Afton skier Jessie Diggins, back at the scene of a previous triumph, won the first event of the Tour de Ski on Saturday in Toblach, Italy.
Jessie Diggins surprises herself with rare sprint win in first stage of Tour de Ski
Diggins, from Afton, has won only three World Cup sprint races and 18 distance races.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
December 29, 2024 at 12:42AM
Diggins, wearing the yellow bib that designates the overall leader in the World Cup standings, won the skate sprint, surprising because 18 of her 21 World Cup wins have come in distance races.
Diggins, also the defending World Cup overall champion, has twice won the Tour de Ski, which involves seven races of various styles and distances over nine days. It will continue Sunday with a 15km classic mass start in Toblach. Diggins became the first skier from outside Europe to win the Tour de Ski in 2021 and won it again in 2024.
The sprint victory made her the season sprint leader, which also comes with a bib, presenting a complication Diggins hadn’t faced. “Can I wear two bibs?” she said, laughing.
“This was a huge surprise,” Diggins said. “… Toblach is so special. This is where I had my first podium, a long time ago during the Tour de Ski. So, this victory is an amazing surprise.”
Diggins finished the 1.4km freestyle sprint 31 hundredths of a second ahead of Jasmi Joensuu of Finland. Nadine Feindrich of Switzerland took third.
“I kind of thought I was getting old and not ready to have another sprint victory in my life,” Diggins said.
The Gophers face No. 4 USC on Thursday night, followed by No. 1 UCLA on Sunday in the teeth of their Big Ten schedule.
