Nordic skiing: Duo starts at US college finals
While there is still enough snow in the Ore Mountains, but no competitions are possible due to the corona restrictions, there is still a lot going on in the area of Nordic skiing on the other side of the Atlantic. The NCAA championships have been held in Jackson, New Hampshire, since Thursday. With Julia Richter (SSV Sayda) and Anna-Maria Dietze (Pulsschlag Neuhausen), two young cross-country skiers studying in the USA qualified for the finals of the national college league.
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Both have been training in the small town in the White Mountains since the weekend and are preparing for the races over 5 kilometers in classic technique and 15 kilometers in freestyle. Last year the championships had to be canceled due to Corona, this year everything should go according to plan, says Julia Richter: “The hygiene concepts provide for Corona tests every two days. We were also tested directly before and after the flight.” The 22-year-old is studying in Salt Lake City, Utah, and won gold and silver at these championships two years ago. Shortly before leaving for the NCAA Championships, the Rocky Mountains College Ski Organization gave her the award for the best placings in this season’s league races. She had always run into the first two places in both the classic races and in the free style.
The Saydaerin is not one of the favorites, however, as the college league finals include some athletes who previously competed in World Cup races and the Junior World Championships in Europe. The qualification alone was a success for her, said Richter: “It was very difficult this year because we have six strong runners in our team, but only three are allowed to compete in the championships.” The University of Utah athletes ranked 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, and 12 in the regional league rankings.
Anna-Maria Dietze, the best female skier at the University of Colorado Boulder, is in 7th place in this ranking. This means that the 20-year-old is one of three athletes at her university who are now allowed to start in New England. Merle Richter from SSV Sayda, who trains on the Northern Michigan University team, has not made the leap to the NCAA championships this year. The 19-year-old had to pause after an appendectomy and corona disease, but has recently shown increasing form again in regional races. (tori)
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