melnichenko (+2.24.8) - 25th, Denis Spitsov (+2.28.7) - 29th -th, Stanislav Volzhentsev (+2.36.8) - 30th, Ivan Yakimushkin (+2.53.5) - 33rd, Alexey Vitsenko (+2.54.6) - 34th, Gleb Retivykh (+5.45.9) - 64th. Earlier in Lenzerheide, Ustyugov, who is the winner of the Tour de Ski in the 2016/17 season, was the best in the sprint.

Ustyugov: counting on the best result in the pursuit at the Tour de Ski

Russian skier Sergei Ustyugov, who took second place in the 15 km freestyle pursuit race at the Tour de Ski stage race, said that he was hoping for a better result. Ustyugov became second in the pursuit, 17.6 seconds behind the Swiss Dario Cologne, another Russian Alexander Bolshunov closed the top three. The race took place in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. “The race turned out to be good. Despite this, I was hoping for a more successful result. I tried to stay together with Dario, but then he went into the gap and I could not close the gap. I will continue to fight,” said Ustyugov, as quoted by the official International Ski Federation (FIS) website. Cologna noted that he took advantage of the moment when Ustyugov was “tired.” “The fans really helped me on the last lap when I felt tired,” said the Swiss.

Sergey Ustyugov - second in the pursuit at the Tour de Ski; Alexander Bolshunov - third

Today, January 1, the fifth stage of the World Cup in cross-country skiing, the multi-day Tour de Ski, continues in Lenzerheide (Switzerland). Dario Cologna from Switzerland won the 15 km freestyle pursuit. Second was Sergey Ustyugov (+17.6 seconds from Cologna), third was Alexander Bolshunov (+45.5). In the overall standings of the Tour, Ustyugov dropped to second place, behind Cologne by 22.6 seconds, ahead of Bolshunov by 33. In the women’s 10 km freestyle race, Norwegian Ingvild Østberg won, strengthening her leadership in the overall standings. The best Russian, Anastasia Sedova, finished 11th.

Men. Pursuit. 15 km (N)

1. Dario Cologna (Switzerland) - 36.56.6
2. Sergey Ustyugov - gap 17.6
3. Alexander Bolshunov - +45.5
…
8. Alexey Chervokin - +49.9
12. Andrey Larkov - +1.21.9
25. Andrey Melnichenko - +2.24.8
29. Denis Spitsov - +2.28.7
30. Stanislav Volzhentsev - +2.36.8
33. Ivan Yakimushkin - +2.53.5
34. Alexey Vitsenko - +2.54.6
64. Gleb Retivykh (all - Russia) - +5.45.9.

After three out of seven Tour races

1. Dario Cologna (Switzerland) - 1:12.46.6
2. Sergey Ustyugov - +22.6
3. Alexander Bolshunov - +55.5
…
8. Alexey Chervokin - +1.04.9
12. Andrey Larkov - +1.36.9
25. Andrey Melnichenko - +2.39.8
29. Denis Spitsov - +2.43.7
30. Stanislav Volzhentsev - +2.51.8
33. Ivan Yakimushkin - +3.08.5
34. Alexey Vitsenko - +3.09.6
64. Gleb Retivykh (all - Russia) - +6.00.9.

Women. Pursuit. 10 km (N)

1. Ingvild Ostberg - 26.48.1
2. Heidi Weng (both Norway) - +27.8
3. Jessica Diggins (USA) - +1.16.9
…
11. Anastasia Sedova - +2.11.5
17. Natalya Nepryaeva - +2.42.8
26. Alisa Zhambalova - +3.51.3
39. Anna Nechaevskaya - +4.36.9
49. Yana Kirpichenko - +5.08.6
52. Maria Gushchina (all - Russia) - +5.37.2.

Overall standings of the Tour. After three starts out of seven

1. Ingvild Ostberg - 56.18.6
2. Heidi Weng (both Norway) - +32.8
3. Jessica Diggins (USA) - +1.26.9
…
11. Anastasia Sedova - +2.26.5
17. Natalya Nepryaeva - +2.57.8
26. Alisa Zhambalova - +4.06.3
39. Anna Nechaevskaya - +4.51.9
49. Yana Kirpichenko - +5.23.6
52. Maria Gushchina (all - Russia) - +5.52.2.

Norwegian skier Østberg won the 10 km pursuit at the Tour de Ski

Norwegian skier Ingvild Flugstad Østberg won the 10-kilometer freestyle pursuit race, which took place as part of the Tour de Ski stage race in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. Östberg finished in 26 minutes, 48.1 seconds on Monday. Her compatriot Heidi Weng (+27.8 seconds) was second, followed by American Jessica Diggins (+1 minute 16.9 seconds). The best time among Russians was shown by Anastasia Sedova (+2.11.5), who finished 11th. Natalya Nepryaeva (+2.42.8) - 17th, Alisa Zhambalova (+3.51.3) - 26th, Anna Nechaevskaya (+4.36.9) - 39th, Yana Kirpichenko (+5.08.6) - 49- I, Maria Gushchina (+5.37.2) - 52nd.

Photo RIA Novosti/Alexey Filippov

In the meantime, today it is still planned to hold mass starts, but the laps will be shortened and the weather has improved a little: gismeteo.ru
skisport.ru

January 3, 2018 (9:09), Lisa:
“Old skier 1964, maybe we’re just used to Sergei’s victories?...”
That’s how it is and a living person, but in my opinion such work should not do without victories. Neither he nor our guys cry to the whole world about all sorts of doping from others:
- everyone plows and sows and reaps and reaps and reaps. Yours. Without even paying attention to other people's things. If you judge how much snot has come out over the past 2 years from all sorts of MakLakok-Fukakok-Beilock-Krufordok dolls, then these are not fighters, but precisely some kind of kindergarten behind the nanny’s hem:
- they tearfully ask for their victories.

Of course everything presses, presses and presses:
- A 2-year-old bureaucrat at the head of Moody - the guys were screwed... over there by the sikoka. I’m not sure that we’ll sue - there’s a lot of pragmatic cowardice there, but there hasn’t been, and never will be, any sober thinking, since the word of the Jesuits is law there;
- sometimes Lena’s too stupid tongue - the boneless tongue even destroyed the USSR;
- besides, I’m not sure that the guys are irresponsible to their fathers, mothers, grandparents.
The psyche is a thing like you can’t throw away your poles, just like you can’t take off your skis: it’s always within you. And he eats and eats and eats. Seryoga is like that. And Sasha is like that.

YES, you are worried, I am worried too. And I think whoever has a pure soul and heart will always worry. Maybe that’s why we are strong in spirit because we know how to worry? Empathize!

I agree with you on the rest.
But essentially I’m a maximalist (apparently) and “not bad” doesn’t suit me, for example:
- in my opinion, GOOD or EXCELLENT is better. Yes, from the heart for all the crybabies. That’s why coaches should be good, so that it’s GOOD and EXCELLENT. Why create lazy people? :):):) :)
____________________
January 3, 2018 (10:56), MSMC-76:
“Old skier-1964,... Colleague,
so I wrote due to what (different equipment) and on what (“snow quality”)”

Oh, I got it. :) No questions.
____________________

Let the guys rest.
____________________

January 3, 2018 (17:23), Loktik:
“Tomorrow’s mass starts may be replaced by sprints due to damage to the track”

Let's get sick. :)

Interesting race. There was no obvious “mess”; everyone’s skis rode well. Ustyugov is 6 kg heavier than Cologne. It's not significant. But 4cm higher. I didn’t have time to recover, which, in fact, was what I was afraid of.

Tomorrow's mass starts may be replaced by sprints due to damage to the track: sports.ru

instagram.com

sprints canceled twitter.com

Colleague,
so I wrote due to what (different equipment) and on what (“snow quality”):

“Power” didn’t work. “Frequency” won (but even there “strong” is not “stepdaughter”))))

I repeat: “In general, OURS pleased us!”

Congratulations to Sergei and Alexander on the podium!

Old skier from 1964, maybe we’re just used to Sergei’s victories? It seems to us that he will continue to tear everyone apart. And he is a living person. I’m actually worried about him this season, he’s going hard, he doesn’t have those powerful breakthroughs that he had last year. Alarming.
And our boys and girls look good, against the backdrop of mass suspensions.

January 2, 2018 (9:09) MSMC-76:
“The race was very interesting...
Sergei has powerful repulsions, and Dario has a little, but more frequent: so on “soft snow” he ran away from OUR.
And Bolshunov is “beautiful”! Celebrated 21 years - MAN! FIGHTER!"

1. But Seryozha’s extra-long and stick-accompanying pushes and only knee work uphill alarm me. The absence of impulse shocks of the feet and toes even weighs on the eyes and soul:
- extra stress on the muscles - arms, hips,
- which means their excessive and early oxidation,
- which means early fatigue at a distance,
- which means the tendons don’t work - these “rubbers” don’t need extra blood or extra oxygen and don’t get tired at all
- and only works on the morally strong-willed. And in a simple way, for wear and tear. It’s a pity that there is no monolithic work-movement of the body.: (: (: (: (
I can’t say the same about Dario, Martin Sundby, even about Sasha Bolshunov, for whom the main load goes directly to the tendons. And they take the frequency of the push impulse - very sparingly for health, but for the benefit of the result. For short-impulse jerks, it is not so much nutrition that Seryoga’s muscles need - so Dario ran away, and Martin and the others “climbed”.
2. Yes, I’m so glad that I got 15 and I and the guys are GREAT, of course, but not at such an extra energy-consuming price:
- Today's sprint will put a lot of things in place - after all, the 4th race. The 60s bonus is impressive. Although, in my opinion, it’s still a long way to the zenith - well, until the penultimate race, I think.
3. YES, Sasha the Fighter.
But I’ll also mention Denis Spitsov and Lyosha Chervotkin. Stas Volzhentsev and Andryukha Larkov were also pleasantly surprised - they did very well in the race. Vanya Yakimushkin also seems to look good.
But Andryukha Melnichenko (25) and Lyosha Vitsenko (27 years old) will not get involved in any way - summer is not the time for young people.
Sincerely.

Lisa, a very good photo, and Sergei’s comment is optimistic.
Good luck guys and girls!

Probably everyone has already seen it, but I really liked this photo and Sergey’s signature. I started joking - it’s already good instagram.com

The race was very interesting.
It was nice to see how OURS “give battle”!

The snow was “soft, positive”, and it was clear that the “big” Ustyugov was slightly slower than the “lighter” Cologny (frequency of rebounds: it was especially clearly visible at 3-5 kilometers, when they ran in tandem).
Sergei has powerful repulsions, and Dario has a little, but more frequent: so on “soft snow” he ran away from OUR.
And Bolshunov is “beautiful”! Celebrated 21 years - MAN! FIGHTER!

In general, we were pleased with OURS!

Dmitry, well, yes.
Colonia is not very strong in sprints, so Sergei has the opportunity to make up the gap.
And then there will be mass starts, where Sergei can give everyone a blast.
True, the weather is not very good there today. For servicers - a puzzle.

So Sergey lost to Cologne so that he would please his viewers)) And then, I hope, he will get into his rhythm. Sasha was pleasantly surprised by the fact that he endured it, smart guy! Good luck guys today!
Our girls ran very well even though they are completely inexperienced))

Loktik, but for Cologna this will no longer be a home stage

Sasha and Lesha are not yet very good at distributing their strength along the route; they are not enough at the finish line. Sergei was not bad today, he let go of Dario once and was no longer able to catch up. I really hope for the sprint, where he can win back these seconds. Cologna was good yesterday and today, but it’s not a fact that he will last for a long time; he hasn’t shown up in any way for almost two years. He was good today though

Well done Seryozha and Sasha! Good luck in your next races

Dmitry, the next stage will take place in Oberstdorf, Germany, and the weather there is +3-+6, and even rain.
It will be hard.

Sergey, well done! He knows that the Olympic Games are ahead and works with reserves of strength. I believe that he will take Victory in the Tour de Ski!
Sasha Bolshunov, go for it!) Everything is ahead of you!

Loktik, thank you! What would I do without you!

Two contenders for victory have been identified. But Bolshunov’s third place is threatened by a huge, mighty bunch of athletes.
But this is only after three races. Let's see what will happen next. Maybe everything will turn out quite the opposite

The boys performed well today. Of course, we always expect victory from Ustyugov, but it didn’t work out, Bolshunov fell apart on the last lap, Chervotkin and Larkov had a great run.
Well, most likely, we can already talk about the relay race. The classics will probably be run by Bolshunov and Larkov, 3rd stage by Chervotkin, 4th by Ustyugov.

flgr.ru

Dmitry, Dima, here is the current Tour de Ski standings: medias2.fis-ski.com

Well done boys! Keep it up! Today Sergei Ustyugov was a little heavy, it seems that he has not fully recovered, when every day of the race and great efforts must be made. Well done Sasha, he endured it! Experience will come with performances, so far on a good path! The rest of the men also showed themselves well - well done! Good luck in your future races!

For the first time I noticed how much more technical Kolonia is than Ustyugov. It was not easy for Sergei at this stage in Switzerland; strength alone was not enough.

Seryozha is certainly a great guy, but Sasha is an even better guy! Became third! Good girl!

Yes, yes, Dmitry, I would also like to see the overall Tour de Ski ranking on this page!

Sergey Ustyugov, Alexander Bolshunov, Alexey Chervotkin, Andrey Larkov - well done. Spitsov performed well
Overall, the intrigue remains, and that’s very good.

Ustyugov wins the sprint at the Tour de Ski. This finish is worth re-watching.

Russian skier Sergei Ustyugov won the 1.5 km sprint at the stage of the multi-day Tour de Ski race in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.

The 25-year-old athlete showed a result of 2 minutes 57.28 seconds. For Ustyugov this is the first victory of the season.

Italian Federico Pellegrino finished behind the two-time world champion from Russia.

Ustyugov, we recall, is the winner of the Tour de Ski of the 2016/17 season.

Another Russian, Alexander Bolshunov, who turns 21 on December 31, managed to reach the semifinals on Saturday.

“I’m very glad that I won. You know what our circumstances are. We have to go out and fight to the end,” Ustyugov said in an interview after the race.

"Tour de Ski". 1st stage. Lenzerheide (Switzerland)

Men. Sprint

1. Sergey Ustyugov (Russia) – 2.57.3

2. Federico Pellegrino (Italy) – +0.99

3. Lucas Chanava (France) – +2.76

Among the women, the sensational winner was the owner of the track, Lauren van der Graff. American skier Sophie Caldwell came second to the finish line, and Norwegian Maiken Caspersen Falla came third.

22-year-old Russian Natalya Nepryaeva, who ran in the sprint final for the first time, took fourth place, gaining 46 bonus seconds.

On December 31, cross-country skiers in Switzerland will run 15-kilometer and 10-kilometer pursuits. The Tour de Ski will end with the traditional mountain climb on January 7, 2018.

Women. Sprint

1. Lauren van der Graff (Switzerland) – 3.25.80

2. Sophie Caldwell (USA) – +1.42

4. Natalya Nepryaeva (Russia) – +3.17

Photo: RIA Novosti/Alexey Filippov

" starts on Saturday in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, and the Russian will have a difficult task - to defend the title he won last year in the Olympic season.

The Tour de Ski starts in Switzerland on December 30, the second part of the stage race will take place in Oberstdorf, Germany, and the race finishes in Val di Fiemme, Italy, on January 7.

Minus Belorukov

Many teams did not submit their strongest squad to the Tour de Ski: for example, the leader of the overall World Cup standings will miss the race, as will his compatriot. At the same time, the situation in the Russian national team and the removal of 11 skiers did not leave much freedom of choice for the coaching staff.

Initially, the following men were included in the multi-day race: Sergey Ustyugov, Alexey Chervotkin, Denis Spitsov, Ivan Yakimushkin, and Andrey Melnichenko; for women - Yulia Belorukova, Natalya Nepryaeva, Anna Nechaevskaya, Yana Kirpichenko and.

But literally a day before the start of the race, it was announced that Belorukova, who had already stood on the podium this season, would not be able to take the start due to injury. “The reason is a broken nose and a slight neck injury, we won’t change it for anyone,” the president said over the phone, noting that the athlete should return to action by the World Cup in Dresden, which will be held on January 13-14.

Ustyugov's competitor

As for Ustyugov, he continues to be one of the main favorites of the Tour de Ski, but this year he has a serious competitor among the Russians, namely Bolshunov. By the way, Bolshunov, who made his debut at the World Cup only this season, is in third place in the overall standings, ahead of the current Tour de Ski champion. At the same time, as many professionals note, Ustyugov can do almost anything.

“As for Ustyugov, everything is possible here,” 2006 Olympic bronze medalist Ivan Alypov told the R-Sport agency. “He can do almost anything. Under certain good circumstances, I think he can repeat his last year’s success at the Tour de Ski" and by analogy with the World Championships, but at the Olympic Games. The question is how we will go there, but this is the second thing."

However, Alypov also noted the importance of the distribution of forces before the upcoming Olympic Games in Pyeongchang.

“Our squad is young, but some guys have already shown their level and their class. And in some races they can certainly fight for the highest places. In my opinion, young guys should go to the Tour directly after their race, choose for choosing the most successful route in terms of format and profile and tuning in to it, showing results in individual races, it will be not only extremely difficult, but also costly to carry out the entire tour at a high level, in light of the upcoming Olympic Games,” the specialist emphasized. .

Russian skier Sergei Ustyugov remained second two stages before the end of the Tour de Ski multi-day ski race. According to the results of the starts in Oberstdorf, he was 53 seconds behind the competition leader Dario Cologna. Last year's race winner was prevented from realizing his potential by rains - because of them, the sprint was canceled, and the mass start was accompanied by numerous falls and blockages. RT talks about the latest news from the Tour de Ski and the Russians’ chances of getting into the top three in the overall standings of the race.

Two thirds of the Tour de Ski multi-day ski race are left behind. With undisguised joy, the athletes leave the obstinate German Oberstdorf and head to Italy, where they will soon make the long-awaited ascent of the steep Alpe de Cermis mountain.

The races in Germany turned out to be a failure both in general and specifically for Russian skiers. After the starts in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, Sergei Ustyugov and Alexander Bolshunov still had excellent chances of getting into the top three. They were second only to Dario Cologne, who won the classic time trial and speed skating pursuit on home soil. Last year's winner of the Tour de Ski was 22 seconds behind, the newcomer to the Russian national team was 55 seconds behind.

If everything had gone smoothly in Oberstdorf, then Russian skiers would have been able to not only maintain these handicaps, but also reduce them. The competition program opened with a classic sprint.

The first stage of the Tour de Ski showed how much Ustyugov was superior to his rivals in the sprint - the Russian then won, and neither Cologna, nor the Canadian Alex Harvey, nor the Norwegian Martin Junsrud Sundby, nor the Kazakh Alexei Poltoranin reached the final. For Bolshunov, the classic sprint is generally one of the most desirable types of the program - in it the 21-year-old skier won one of the first World Cup medals.

But the Russians failed to get close to Cologne, who had little chance of even qualifying. The race organizers announced that almost the entire competition program was canceled due to weather conditions - Oberstdorf was in the grip of a storm. Only the girls managed to conduct preliminary races, following which one Russian woman, Natalya Nepryaeva, was among the top 30, showing 27th result. This start was not included in the Tour de Ski standings, and the girls were only able to prepare for what would await them the next day. But there was little good there.

The fifth stage of the stage race consisted of a general start race of 15 km for men and 10 km for women. The conditions for the mass start left much to be desired - the snow was loose, the rain was unpleasant for skiers, and on top of that, the organizers skimped on barriers for the course. It turned out to be too narrow for such a contact discipline. Naturally, falls occurred almost every minute, causing entire rubble.

One of the victims was Nepryaeva. She was caught on the descent by Silje Slind. But if the Norwegian managed to return to the group of leaders, then for the inexperienced Russian it was a death sentence. She lost a minute to race winner Ingvild Ostberg. Another Russian, Anastasia Sedova, managed to finish in a high ninth position. She rose to tenth place in the overall standings.

Bolshunov was even more unlucky. He fell, bumping into someone else's stick, and found himself in the wet snow. As a result, the young skier took only 40th place - for someone who is fighting for the top three in the overall standings, this is a failure. The same fate befell Alexey Chervotkin, who finished two places lower. At the same time, both lost to the race winner Emil Iversen by less than 20 seconds, and let a dozen relay teams go ahead.

Swedish skier Jens Burman eloquently described what happened. He admitted that he had no idea how terrible the race would be.

“It was chaos. I fell several times, drove into people who fell in front of me. People were just falling here and there. I tried to dodge. It was some kind of hell. Sad race. Perhaps we guessed that something like this would happen. But I didn’t even think it was that bad,” Burman told Aftonbladet.

Russian Gleb Retivykh reminded the organizers of the Tour de Ski that it is always rainy in Oberstdorf and the local track is too dangerous for injuries.

“It was a very fast race, but there were also a lot of falls and broken poles. And in fact, today was a dangerous race in terms of maintaining health; you could get injured. I hope there won't be such weather in Italy. We're glad we're leaving. I just can’t understand why the organizers hold competitions here every time. Once in my memory there was no rain here. Every time there are problems with the weather,” R-Sport quotes the athlete.

But for Cologna, Harvey and Sundby the race turned out quite well. All of them were in the top eight. The Swiss increased his advantage over Ustyugov to 53 seconds. Sundby and Harvey are very little behind the Russian - 16 and 20 seconds respectively. Before moving to Italy, Bolshunov loses 19 seconds to Sundby in the dispute for bronze in the general classification, but he does not have the mountain climbing experience that the Norwegian can boast of.

Before climbing the Alpe de Cermis, skiers will again hold a mass start, but this time in a classic style. It is unlikely that Ustyugov and Bolshunov will seriously win back, so the positions before the final stage are already visible. Last year's Tour de Ski winner will have little chance of defending his title, and his young teammate will need to perform a minor miracle to rise from fifth place. However, in an Olympic year, skiers are not in vain tearing their veins on the Italian steep, and it makes sense for Russian athletes to conserve strength before the trip to Pyeongchang, which has less and less time left.