Russian skier Alexander Bolshunov lost half a minute to Norwegian Johannes Klebo and finished fifth in the mass start in the classic style at the third stage of the Tour de Ski. The journalists of the Norwegian edition Nettavisen speculated about Klebo’s victory over Bolshunov.
“The Russian was put to bed,” – with such a phrase the Norwegian journalists described the victory of their compatriot in the race. They noted that after the finish, the Russian was very upset and left the stadium without talking to media representatives.
The winner of the race, Klebo, covered the distance of 15 kilometers in 41 minutes and 31.2 seconds. Finn Iivo Niskannen finished second, 20.8 seconds back. Russian Alexei Chervotkin finished third, 23.7 seconds behind the winner. Another Russian Denis Spitsov finished fourth.
Bolshunov is a two-time overall winner of the Tour de Ski. Before the final race of the multi-day race, the total lag of the Russian from Klebo is two minutes.
On January 3, the senior coach of the Russian national cross-country skiing team, Yuri Borodavko, explained Bolshunov’s failure in the mass start with the classic style. According to the coach, the offensive stick breakage did not allow the Russian to get to the prize position.
The third and final stage of the Tour de Ski takes place in the Italian Val di Fiemme. It will end on January 4th with a freestyle mass start.
Kingston is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
