Cross-country skiing Olympic champion Victoria Carl fell far behind in the fight for a top position on the opening weekend of the Tour de Ski, while last year’s runner-up Friedrich Moch was bitterly disappointed by the first two races in Toblach.
After her weak sprint, Carl was unable to keep up with the best runners in the classic mass start over 15 km in Toblach/South Tyrol on Sunday and finished 17th, 1:26 minutes behind winner Jessie Diggins from the USA.
The German men around Moch experienced a very bitter lesson around two months before the World Cup in Trondheim (February 26th to March 9th). The Allgäu native, who was so strong a year ago, was the best DSV runner on Sunday in 39th place, 42 seconds behind Norway’s top star and double winner Johannes Hösflot Kläbo.
Moch was already far behind in the sprint with 78th place.
Defending champion Diggins, who had already won the sprint, prevailed in the finish sprint just ahead of Finland’s Kerttu Niskanen (+0.5 seconds) and Astrid Öyre Slind from Norway (+0.6).
Tour de Ski: DSV star challenged again on New Year’s Eve
Their compatriot Therese Johaug, who, like Carl, had already failed in the qualification in the sprint, only came in sixth place (+4.6) and has to catch up significantly in the fight for her fourth overall victory on the following five stages.
The 29-year-old Thuringian Carl fell victim to an increase in speed towards the middle of the race and fell behind. The second best German was Laura Gimmler, who had already impressed with tenth place in the sprint, in 19th place (+1:28 minutes).
In the overall standings, Diggins leads Niskanen by 38 seconds, Johaug (+1:14 minutes) is sixth. Gimmler is the best DSV runner in 16th place (+2:09). Carl, who fought for a long time for a podium finish last year and ultimately came ninth overall, is already 2:36 minutes behind in 22nd place.
Among the men, Moch stayed in the top group for a long time, although the pace wasn’t particularly high. When Kläbo increased the pace on the way to his 89th World Cup victory – he celebrated his 88th in the sprint on Saturday – the Allgäu native had no chance. In the overall ranking, which is led by three-time tour winner Kläbo with 34 seconds over Frenchman Richard Jouve, Moch is the best German in 41st place (+1:59).
There are further distance races in Dobbiaco on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day before the Tour de Ski concludes in Val di Fiemme from January 3rd to 5th.