Ebba Andersson, Lager 157 Ski Team, and Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget, Team Eksjöhus, dominated Reistadløpet this morning with stunning solo victories.
Reistadløpet in Norway, the northernmost race and considered the most demanding course in the Visma Ski Classics Pro Tour Season XII, took place today with a 50-kilometer long-distance event in classic technique and snowy and challenging conditions.
WOMEN’S RACE
The women’s race started at 10:00 CET, and an early big front group was formed, with real action already in the first kilometers with Anniken Gjerde Alnes, Team Ragde Charge, in front.
At Storlømyra, the only Visma Ski Classics Sprint of the day, at 5.4km into the race, Anniken Gjerde Alnes, Team Ragde Charge, crossed first. She was closely followed by Lina Korsgren, Team Ramudden, 0.2 seconds back, and Britta Johansson Norgren, Lager 157 Ski Team, 3.9 seconds behind.
The day’s first climb started with about 40km to go, and Ebba Andersson, Lager 157 Ski Team, showed her diagonal striding strength getting a considerable gap and disintegrating the main field. The only close chasers were Astrid Øyre Slind, Team Koteng Eidissen, and Marit Bjørgen, Team Ragde Charge.
At Orta Climb Checkpoint, 14.2km into the race, Ebba Andersson crossed first and grabbed maximum points, followed by Astrid Øyre Slind, 2:01.7 back, and Marit Bjørgen, 2:02:6 behind. The next chasing group was more than 3 minutes behind, with Ida Dahl and Britta Johansson Norgren more than 5 minutes back.
After the climb and into some rolling stretches, Andersson kept a high pace, and with 22.4km to go, she was 1 minute and 30 seconds in front of the chasers Øyre Slind and Bjørgen, with the margin increasing over the hilly terrain.
At the second Climb checkpoint of the day at Halvor Hill, 33.2km into the race, Ebba Andersson crossed first, followed by Marit Bjørgen, 2:24.4 behind, and Øyre Slind, 3:45.1 back. With about 6.5km to go, Andersson was still strong and had a gap of 1 minute and 33 seconds over Bjørgen and almost 2 minutes over Øyre Slind.
In the end, Ebba Andersson, Lager 157 Ski Team, won Reistadløpet in beautiful classic style with a time of 2:38:01.4. Marit Bjørgen, Team Ragde Charge, finished in second place, 54.2 seconds behind, followed by Astrid Øyre Slind, Team Koteng Eidissen, in the third spot, 3 minutes and 52 seconds back.
MEN’S RACE
The men’s race started at 10:30 CET, and there was no decisive action until before the only Sprint checkpoint of the day at Storlømyra, 5.4km into the race. Stian Bjerg, Team Kaffebryggeriet, attacked early, crossed first, and got maximum points. Fabián Štoček and Jan Šrail, Vltava Fund Ski Team, followed in second and third place.
After the Sprint, Stian Berg was joined by Karstein Johaug, Team Ragde Charge, and Runar Skaug Mathisen, Lager 157 Ski Team. The trio got a small gap over the main field, heading to the steepest hill of the day.
Soon the uphill started, and with about 38km to go, Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget, Team Eksjöhus, and Tord Asle Gjerdalen, Team XPND Fuel, took the lead and soon had a gap of 21 seconds over Andrew Musgrave, Team Næringsbanken, and 29 seconds over the chasing group behind.
At the first Climb checkpoint of the day at Orta, Tord Asle Gjerdalen took the lead and crossed first, followed by Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget in second and Andrew Musgrave in third, 1:15.9 behind. The first six Pro Tour skiers at Orta used kick wax, with the double poling chasers 1:36.3 back.
After the Orta Climb, Gjerdalen and Nyenget were active in the front and keeping the gap at around 1 minute and 30 seconds over the chasing group. With about 23km to go, Nyenget could get a gap of 23 seconds over Gjerdalen and 1 minute and 50 seconds for the chasing group.
Still solo at Halvor Hill, the second Climb checkpoint of the day, 33.2km into the race, Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget crossed the line first, with Tord Asle Gjerdalen in second, at 1:07.7 back. The chasing group crossed 3:03.0 behind, with Andrew Musgrave in third. Over the kilometers, Nyenget’s gap was consistent, and with 3.1km to go, he had 1 minute and 18 seconds of advantage.
In the end, Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget, Team Eksjöhus, showed superior performance and a great demonstration of power during his solo breakaway to win Reistadløpet, the 13th stage of Visma Ski Classics Season XII.
Behind, we could watch a beautiful race for the remaining podium places. Tord Asle Gjerdalen, Team XPND Fuel, finished in second place, 1 minute and 15 seconds behind the winner, followed by Mikael Gunnulfsen, Team Koteng Eidissen, 3 minutes and 10 seconds back, in the third position.
Reistadløpet results can be found here.
The next Pro Tour race is Ylläs-Levi. The 70-kilometer classic technique race is the 14th and last event of Visma Ski Classics Season XII, in Finland, on April 9.
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