Cross-country skiing: first international medal for Gaspard Cottaz
The French cross-country skiing team at this week’ s Bakuriani 2025 European Youth Olympic Festival is definitely on fire. After the two medals won on Tuesday in the individual classic and the double on the women’s podium in the individual skate earlier in the day, it was Gaspard Cottaz who stood out.
Highly anticipated in this 10km individual skate, a week after taking eighth place in the World Junior Championships , the Ski Nordique Oisans cross-country skier did not disappoint. Although he failed to win gold, won by Italy’s Daniel Pedranzini, and silver, won by Finland’s Topias Vuorela, he did battle for bronze.
Simon Calandry fifth
Third at the halfway stage, he moved up to fourth with one lap to go. In the final 2.5km loop, however, he managed to maintain his pace when Slovenian Tine Sporn, who had started after him, cracked. By 4 sec 2, Gaspard Cottaz took third place and a fine bronze medal, his first in a major international competition.
The day for the Blues was also made more attractive by the fifth place of Simon Calandry from Montblanc, less than 5 seconds from the podium. Victor Lafrasse, two days after his podium finish in the classics, had to be content this time with sixteenth place, just ahead of Paul Rousset Vachon, seventeenth.
Full results
- The full programme for the Bakuriani 2025 European Youth Olympic Festival
- Bakuriani: Anouchka Neuville carries the flag for the French delegation at the EYOWF 2025 opening ceremony
- Anouchka Neuville carried the French flag at the opening ceremony of the EYOWF Bakuriani 2025
- EYOWF Bakuriani 2025: Gaëtane Breniaux takes silver in the individual 5km classic, Anouchka Neuville fourth
- Gaëtane Breniaux, silver medallist in the individual 5km classic at the EYOWF Bakuriani 2025: “I picked up the pace as I went along”.
- EYOWF Bakuriani 2025: Victor Lafrasse wins bronze in the 7.5km individual classic by the narrowest of margins
- “Victor Lafrasse, bronze medallist in the individual 7.5km classic at the EYOWF Bakuriani 2025: “I’m very proud.
- EYOWF Bakuriani 2025: Gaëtane Breniaux takes silver in the individual 5km classic, Anouchka Neuville fourth
- “Hard work pays off”, “A difficult race, mental work”: the words of Gaëtane Breniaux and Anouchka Neuville, who won gold and bronze in the individual skateboard event at the EYOWF Bakuriani 2025.
