Petter Northug and Marit Bjorgen take gold in duathlon

World Ski Championships

At the World Ski Championships in Holmenkollen, Norway, the hosts of the competition took three gold medals in cross-country skiing. The main favorite among men, Petter Northug, won gold only in the duathlon, while in the sprint he missed out on a medal of the highest standard in the fight with the Swede Markus Hellner. Among the women, Norwegian Marit Bjorgen was first twice.

For the home World Championship, his favorite, 25-year-old Norwegian Petter Northug, was preparing in the mountains - so that, having descended to the plain, he could bring his body to peak form precisely at the beginning of the main start of the season. The collection of the two-time Olympic champion (in the sprint relay and marathon) and four-time world champion (twice in the relay, duathlon and marathon) lacked the two highest awards of the world championships - in the 15 km race and the individual sprint. Getting them was a matter of prestige for him.

To warm up, Petter Northug started at the cup stage in Drammen at the beginning of last week and was third in the sprint. And then he mocked the victorious Swede Emil Jonsson. They say that a year ago he also won the pre-Olympic stage, but failed miserably in Vancouver.

The Norwegian got excited about Jonsson. In the sprint final on Friday, all the main favorites - Northug, Hattestad, Jonsson and Hellner - finally came together. Petter Northug, who passionately wanted it, did not get the victory - it was confidently taken from the Norwegian by Swedish skier Markus Hellner. The leader of the World Cup, Emil Jonsson, almost left the arrogant Northug without silver.

Yesterday the fight in the men's 30 km duathlon (15 km classic and 15 km skating) was no less stubborn. In the classic half of the race, Russian Alexander Legkov was in the lead for a long time. However, not far from the pit stop, where skiers exchange classic skis for skate skis, Alexander Legkov was met by a fatal accident. On a turn, both skis hit the “cages” of the fence, got entangled and fell into a ditch. While I was getting out of my way, I lost precious seconds and the lead. Having rushed with all his might to correct the situation that had become so inopportunely complicated, he made an incredible effort to make the pit stop with a slight lag - 9.6 seconds - after the leader, who became the Italian Giorgio di Centa. At that moment, the main favorite of the race, Petter Northug, was next to Legkov. By the 25 km mark Legkov had reduced the gap from the leader to 5.5 seconds. and from compatriot Maxim Vylegzhanin, who was second, to 0.8 seconds. Northug 'pass' Legkov two seconds behind. After another kilometer, the Norwegians helped their leader get around Legkov and move to third position, standing level with Vylegzhanin. And nearby, with a minimal gap, the third Russian racer, Ilya Chernousov, settled in.

The fate of the race was decided in the last 300 m. Northug won the climb at the Vylegzhanin stadium. And then he made a tactical miscalculation, allowing him to pass him on the descent along a small radius. Northug won a maximum of a meter on this maneuver. But then he pushed hard a couple of times and started his famous finishing spurt, which Vylegzhanin could not resist. Chernousov finished third, also falling on the track. But, gritting his teeth, he clung to that very last climb with a death grip and eventually won bronze from Markus Hellner.

Among the women, Norway's Marit Bjorgen won two gold medals. Another queen of modern skiing, Poland's Justyna Kowalczyk, remained only fifth in the sprint, and was content with second place in the duathlon. Ukrainian Valentina Shevchenko, whose best times are behind her, participated only in the combined race, in which she showed the 17th time.

Valeria Mironova, Viktor Nikitin

The Norwegians combined to win