March is the decisive month in Ski Classics Season XVII, and it’s already delivering. Vasaloppet opened the most intense stretch of the winter, and the Pro Tour now rolls straight into four more consecutive race weekends with formats and terrain that can flip every bib competition.
After seven Pro Tour stages and three Grand Classics, the standings are set for a high-pressure run-in: a historic 50-kilometer ITT doubleheader at Orsa Grönklitt in Sweden, the final Grand Classics showdown at Birkebeinerrennet, an Arctic city spectacle in Bodø, and a Northern Norway finish that pairs Reistadløpet with the Grand Finale Summit 2 Senja.
Vasaloppet set the tone for the month
Vasaloppet, the seventh Pro Tour stage and third Grand Classics event of Season XVII, was won by Emilie Fleten, Team Ramudden, and Oskar Kardin, Lager 157 Ski Team. The results also tightened the overall battles heading deeper into March.
Also Read: Strong performances and decisive moves define Vasaloppet 2026
In the Champion competition, Anikken Gjerde Alnæs, Team Engcon, leads the women’s overall with 2070 points, followed by Emilie Fleten, Team Ramudden, with 1935, and Hanna Lodin, Team Engcon, with 1750.
On the men’s side, Amund Riege, Team Aker Dæhlie, holds the Yellow bib with 1798 points, ahead of Kasper Stadaas, Team Aker Dæhlie, on 1711 and Ole Jørgen Bruvoll, Team Engcon, on 1382.
The Sprint bib belongs to Gjerde Alnæs in the women’s competition with 187 points, ahead of Silje Øyre Slind, Team Aker Dæhlie, on 131, and Julie Kvale Støstad, Team Ramudden, on 107. In the men’s Sprint competition, Vebjørn Moen, Team Eksjöhus, leads with 158 points, just six points ahead of Gabriel Strid, Team GS8, on 152, and Ask Jørgensen, Team Synnfjell, on 35.
In the Climb competition, Silje Øyre Slind leads the women’s standings with 116 points, followed by Stina Nilsson, Team Ragde Charge, with 94, and Gjerde Alnæs with 90. For the men, Stadaas leads with 99 points, followed by Riege on 89 and Einar Kalland-Olsen, Lager 157 Ski Team, on 54.
The Pink Youth bibs sit with Louise Lindström, Team Eksjöhus, and Riege. Lindström leads the women’s Youth standings with 1198 points, followed by Anja Stolpe, The Youth Team, on 1021, and Linnea Johansson, Lager 157 Ski Team, on 904. Riege leads the men’s Youth standings with 1798 points, with Alvar Myhlback, Lager 157 Ski Team, in second on 1310 and Simon Vuillet, Team Slavia Pojišťovna Robinson Trentino, third on 733.
In the Pro Team competition, Team Engcon leads with 1145 points, ahead of Team Eksjöhus on 1041 and Team Ramudden on 917.
Read More: Ski Classics Season XVII: Standings after Vasaloppet
Four more weekends. Six Pro Tour events. One month to decide everything.
Ski Classics Season XVII features 13 events across nine event weekends, and March contains the final six Pro Tour races. The month started with Vasaloppet and concludes with the Grand Finale Summit 2 Senja. From now on, the Pro Tour is in pure “race-and-recover” mode.
March started with the legendary Vasaloppet, then shifts to a different format with the historic 50k ITT, and ends with the biggest climbs and the Grand Finale. It is a month built to reward athletes who can recover fast, handle pressure, and stay consistent across very different demands.
March 7–8: Orsa Grönklitt 50k ITT doubleheader
The next weekend brings something never seen before in Ski Classics at this scale: two 50-kilometer Individual Time Trials on back-to-back days in Orsa Grönklitt, Sweden.
On Saturday, March 7, it’s the Grönklitt 50k ITT Women (Event 8). On Sunday, March 8, the Grönklitt 50k ITT Men (Event 9) follows. Both races are 50km classic technique on the same demanding course, with the highest point at 553 meters above sea level.
After the tactical mass start of Vasaloppet, the ITT weekend flips the script. No drafting games. No team pacing. No late sprint bluff. Just pacing, technique, and mental strength over 50 kilometers, and valuable points in every competition.
March 14: Birkebeinerrennet, the last Grand Classics of the season
One week later, the Pro Tour heads to Norway for Birkebeinerrennet (Event 10), the final Grand Classics event of Season XVII, held on Saturday, March 14.
The 54km classic race from Rena to Lillehammer carries not only legendary status but also major consequences in the standings. With 1059 meters of elevation gain and a highest point at 906 meters, Birken tends to reward strong all-rounders and climbers who can survive the early effort and still race fast into Lillehammer’s Olympic stadium.
All athletes must also carry a 3.5kg backpack, a detail that adds to the event’s identity and demands.
March 21: Marcialonga Bodø and the Arctic factor
Event 11, Marcialonga Bodø on Saturday, March 21, keeps the Tour in Norway but moves it to a setting unlike any other on the calendar.
The 50km classic event combines urban atmosphere with Arctic scenery north of the Arctic Circle. With 1063 meters of elevation gain and a highest point at 279 meters, it is a race built for strong engines, but also one where conditions can become decisive. In a month defined by momentum, Bodø is the weekend where weather, travel, and recovery can matter almost as much as form.
March 28–29: Reistadløpet and the Grand Finale Summit 2 Senja
The season closes with the toughest back-to-back weekend of the year.
On Saturday, March 28, Reistadløpet (Event 12) takes the Pro Tour deep into Northern Norway for a 35km classic race from Setermoen to Bardufoss. The numbers tell the story: 1225 meters of climbing, a high point of 567 meters, and the Iconic Climb Orta, widely regarded as one of the hardest climbs on the Pro Tour.
The very next day, Sunday, March 29, Season XVII ends with the Grand Finale Summit 2 Senja (Event 13), a 60km journey from Bardufoss to Finnsnes with 1357 meters of elevation gain and a highest point of 475 meters. Voted ‘Best Event of the Year’ twice in Ski Classics, Summit 2 Senja blends fjord views, long flats, and the Iconic Climb Magdaskaret before a city-center finish in Finnsnes.
With two demanding races in 24 hours, the final weekend will reward the Pro Teams and athletes who manage recovery best and punish anyone carrying fatigue from earlier in the month.
What to watch as March Madness continues
The overall battles are tight enough that one weekend can change everything. In the women’s Champion competition, Gjerde Alnæs leads, but Fleten is within striking distance, and Team Engcon has depth with Lodin also on the podium.
In the men’s overall, Riege leads, but Stadaas is close enough that a single big result at Birken, Reistadløpet, or Summit 2 Senja could flip the Yellow bib.
The Sprint competition is also set for drama, especially on the men’s side, where Moen leads Strid by only six points. With sprint checkpoints playing a role on key weekends, that margin can disappear quickly.
The Climb competition could make headlines once the Pro Tour reaches Northern Norway. With Øyre Slind leading the women and Stadaas leading the men, the decisive climbs at Reistadløpet and Summit 2 Senja could define who wears the bib when the season ends.
And with Team Engcon leading the Pro Team competition, Team Eksjöhus and Team Ramudden will be chasing hard every weekend, knowing there is no time left to wait for opportunities.
March is the season in miniature
From Vasaloppet’s tradition and pressure to the first-ever 50-kilometer ITTs in Pro Tour history, from Birken’s final Grand Classics status to the Arctic atmosphere in Bodø, and finally the brutal two-day finale in Northern Norway, March offers a full-spectrum test of long-distance skiing.
March Madness is already underway in Ski Classics, and when the Pro Tour reaches Senja, there will be nowhere left to hide.
Next up is the Orsa Grönklitt 50k ITT on Saturday, March 7, for men, and Sunday, March 8, 2026, for women. The event marks the eighth and ninth Ski Classics Pro Tour stages of Season XVII.
Read More: Ski Classics Pro Tour Season XVII 2025/2026
Season XVII of the Ski Classics Pro Tour consists of 13 events across 9 event weekends in 6 countries.
Ski Classics Pro Tour Season XVII (2025/2026)
- Event 1: December 13, 2025 – Bad Gastein Pro Team Tempo – Sportgastein, Austria, 7km
- Event 2: December 14, 2025 – Bad Gastein Criterium – Sportgastein, Austria, 36km
- Event 3: January 17, 2026 – Engadin La Diagonela – Pontresina-Zuoz, Switzerland, 47km
- Event 4: January 25, 2026 – Marcialonga – Moena-Cavalese, Italy, 70km
- Event 5: January 30, 2026 – Bedřichov Sprint – Bedřichov, Czech Republic, 1.5km
- Event 6: February 1, 2026 – Jizerská50 – Bedřichov, Czech Republic, 50km
- Event 7: March 1, 2026 – Vasaloppet – Sälen-Mora, Sweden, 90km
- Event 8: March 7, 2026 – Orsa Grönklitt 50k ITT Women – Grönklitt, Sweden, 50km
- Event 9: March 8, 2026 – Orsa Grönklitt 50k ITT Men – Grönklitt, Sweden, 50km
- Event 10: March 14, 2026 – Birkebeinerrennet – Rena-Lillehammer, Norway, 54km
- Event 11: March 21, 2026 – Marcialonga Bodø – Bodø, Norway, 50km
- Event 12: March 28, 2026 – Reistadløpet – Setermoen-Bardufoss, Norway, 35km
- Event 13: March 29, 2026 – Grand Finale Summit 2 Senja – Bardufoss-Finnsnes, Norway, 60km
For more updates and detailed information about the Ski Classics Pro Tour, make sure to visit skiclassics.com
Author: Leandro Lutz
Photo: Daniel Eriksson/Bildbyran
