LAHTI, Finland (Mar. 5, 2017) – The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships came to a close Sunday with a thrilling end to the men’s 50k mass start. Canada’s Alex Harvey made a homestretch move on Norway’s Martin Johnsrud Sundby to take gold while Sundby dropped out of the medals. Tad Elliott (Durango, CO) led the USA in 27th.
Sundby had good position in the final half kilometer but faced pressure from Harvey, Russian Sergei Ustiogov and Finland’s Matti Heikkinen. He led the group off the Lahti Corner into the stadium, but Harvey had faster skis and passed him on the inside. Ustiogov and Heikkinen also took advantage of the opportunity as Sundby slipped on a skating stride and fell off the pace. Sundby was also passed in the finish stretch by Great Britain’s Andrew Musgrave, and fell back to fifth place.
Tad Elliott, shown here competing last week in the 4x10 km relay event, was the top American in the 50K finishing 27th. (Getty Images/NurPhoto/ Foto Olimpik)
For the Americans, Elliott skied consistently in the top 30 for most of the race. Teammate Noah Hoffman (Aspen, CO) was 50th, with Kyle Bratrud (Eden Prairie, MN) dropping out.
The men and women now head back to the World Cup tour with a classic sprint Wednesday in Drammen, Norway. Followed by a 50k classic for men, and 30k for women, next weekend at the Holmenkollen Ski Festival in Oslo, Norway.
RESULTS
Men’s 50k freestyle mass start
