Tour de Ski 2023/24: Jessie Diggins completes second overall victory as Harald Østberg Amundsen clinches men's title - Results
Diggins was sixth up the gruelling Alpe Cermis climb as American teammate Sophia Laukli took the stage for a first World Cup win.
Cross-Country Skiing
American cross-country skier Jessie Diggins completed her second overall victory in the Tour de Ski on Sunday (7 January) as teammate Sophia Laukli conquered Alpe Cermis.
Diggins took an advantage of 43 seconds into the final 10km mass start in Val di Fiemme, Italy, which culminated in the ultra-steep Alpe Cermis climb.
She was safely in a large group at the start of the ascent behind her nearest challengers Jonna Sundling and reigning champion Frida Karlsson.
Two-time former winner Heidi Weng, just over a minute adrift at the start of the day, quickly moved to the front with the two Swedes following her and Diggins staying in touch.
With 2.5km to go, Olympic sprint champion Sundling was losing ground as Laukli - third on this stage last year - set off in pursuit of Weng despite a fall caused by her tripping over a ski pole.
As Karlsson struggled, Weng emerged as the only threat to Diggins in the general classification. But it was Laukli who attacked inside the final kilometre and looked positively serene as she crossed the line to take the stage.
By contrast, Diggins was gulping air like a goldfish as fatigue set in in the closing metres. But she managed to finish sixth on the day - 48 seconds behind Laukli - to take the title.
Weng moved up into second place overall with Finland's Kerttu Niskanen displacing Karlsson and Sundling from the podium.
Laukli told FIS afterwards, "I was really excited for today and, after being third last year, I was like, 'There's not a lot of room for improvement but it would be super super cool to win.' I didn't want to have too high expectations but I couldn't really not be happier with this."
Earlier, Norway's Harald Østberg Amundsen claimed his first Tour de Ski title after finishing fifth on the day.
With an overnight lead of a minute and a half over teammate Erik Valnes, not known for his climbing prowess, Amundsen raced aggressively and headed the field going into the last couple of kilometres.
He faded in the closing stages with France's Jules Lapierre taking the stage win ahead of German Friedrich Moch and another Frenchman, Hugo Lapalus.
Moch moved up to second overall as Lapalus denied Martin Loewstroem Nyenget the final spot on the podium.
2023/24 Tour de Ski: Results from Stage 7 - 10km mass start free, Val di Fiemme, Italy:
Women's
- Sophia Laukli (USA) 38:16.5
- Heidi Weng (NOR) +17.1
- Delphine Claudel (FRA) +37.7
- Kerttu Niskanen (FIN) +39.2
- Patricija Eiduka (LAT) +41.0
- Jessie Diggins (USA) +48.5
Men's
- Jules Lapierre (FRA) 33:00.7
- Friedrich Moch (GER) +2,4
- Hugo Lapalus (FRA) +16.0
- Mika Vermeulen (AUT) +27.8
- Harald Østberg Amundsen (NOR) +30.2
- Martin Loewstroem Nyenget (NOR) +45.2
2023/24 Tour de Ski: Final overall standings:
Women's
- Jessie Diggins (USA) 4:13:19
- Heidi Weng (NOR) +32
- Kerttu Niskanen (FIN) +40
- Frida Karlsson (SWE) +1:17
- Jonna Sundling (SWE) +1:48
- Linn Svahn (SWE) +2:06
Men's
- Harald Østberg Amundsen (NOR) 3:41:22
- Friedrich Moch (GER) +1:19
- Hugo Lapalus (FRA) +1:33
- Martin Loewstroem Nyenget (NOR) +1:57
- Beda Klee (SUI) +2:07
- Erik Valnes (NOR) +2:18
Full results can be found here.