Record Number of GRP Represented at Quebec World Cup Finals
Caitlin Patterson, Kaitlynn Miller, and Liz Guiney celebrating the end of the Tour (Photo John Lazenby)
Ben Lustgarten skiing strong in the 15k pursuit (Photo Eric Lustgarten)
Last Updated: 21.Mar.2017
The 2016-2017 FIS Cross Country World Cup season came to a close this past weekend with a 3-day mini tour up in Quebec City. 5 skiers, the most ever for the GRP, represented the USA as part of a 27-person US team contingent. The US and Canada had extra Nation's Group start spots for the end of season races because FIS moved the races from Tyumen, Russia, to Quebec. Therefore the field was heavy on North Americans, but also featured the top European skiers competing for overall spots.
Freestyle Sprint
Friday kicked off with a 1.5k freestyle sprint on the Plains of Abraham, right next to the Parliament building in Quebec City. In the women's race, Ida Sargent led the way for the GRP, finishing 36th in qualification, followed by Kaitlynn Miller in 50th, Caitlin Patterson in 53rd, and Liz Guiney in 62nd. Ben Lustgarten finished 69th in the men's qualifier.
10/15k Classic Mass Start
Although Ida Sargent sat out the rest of the races after the sprint due to sickness, the rest of the GRP was able to improve upon their sprint results in the classic race the following day. Proving that teammates who train together often finish together in races, in the 10k classic Caitlin Patterson, Liz Guiney, and Kaitlynn Miller finished within ten seconds of each other 44th, 45th, and 47th, respectively. Ben Lustgarten was also in the top 50 of the men's race, finishing 49th, as 6th American.
10/15k Freestyle Mass Start
The final day of competition was a 10/15k freestyle pursuit with racers starting in the order of their Tour standing from the previous two races. All four remaining GRP skiers started in the wave start, at 3:00 min for the women and 3:30 for the men. Caitlin Patterson had the best overall pursuit result, skiing up to 42nd place with the 38th fastest time on day. Kaitlynn Miller finished 52nd in the pursuit, and Liz Guiney was 53rd. In the men's 15k, Ben Lustgarten held on to 59th overall.
Full results from the weekend can be found, as always, on FIS-ski.com. Next up, the skiers will wrap up their domestic season with Spring Distance Nationals and SuperTour Finals in Fairbanks, Alaska starting next Monday.