'King' Harald Amundsen attacks, resists and controls, and wins the Tour de Ski
The Marseillaise resounds over Cermis: France places two athletes on the podium of the Final Climb
Jessie Diggins wins her 2nd career Tour de Ski
Sophia Laukli hits the jackpot on Cermis: the Final Climb is hers
It’s a stars and stripes themed Val di Fiemme the one of the women’s Final Climb, with the American Jessie Diggins conquering for the second time the Tour de Ski victory and the compatriot Sophia Laukli to crown herself stage champion on the Alpe Cermis.
Today took place the women’s 10 km FT, last appointment of the Tour. On the Alpe Cermis climb the first positions of the group are all occupied by great names: Sundling (SWE), Karlsson (SWE), Claudel (FRA), Diggins (USA) and Weng (NOR). At the passage of the 6.8 km are Sophia Laukli and Heidi Weng the two who seem more in shape. Weng devours the initial slopes and her fast pace takes the first victims. Spurred on by the constant cheering of the fans crowded along the Olimpia III track, the athletes climbed one by one the uphill slopes of the 'Monster Bakken': Weng was launched into a real climb even in the general ranking of the Tour, but when they reached the Cermis summit it was the American Laukli who relaunched the action. Weng (1991) does not keep pace with the young Laukli (2000) who heads straight for the finish line at Doss dei Laresi, the middle station of the Alpe Cermis. After 38'16".5, it was the American who won the seventh and final stage of the Tour de Ski, beating Weng by 17". Third of the day was French Delphine Claudel. The American Diggins, an excellent calculator, controlled the situation and with her gold bib, she shines on the top step of the Tour de Ski podium, second was Weng and third Niskanen who left the Swedish athletes, who until yesterday occupied two thirds of the podium, out of the top three.
Harald Amundsen, instead, is the seventh Norwegian king of Cermis. It is he who today fired up the Final Climb, then he let French and Germans blow off some steam and in the end he controlled and managed his advantage and won the Tour de Ski 2024.
Today's race, the 10 km in free technique from Lago di Tesero to Cermis, was won by Frenchman Jules Lapierre. The open fight for the podium in the general ranking was sparked off from km 6.8, when it was leader Amundsen who led the group of the best in the climb. Vermeulen (AUT), Lapierre (FRA), Lapalus (FRA), Moch (GER) and Amundsen (NOR) started the Final Climb in the first positions and were dragged up the hairpin bends by the crowd. In the final kilometres, Olympia III gave no break and it was Erik Valnes who was the first to pay the bill, with the Norwegian losing contact just as the German Moch proved to be in great shape and relaunched the action on one of the most insidious climbs of the course. Lapierre had him in his sights and the two were able to gain just enough to launch themselves into a duel to the death: on the last ramp that led to the finish line it was the French Lapierre who got the better of the pack and crossed the finish line first, 2"4 ahead of a splendid Moch. Big celebration for France, which placed two athletes on the podium of the day: an elated Hugo Lapalus finished third on the Alpe Cermis. After him came Austrian Vermeulen, while fifth was Harald Oestberg Amundsen, who allowed himself time to catch his breath and then rejoiced: the 18th Tour de Ski was his. Amundsen (NOR), Moch (GER), Lapalus (FRA): this was the Tour de Ski podium.
After the thousand emotions of the Tour de Ski, the goodbye in Val di Fiemme is until next January, it will be time for the pre-Olympics.
© Newspower
