Milan Baic, Ross Williams, and Hannah Meachum top the standings with the fastest average sprint out of three at Hickory Hills.
Bjorn Daehlie, the most accomplished cross country skier of all time will ski the 54-Kilometer Birkie Classic race and participate in additional American Birkebiner events as an Ambassador for Multiple Sclerosis Research.
The countdown for the FIS Junior- and U23 World Championships in Cross-Country is running: in only 7 days the most important competitions for the next generation of World Cup athletes will take place in France
The Viessmann FIS Cross-Country World Cup will continue at the upcoming weekend in the famous Estonian World Cup village Otepää. Distance races on Saturday, a sprint on Sunday, all classic technique.
It has been a very exciting and successful season with good snow conditions everywhere until now. 20 individual competitions (Tour de Ski counts as one) and 8 team competitions have taken place so far, in which a total of 13 nations reached the podium.
After three races, Hanson Hills / Cross Country Ski Shop leads the overall standings in the demonstration Team Results, proposed and scored by Ed Anderson.
Here are more photos of the Garland Gripper, especially of junior racers and iced beards
The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships feature one of the largest anti-doping programmes of any international major sports events outside of the Olympic Winter Games and underline the FIS position of zero tolerance on doping.
Milan Baic, Ross Williams, and Hannah Meachum top the standings with the fastest average sprint out of three.
Ross Williams won his first senior men's race of the year at the Garland Glide, while Natalie Dawson picked up her second victory of the weekend, having won the Garland Gripper the day before.
Seven Olympians, including World Cup winner Kikkan Randall (Anchorage) and World Cup podium performers Andy Newell (Shaftsbury, VT) and Torin Koos (Leavenworth, WA), lead the way for the 13 person World Championship Team named Monday.
The State of Michigan High School Nordic Championship will take place on February 14-15, 2009 at the Michigan Tech Nordic Ski Trails. Registration forms need to be in by Feb 2.