2019 World Junior/U23
Lahti, Finland
January 20 – 27, 2019
January 21, 2019: U23 Sprint
Results: https://www.fis-ski.com/DB/general/event-details.html?sectorcode=CC&eventid=43363&seasoncode=2019
Today marked the second day of racing at these Championships and it was the U23’s turn to hit the tracks. Although I didn’t have a great day of racing myself, three out of the four U23 men advanced to the heats. None of the women advanced further than the qualifier but the times between the top 30 and the rest of the Canadians were very close. Many of the U23s who did not achieve top results in the sprint are looking forward to the coming distance races. The air temperate was far colder than the last few days and the race stared at a chilly -18. The skis were amazing and the kick was easy due to the cold snow.
Julian Smith and Graham Ritchie raced in the same quarterfinal. Here you see them going up the first pitch of the 1.6k and 1.4k-sprint course. Julian was only 1/100th of a second from a lucky looser position. Overall it was a good day for the team.
Since the junior’s didn’t have anything other than their personal race preps to do today, they briefly stood out in the cold to cheer on the team during the qualifier. Tomorrow is the middle distance event for the junior team, the women will be racing 5km and the men will do 10km. Temperatures are supposed to be warming up over the next few days which would be a ideal for the skate races. Many of us are really looking forward to the distance races coming up later this week, Hopefully some good news coming soon!!!
Gareth Williams
January 20th:
Results: https://www.fis-ski.com/DB/general/event-details.html?sectorcode=CC&eventid=43363&seasoncode=2019
“LAHTI, Fin. - A very young group of eight Canadian cross-country skiers soaked in the international stage at the opening day of the Nordic Junior World Ski Championships in Lahti, Finland on Sunday where British Columbia’s Remi Drolet emerged as the man of the day.
The 18-year-old Drolet was the lone Canuck to qualify for the head-to-head heats in the testy classic cross-country ski sprint race that gave the next generation of Nordic stars all they can handle with a difficult 1.6-kilometre track. Drolet, of Rossland, B.C., finished in 25th spot.”
Full article: http://www.cccski.com/Media/Press-Releases/Young-Nordic-Canucks-Take-First-Strides-into-Whole.aspx#.XEVX5VxKjIU
January 19th: Hello BC!
Today was our second day here in Lahti and things are really winding up. For the junior men and women, the first event of the week (the classic sprint) is tomorrow, so nerves are building as final preparations are being made. This morning, everyone made the 30-minute drive from our hotel, the Vierumäki Resort, to the ski trails where we tested skis, analyzed the course, and added the final touches to our racing form. Everything has to be as perfect as possible since the competition here is very strong. The Lahti ski stadium is also like nothing we have in Canada. Steep hills descend into a dark pit overlooked by imposing rows of seats and massive ski jumps. The gigantic venue and the packs of Norwegians and Russians, however, are not distracting us from our tasks.
During the session, most of us did some short sprints as a team, and some added a couple of short intervals as well. At this point, though, rest is one of our biggest priorities. Tired legs are certainly not what we need tomorrow so, having given our amazing wax technicians the distinctive number of our best pair of skis, we returned to our hotel, relaxed, and focused on our other big priority: eating a ton of carbs!
Thanks for cheering us on! If you would like, you can watch us at this link: https://www.oz.com/jwsc2019
Cheers!
Rémi Drolet
18th: First Day in Finland
The air is crisp and the snow glitters here in Lahti. The race site is right in the city and has massive jumps beside the stadium as well as very large viewing stands. I can picture World Cups being hosted here. We are staying in a sports hotel 30 minutes away. The food is quite good. I had a Finnish-looking rice-filled pastry as a part of my breakfast this morning.
January 17th: Travel to Finland
January 16th: Last day in Norway!
Our classic ski in the morning was followed by a light but super fun core workout. Most of us are eager to go to Finland to prepare for the races. Personally, I love the skiing here in Norway and I could stay longer. Perhaps, I will be able to come back one day to ski, but for now I know that the Championships are just around the corner and it is time to focus on that.
Photo of us walking to the buffet for lunch.
January 15th
We did our last intensity session before the Championships today! Last night we discussed as a group what kind of intensity we wanted to do. We ended up deciding on doing 5-8 minutes zone 3, 3x2 minutes all out, and 3x30 second sprints. We have been trying to keep the heart rate low in all our easy sessions so it was good to be able to briefly let the tiger loose and ski at full speed.
In the afternoon, we got to go to on a tour of the Swix factory. A man named Harald gave us a brief history of how ski waxes developed. This man apparently worked with the original people who first created Swix wax. It was very neat to be able to see how glide and kick waxes are made.
Since we were in Lillihammer, we had the opportunity to explore the city one more time, checking out all the shops and trying Norwegian.
January 14th
We went for an easy classic ski in the morning and in the afternoon we had the option to either rest or going for an easy skate ski. I chose to ski in the afternoon because there were a few things that I learned from the video analysis the day before that I wanted to try on my skate skis. I heard that Devon Kershaw was going to be giving a few drills to some of the guys so I decided to listen in on that. I am glad I did. He gave pointers that really resonated with what I am working on. These technique sessions are helping me to learn how to ski better which makes this camp even more worthwhile!
Hannah Mehain
Additional Photos:
- BC Athletes & 2019 World Junior/U23 Championships Trip (Jan 16) – reports and photos
- BC Athletes & 2019 World Junior/U23 Championships Trip (Jan 14) – reports and photos
BC Athletes:
Gareth Williams (Telemark Nordic Club, Kelowna)
Hannah Mehain (Telemark Nordic Club, Vernon)
Jasmine Drolet (Black Jack Cross Country Ski Club, Rossland)
Molly Miller (Black Jack Cross Country Ski Club, Kimberley)
Rémi Drolet (Black Jack Cross Country Ski Club, Rossland)
CCC’s coaching support team includes the following BC coach:
Matt Smider – Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club
See article and complete list of nominations at: http://www.cccski.com/Media/Press-Releases/Cross-Country-Ski-de-Fond-Canada-Names-18-Athletes.aspx#.XBlBRlxKjIU
