National Training Group Freestyle Sprint Race

Mon, Jun  21, 2010 - By USSA

The National Training Group (NTG) was joined by U.S. Ski Team member and number four ranked World Cup sprinter Andy Newell for a freestyle sprint race. Teammate, Liz Stephen, also joined the camp for the competition. Newell dominated the day, but not without being pushed by his heat of NTG sprinters. Stephen finished second behind Sophie Caldwell.

The race was held at Soldier Hollow on their roller ski loop. The women raced the traditional sprint loop while the men added a .3-kilometer section to their course. The day included a qualification round, followed by a 5 or 6 person quarterfinal, a semifinal, and the final heats. As with all U.S. Ski Team sprint time trials, the heats were stacked to put the fastest athletes in the same heat and adjusted regularly if needed, based on the split times from the previous heat. Every athlete had the opportunity to compete in all three heats.

Says U.S. Ski Team coach Matt Whitcomb, “The day was a success. We talked early in this camp about accomplishing a high “strike rate” with one’s workouts during the camp and throughout a career. In the wake of Andy Newell’s sprint tactics and preparation presentation, we saw individual warm-up, competition, and recovery strategies. The focus was where it needed to be today. It was where it needs to be everyday.”

Time trial results can be found here: NTG 2010 Time Trail Sprint Results (PDF)