Majdic and Hattestad win Cross-Country sprint - again

World Cup

Mon, Dec  22, 2008 - By FIS

No matter if it is skating or classical technique, hilly or flat, city or woods, the winner in this season's Viessmann FIS Cross-Country World Cup sprint races has not changed: in the Düsseldorf (GER) city sprints, the winners were - again - Petra Majdic from Slovenia and Ola Vigen Hattestad from Norway.

Petra Majdic claimed victory ahead of Natalia Matveeva from Russia and the youngster from Norway, Maiken Caspersen Falla.

After her success in Davos, where Majdic took her first victory in a free technique sprint she claimed her 7th World Cup victory in Düsseldorf. For Matveeva, Düsseldorf is a great place: since 2006 she has always been on the podium there (4x times now). A great surprise was just 18-year-old Maiken Caspersen Falla, who realized her first World Cup podium.

Ola Vigen Hattestad won the tight men's race ahead of his teammate Tor Arne Hetland. The third place went to Fabio Pasini from Italy who edged his teammate Cristian Zorzi just out of the podium. Local hero and last year's winner Josef Wenzl (GER) took fifth in a comeback from injury.

For Hattestad it was his fifth World Cup victory in his career. For the first time ever on the podium was Fabio Pasini, the brother of Renato Pasini, the World Champion in Team Sprint.

In Sunday's team sprint, the first team sprint event this season the ladies competition was won by Team Russia with Natalia Korosteleva and Natalia Matveeva and the men's by Team Norway with Ola Vigen Hattestad and Tor Arne Hetland.