Katherine Stewart-Jones and Antoine Cyr had similar outings in the Ruka Cross-Country World Cup 10K Classic Individual Start, as they both finished in the Top-30 on Saturday in Finland.
Stewart-Jones took 25e rank, while Cyr ranked 27e (+1 min 4.5 s). Still in the men’s event, Olivier Léveillé (+1 min 15.5 s) and Léo Grandbois (+1 min 23.1 s) finished in 40e and 65e places.
The cross-country skier from Chelsea, in Outaouais, was 1 min 29 s behind the winner, the Swede Ebba Andersson. Silver went to American Rosie Brennan (+4.9 s) and bronze to Swede Frida Karlsson (+9.9 s).
” I’m happy ! I was a little stressed before the race because I wasn’t feeling great last weekend during a race in Sweden. Today (Saturday) I felt a lot better, I had more energy and I skied really well. The form is coming and I’m even more looking forward to tomorrow,” said Stewart-Jones.
A year ago, almost to the day, in the same place, she ranked 24e in the classic 10 kilometers in a race which had also been won by Andersson.
“This year I did a little more training before Ruka and pushed a little more in order to stay in shape during the season. I am happy that my body reacted well, even if there is a little fatigue,” she continued in an interview with Sportcom. “It’s a good start, but I hope to have better results during the season. »
Antoine Cyr made comments similar to those of his teammate.
“It’s okay, although I sure would have liked better than that. It’s a good way to break the ice at distance races. There are a lot of positives, it was very close and I will make small changes in the coming weeks to get into the Top-20. »
The Norwegian Martin Loewstroem Nyengent was the fastest to surprise the crowd favorite and best cross-country skier on the planet in classic style, the Finn Iivo Niskanen, whom he beat by 2.9 seconds. Another Norwegian, Erik Valnes (+9.7 s), completed the podium.
The 2023-2024 season marks the ban on fluorine in the waxing of athletes’ skis, except that the Finnish conditions were not a headache for the waxers.
“We had good competitive skis yesterday and today. […] It’s in the more difficult conditions that we’ll really see if there’s a big difference, but I’m hopeful. My job is to ski to the best of my abilities and if the equipment follows, so much the better! And I’m not worried,” added the Gatineau athlete.
In a season without World Championships, he will aim for good results at the Tour de Ski and the World Cup races in Canmore, Alberta.
At the third World Cup of his career, Léo Granbois mentioned that the last two kilometers of the course hurt because he suffered muscle cramps.
“It’s a course that is really difficult with good hills. If you’re not able to ski efficiently, you lose a second and that’s two positions. It’s so tight, but I remain motivated for the future, I’m still just as hungry and I’m not worried,” underlined the 24-year-old cross-country skier.
Two 20 km freestyle mass start races will be on the program for the last day of competition, Sunday, in Ruka.