Step Aside,
LANCE
American trio to star in the
Tour de Ski, a snowy version of
the Tour de France
By Tim Reynolds
Photos by Pete Vordenberg
Kikkan Randall
Stage races are the future of cross country ski racing. The World
Cup calendar features two “mini-tours” this season — one held al-
ready in November in Kuusamo, Finland, and the other scheduled for
March when Sweden hosts the World Cup Finals.
While these weekend stage races have quickly gained popularity
among racers and fans alike, it was the grueling, eight-stage Tour de
Ski that sparked this major transition in the sport four years ago. The
Tour was the brainchild of Vegard Ulvang, a Norwegian ski legend
and current chairman of the FIS Cross Country Committee. Mr. Ul-
vang proposed taking the excitement of cycling-style stage racing to
cross country skiing. This new format would combine the two diverg-
ing disciplines in the sport — sprinting and distance racing — into
one main event.
Now in its fifth edition, the Tour de Ski has already seen enormous
success. According to the FIS, the event has boosted television rat-
ings, fan interest, and filled a void in an otherwise empty period of
World Cup competition. In the competitive fold, a victory in the Tour
is close to becoming on par with a World Championship victory or a
World Cup title. But amidst the clamor over the Tour and its transfor-
mative influence on the sport, only one American has even started
