Rogla, Slovenia –FIS Cross Country World Cup sprint leader Kikkan Randall set the pace in the opening heats but went down hard in a start crash that took her out of Sunday’s cross country skiing sprint finals in Rogla, finishing sixth. Norway’s Maiken Caspersen Falla, who challenged Randall hard in the semifinals, won her first World Cup while Dario Cologna of Switzerland won the men’s.
“Yeah, kind of an unlucky day,” said Randall. “Just got to see some footage of the final. Still not quite sure what happened but it looks like Korostelva’s pole or ski just nipped the tip of my ski at the wrong time, causing my legs to split and down I went. I tried to get up right away and then my pole broke. I kept chasing for a while hoping maybe there would be a tangle up and I could get back in it but unfortunately the course was too short and fast and I couldn’t get back in the race.
“It was a real bummer because I was feeling strong again and had skied well in the quarters and semis. I know I could have been strong in the finish. But hey, that’s sprint racing. It’s still great to know that I felt strong today and I get to keep the red jersey over Christmas!”
Despite the crash, Randall maintained her World Cup sprint lead, as well as fourth in the overall ranking. Four Americans qualified into the heats including Randall, Ida Sargent, Simi Hamilton and Andy Newell. It was the first time Sargent made the heats, going out in the quarter finals. Newell qualified 10th but went out in quarterfinals. Hamilton survived as the top lucky loser in quarterfinals but lost out in a photo finish in semifinals and did not advance.
“I am super fired up with how today went,” said Hamilton. “I knew that the qualifier would go well because of the nature of the course. The technical corners and short length suited me well and I am again feeling 100% healthy after a bit of a battle with some illnesses.”
“Awesome to be joined in the rounds by Ida, Simi and Andy today,” added Randall. ” Simi had a great day, first time in the semis. And of course it was great to see our North American buddy Chandra (Crawford, of Canada) take the silver!”
OFFICIAL RESULTS
FIS Cross Country Ski World Cup
Rogla, Slovenia – Dec. 18, 2011
Women’s Sprint:
| Rank | Bib | Name | Year | Nation |
| 1 | 13 | FALLA Maiken Caspersen | 1990 | NOR |
| 2 | 17 | CRAWFORD Chandra | 1983 | CAN |
| 3 | 1 | INGEMARSDOTTER Ida | 1985 | SWE |
| 4 | 21 | OESTBERG Ingvild Flugstad | 1990 | NOR |
| 5 | 19 | KOROSTELEVA Natalia | 1981 | RUS |
| 6 | 6 | RANDALL Kikkan | 1982 | USA |
| 7 | 2 | FABJAN Vesna | 1985 | SLO |
| 8 | 3 | VAN DER GRAAFF Laurien | 1987 | SUI |
| 9 | 22 | GAIAZOVA Daria | 1983 | CAN |
| 10 | 24 | VISNAR Katja | 1984 | SLO |
Men’s Sprint:
| Rank | Bib | Name | Year | Nation |
| 1 | 3 | COLOGNA Dario | 1986 | SUI |
| 2 | 1 | MORILOV Nikolay | 1986 | RUS |
| 3 | 4 | GLOEERSEN Anders | 1986 | NOR |
| 4 | 20 | GOLBERG Paal | 1990 | NOR |
| 5 | 28 | HATTESTAD Ola Vigen | 1982 | NOR |
| 6 | 17 | BRANDSDAL Eirik | 1986 | NOR |
| 7 | 16 | PELLEGRINO Federico | 1990 | ITA |
| 8 | 22 | PETERSON Teodor | 1988 | SWE |
| 9 | 2 | PETUKHOV Alexey | 1983 | RUS |
| 10 | 7 | HAMILTON Simeon | 1987 | USA |