Cross-country skiing: suspense right to the end in Lahti
This Friday afternoon, the cross-country skiing world cup in Lahti (Finland), the final stage of the 2024/2025 season, kicks off with a skate sprint. This is the last chance for the sprinters to shine individually, and they will be up against it again on Saturday in a team sprint in the same style.
It promises to be a decisive day for the overall classification of the discipline, with Jasmi Joensuu in the women’s category and Johannes Hoesflot Klæbo in the men’s category already guaranteed the small globe. However, for the remaining podium places, a Frenchman could be in with a chance.
Eliminated after an unfortunate fall in the semi-final in Tallinn (Estonia) on Wednesday evening, Lucas Chanavat has lost precious points. But the Haut-Savoyard is still in the running, 40 points behind the current third-placed finisher, Sweden’s Edvin Anger.
On Sunday, the world’s great caravan will close the book on this 2024/2025 edition after a 50-kilometre classic that will also have its challenges. In the women’s race, although Jessie Diggins leads the distance rankings with 1,310 points, the American is not immune to a comeback by her rivals. Having struggled in recent weeks, particularly in the classics, the 33-year-old cross-country skier will have to be wary of Astrid Oeyre Slind, who is obviously at ease in this style of race.
Hugo Lapalus to succeed Vincent Vittoz and Maurice Manificat
On the men’s side, a Frenchman will also be fighting to keep his place on the final podium. While Simen Hegstad Krueger looks set to take the lead, Hugo Lapalus appears in third place with a 79-point margin over his closest rival, the formidable Martin Loewstroem Nyenget.
But Le Cluse can also look further ahead, as he is only 25 points behind Harald Oestberg Amundsen, who was second before the final race of the season. The Frenchman is well on the way to becoming the third Frenchman to take his place on the podium after Vincent Vittoz and Maurice Manificat.
Mathis Desloges second best U23 of the winter
In the U23 category, while Germany’s Helen Hoffmann will no longer be a threat in the women’s race, Mathis Desloges will take second place in the men’s rankings. Behind the untouchable Edvin Anger, the Isérois confirmed the hopes placed in him. In Sunday’s 50km race, the young man could even break into the top 10 overall, as he is currently just 42 points behind American Ben Ogden.
As far as this famous general classification is concerned, however, the die has already been cast for the big crystal globes. In the women’s category, Jessie Diggins had already secured her overall victory in the Oslo-Holmenkollen stage (Norway) last weekend, while Johannes Hoesflot Klæbo had to wait until the sprint in Tallinn (Estonia) to seal his overall victory ahead of the amazing Edvin Anger, who was a real eye-catcher this winter.
Read also
- Thanks to his victory in the Tallinn sprint, Johannes Hoesflot Klæbo has secured his fifth crystal globe.
- At the end of the Oslo-Holmenkollen stage, Jessie Diggins secured the Crystal Globe.
