Let the Games Begin!

Location: Whistler Olympic Park - Callaghan Valley
Event: 2010 Olympic Winter Games!!

Welcome to Salomon Nordic's Olympic Blog...

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to attempt a 'behind the scenes' look at these Games from Salomon's perspective. If there's something particular that you are interested in, please comment below and we'll do our best to get you the answers! Either way, sitting shotgun at the big 'O' show can only be a recipe for 'Good Times'!

Day -1...

The first Nordic races are not even under way but already Salomon Racing Service has been very hard at work sorting, mounting, distributing and testing literally hundreds of pairs of skis!

The team is comprised of 4 techs: Bertrand Regard, Patrice Frisson and myself (Phil V) on the Nordic side. For Biathlon, Anthony Marguet is the head tech and although he has his own service cabin at the biathlon area, we do combine efforts to get the job done. Also joining us today was Community Manager and media guru, Andy Gerlach who will be reporting live feeds for Salomon Nordic on Facebook, Twitter and www.salomonracing.com.

A quick recap so far...Everyday has been jammed packed with lots of work as all the nations are trying to sort out their own athletes' skis so they can get plenty of testing in before the races begin...With all the major brands bringing hundreds of new skis to the Games, our job is to mount the Salomon athletes' skis with the appropriate binding.

Patrice and PV mounting the new Propulse Classic binding on skis

The 'hot' new binding being launched for these Games is the SNS Propulse. This binding is very light and provides a great kick feel due to its low profile position on the ski - actually, your foot now sits directly on the ski! As a result of the bindings increased performance, the team has mounted hundreds (and hundreds of new skis, as well as swapping bindings on all the older race skis!


Check it out...the new SNS Propulse RC!

In between mounting bindings, there's ski testing...With a few key Salomon skiers vying for podiums, it's out job to widdle down the skis we brought to Whistler, separate the best ones for each temperature range, and feed them back to the athletes team for further testing (more on this later).

The weather (yes, the weather...) has been miserable so far. One word: W-E-T. Ugh... The high humidity and almost constant precipitation has made it prime conditions to test the new Zero base skis (waxless or 'rub' skis). Yesterday, we literally took an belt sander with a 120 grit paper and went to town on the base. After a while I told Bertrand: "Hey, ease off a bit...It's not a damn IKEA table!"...he's French, so he didn't get it...I thought the hairs would be too fine, but it actually work very well...15km later, I was completely soaked, but the skis were still kicking great. I delivered them to Ivan Babikov's technician for further comparison - turns out it slotted in as a potential top pair - cool!

OK - late night here in Whistler...time to head to bed and get ready for another day tomorrow.

Get set...The Games start tomorrow!

Olympic Winter Games: Who Will Represent?

In case you were wondering...

Here are some of Salomon's top Canuck nordic athletes that will be representing our 'colours' and racing on Salomon's latest skis, boots and bindings this winter at Whistler Olympic Park in Callaghan Valley!

Cross Country Skiing

Ivan Babikov: Distance Specialist - The 'pitbull' as his teammates call him, is fresh off a Top 10 at the FIS Tour de Ski and looking to improve on his 13th at the 2006 Torino Winter Games, where he raced under the Russian Flag colours. Look for this powerful skier for a shot at the podium in the 30km Pursuit and 50km Distance events. Website/Twitter feed: www.ivanbabikov.com

Stefan Kuhn: Sprint Specialist - Look for Stefan to be a genuine threat in the sprint events. From skier to cook and back to skier...Read on Stefan's comeback story that appreared in the Rocky Mountain Outlook article a few weeks back. Website: www.stefankuhn1.com

Biathlon


Rosanna Crawford: After a difficult year with medical issues, Rosanna is back in great form and looking forward to join her sister Chandra, as well as a strong women's biathlon contingent at the Games. Read more...Randy Starkman article - Toronto Star
Blog: www.blooger-rosanna.blogspot.com

Megan Imrie: This Manitoba native has been improving every year and is looking forward to showing her talen in her first Olympic Games. Read up on Megan's 'furry' tales that appeared in the Calgary Herald last year, or check out her Website: www.meganimrie.com

Para-Nordic Skiers

Robbie Weldon - Brian Barrie (guide)

Mark Arendz

Other Boot/Binding athletes:

Alex Harvey (XC)
Devon Kershaw (XC)

Sara Renner (XC)

Brian McKeever (Para-Nordic and Olympic Games!)
Robin McKeever (Para-Nordic Guide)

More to be added when selection are completed...

Babikov Sets Fastest Time in Stage 5 of FIS Tour de Ski!

Ivan Babikov (CAN) Salomon Skis, Boots and Bindings started this handicapped style (old pursuit) race in 36th position over 1:30 down to the leaders and finished in 9th position just 37 seconds down!

Check out the full report at: www.salomonracing.com or HERE

DiCenta (ITA) leads Kershaw and Babikov at the halfway mark


Babikov and Kershaw exchanged most of the lead while chasing the lead pack.


Hellner (SWE) leads Oestesen out of the start - Hellner would finish 3rd in a sprint finish against Northug (NOR) and Cologna (Swiss)

Italy's Follis took the victory in the women's 15km Skate!

Product News: Equipe 10 LAB Skate Ski

50/50 Power Distribution Camber:
By continually balancing front and rear power distribution, kicking forces and power surges od not overpower the snow, and changes in snow conditions or terrain do not overpower the skier. Pure glide, top speed and unsurpassed stability!


G5 Zeolit Base:
World Cup performnace base with maximum universal performance + Zeolit additive for increased wax absorption and retention.


Specific Warm and Cold Constructions:
In addition to the base grind differences, the warm ski has a shoter glide zone for reduced wet snow suction, while the cold condition skis have a longer glide zone to maximize edge hold, and glide in colder snow temperatures.

Ivan Babikov: Thoughts On the Early World Cups

Salomon Nordic caught up with Ivan Babikov in Canmore, Alberta following his return from the Davos World Cup, where he finished 26th - still ill from a cough/cold that crept up on him a few days before the race. Here are his thoughts and feelings on the early World Cup season...

We heard you got sick a few days before the Davos World Cup…Can you describe your feeling and what you did to prepare?
When I realize that I was getting sick, I got very upset. I was feeling very good a few days before and was looking forward to start the Davos World Cup. Then I just stayed in the hotel room and tried recover as soon as possible.

Did you think of skipping the race? Or were you always planning on racing regardless of being sick?
There was a day (two days before the start) when I felt very bad and was thinking that there was no way I would be able to start, but next day (after a good night's sleep) I felt a little bit better and I wanted to start no matter what.

What kind of training did you do while you were sick?
I was locked in my room with a lot of chocolate, a kettle of tea and a jar of honey!

How did you feel during the race?
I didn't feel great...I just felt like couldn't push hard enough.

I heard you had some fast skis…How did you compare to others around you?
I had THE fastest skis that day, rockets. I'm super happy with my skis this season so far. Just amazing how much Salomon improved since last year.

Are you happy with first part of WC season?
Not 100%, sometimes I wasn't ready, sometimes just bad luck, but hopefully the rest of the season will be better for me.

What is the focus now that you are back in Canada ?
I'll try to keep my shape up, do some little tune up before Tour de ski, and of course spend my first Christmas with family in like 7 years. :)

Good luck Ivan and Merry Christmas to you and your family!

Nystad News Tronds: Davos

As far as Davos went, All in all it was business as usual. Fair races and fair courses....great to see that the french team had 5 people top 8....sprint course was for me way too long, but those discussions are never ending..some think the sprint should be longer, other think it should be shorter. Also nice to see that Dahl got his first WC win.

La Sqambeda was also on Sunday - all the WC skiers that did not race the sprint went there - they had a pretty easy match as they all sprinted for the win.

Other than that not much to report....Rogla will be interesting - only a 2.5km loop. 30 km mass start will be pretty tight...sprint to get into the first row, then a sprint again at the finish. The course does not open till Thursday, so more to tell then..t

Salomon Nordic System Athletes Continue to Win at Sovereing Lakes, BC

NST/Salomon's Phil Widmer (far lane) lunges for the line against Garrot Kuzzy (USST) in the "A" Finals of the Teck Sprint in Sovereign Lake

Dec 13, 2009 - Canadians Phil Widmer and Dasha Gaiazova Strike Gold at Teck Sprint Series in British Columbia http://www.cccski.com/main.asp?cmd=doc&ID=6036&lan=0

VERNON, B.C.—Canadian athletes defended home snow by winning double gold in the opening Teck Sprint Series race of the Haywood NorAm event taking place near Vernon, B.C. on Sunday.
Phil Widmer and Dasha Gaiazova, both of Banff, Alta., bolted their way around the 1.1-kilometre skate-sprint track at the picturesque Sovereign Lake Nordic Ski Club to win gold in both the men’s and women’s races.


The 26-year-old Widmer, who is one of the country’s strongest sprint athletes and competed at the 2006 Olympics, was first out of the gate in the qualification round and fought his way through the challenging heats to hold off the hard-charging Americans.

“It was a good day for me despite the qualifying round not going well for the team as a whole, but to get two Canadians on the podium is great,” said Widmer. “My energy was good today. I was nervous after not qualifying well but things got better in the first heat. I gained confidence as I went along and it was great to get Garrott at the line. I have a lot of respect for him.”

Gaiazova fought off Americans Holly Brooks (CXC/Salomon) who grabbed the silver medal, while Katie Ronsse (Atomic) powered her way to the bronze.

COMPLETE NORAM RESULTS: Qualifying ResultsFinal Results

Top-5 Women’s Results:
1. Dasha Gaiazova, Banff, Alta.

2. Holly Brooks, USA (Salomon)

3. Katie Ronsse, USA (Atomic)

4. Kasandra Rice, USA

5. Rebecca Dussault, USA (Salomon)

Top-5 Men’s Results:
1. Phil Widmer, Banff, Alta., CAN (Salomon)

2. Garrott Kuzzy, USA (Salomon)

3. Sean Crooks, Thunder Bay, Ont., CAN (Atomic)

4. Mark Iverson, USA

5. Leif Orin Zimmermann, USA

Top 3 Junior Men's Results:
1. Erik Fagerstrom, SVFUS, USA

2. Steffan Lloyd, Nakkertok, CAN (Salomon)

3. Etienne Richard, CNEPH, Can (Atomic)

Top 3 Junior Women's Results:
1. Dahria Beatty, Whitehorse, CAN (Salomon boots/bindings)
2. Janelle Greer, Whitehorse, CAN (Salomon boots/bindings)

3. Alysson Cummings, Sovereign Lakes Nordic, CAN (Salomon boots/bindings)

Salomon Athletes Victorious Again at Sovereign Lakes NorAm FIS race!

Dec 12,2009

Top-10 Women’s Results:
1. Holly Brooks, USA, 29:37 (Salomon)
2. Dasha Gaiazova, Banff, Alta., CAN, 29:46
3. Rebecca Dussault, USA, 30:24 (Salomon)
4. Madeleine Williams, Edmonton, CAN, 30:31
5. Caitlin Compton, USA, 30:48 (Salomon)
6.Tazlina Mannix, USA, 30:51
7. Nicole De Yong, USA, 30:58
8. Brooke Gosling, Calgary, 31:17 (Salomon)
9. Rebecca Rorabaugh, USA, 31:21
10. Kristina Trygstad-Saari, USA, 31:24




Top-10 Men’s Results:
1. Garrot Kuzzy, USA, 37:35 (Salomon)
2. James Southam, USA, 38:24 (Atomic)
3. Matt Liebsch, USA, 38:27 (Salomon)
4. Gord Jewett, Canmore, Alta., CAN, 38:43
5. Brian Gregg, USA, 38:45 (Salomon)
6. Bryan Cook, USA, 38:46 (Salomon)
7. Brian McKeever, Canmore, Alta., CAN, 38:59 (Salomon boots/bindings)
8. Kevin Sandau, Calgary, CAN, 39:12
9. Drew Goldsack, Red Deer, Alta., CAN, 39:12
10. Graham Nishikawa, Whitehorse, Yukon, CAN, 39:13 (Salomon boots/bindings)

Etienne Richard (Atomic) takes the Junior Men's title

La Sgambia: Shiriav Wins by FF

Russian Sergey Shiriaev won in photo finish the twentieth edition of La Sgambeda beating Fabio Santus from Bergamo, Italy. Third, René Sommerfeld of Germany was third. Among women the Ukrainian Valentina Shevchencko dominated by posting Antonella Confortola of Italy second.

Over 1,700 cross-country skierstook part in the long weekend "distance runners" in Livigno, which began on Friday with Sgambeda in Classical and continued yesterday with the MiniSgambeda. The main race today was truly international with 9 countries represented in the top 11 standings in the men category and 12 nations present in the top 20. http://www.lasgambeda.it/

La Sgambeda

La Sgambeda will mark the start of the popular skiing competition season in Central Europe this Sunday.

Friday 11 December 2009

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Photo: Nordic Focus - La Sgambeda 2008

Classic race new program
For the first time this year there will be a classic race in the La Sgambeda in Livigno (Italy)., Classics specialists will fight on a round of 21 kilometers already on Friday. The highlight of the weekend will be on Sunday when 42 and 21 kilometers F is on the program. The start is scheduled at 11.00.

Famous Cross-Country skiing names on start
The the start list includes the Vasaloppet winners Daniel Tynell and Sandra Hansson. The overall winner of last season, Marco Cattaneo and Jenny Hansson will try again this year. Some athletes will use the short distance of La Sgambeda to Davos. Rikard Andreasson and Geir Ludvig Aasen plan to eat up another portion of kilometers after the Saturday's World Cup race at La Sgambeda. From a German perspective, and Steffi Thomas Freimuth likely Felgenhauer, and DSV-series cross-country champion Anja Kretschmer has the greatest chance to have a front rank.

Ideal conditions
While in central Europe snow is rare the Italian Livigno can offer already plenty of it. 60 centimeters are around the place. All competitors can look forward to ideally prepared track and great sportive conditions.

For more information go to the OC's website.

Contributed by: XC-SKI.de and FIS http://www.fiscrosscountry.com/