“You can say that you believe in yourself, but to actually believe in yourself is an entirely different thing,” - U.S. Head Coach Matt Whitcomb following the U.S. women’s strong fourth place performance in Wednesday’s relay.
For the American men, who finished 11th in the men’s relay, there are blueprints to follow to move forward. Kikkan Randall blazed a path to success during the last five seasons, the U.S. women have followed suit and individual performances from the men have highlighted promise in both sprint and distance racing. Likewise, fellow North American, Alex Harvey of Canada has showcased a different type of racing in Falun, a cagey certainty that makes American prospects for gold across both genders and in all disciplines possible.
“When I do want to make a move, I commit 100 percent. I make sure what I’m doing is putting all of my energy into getting ahead,” Harvey said in an interview following his silver medal Falun sprint. Harvey moves through races with a certainty that historically has been reserved for Scandinavian countries. Witness Johann Olsson’s win in the 15k freestyle event. The defending 50k freestyle champion from the Val di Fiemme World Championship in 2011, Olsson forwent the World Cup schedule for an isolated and quiet period of intense preparation with only a single World Cup start prior to Thursday’s race. His win was the payout on a massive bet he placed in his own confidence. He made little fanfare in the media after his win, letting his result be the voice that spoke to his stature as a racer.
Following the 15k win and prior to his relay leg, Olsson’s conviction had prompted skiing’s largest star, the Norwegian Petter Northug to comment to the ever lurking Scandinavian media. “I’m not in love with Olsson,” said Northug. “But he’s a legend.” Respect comes begrudgingly from Northug and is often applied as a cudgel—an off-track attack to nip at a competitor’s self-assurance.
Olsson’s response came in the form of a relay leg that few in skiing present or past could likely match. After taking the first tag roughly 20 seconds down, Olsson found himself in third place behind Norway, a country that turns conviction into dominant World Cup results, and France, an upstart team with a spark of confidence born from a bronze-medal performance in Sochi and a collection of young, talented racers.
What happened next was simply spectacular. Olsson spent the next two of the four 2.5k laps pulling back his French and Norwegian counterparts. After drawing even, he measured his energy until the final lap up the course’s most lauded feature, the Mordorbakken or ‘murder hill,’ where he then brandished a killer’s stride and kicked without doubt away from Norway’s Didrik Tønseth. Tønseth slipped when he tried to match Olsson’s jump. Kick wax and confidence have been applied in perfect amounts this week by the Swedes. Olsson tagged to teammate Marcus Hellner with a 10-second lead.
Then there was Northug. While Helner, Frenchman, Robin Duvillard and Norway’s Anders Gloeerson battled to a draw in the third leg of the relay, Northug warmed up in the stadium with quiet, assured movements. He wore large headphones over his national team hat and all signs pointed to isolation and restraint. The price of admission to race at the international level is unparalleled fitness. The price of winning is knowing when to keep the speed from that fitness harnessed.
In that way, Northug is akin to his countryman, Magnus Carlsen, the world’s highest ranked chess player. After taking the final tag with a six-second advantage over Sweden’s fourth leg, the powerful Calle Halvarsson, Northug simply stood up and let his pursuers catch on. Always a tactician, Northug wasted no energy, matching every stroke that Halvarsson made for the ensuing eight kilometers. At one point, the French anchor lit out alone, skiing bravely away from Halvarsson and Northug. When the gap reached a critical ten seconds, Northug drew it back and simply waited again.
The finish was hard-fought, if predictable. Halvarsson attacked. Northug responded. Northug attacked. Halvarsson chased. Northug put on a burst of unrelenting speed, a play he’s made countless times in his career to secure a gold, a play media and sportscasters have taken to calling the “Northug conundrum” since it seems to have no answer from other competitors. A conundrum Olsson took head on in Sunday’s 50k event, when he finished third to Northug's victory.
There are no easy ways to gather certainty in international competition. Even if acquired, it is fleeting for all but the sport’s most naturally talented. Yet as cross country skiing grows and evolves and America continues its progress in professional preparation, the emotional hand holds where U.S. racers may climb the castle walls to more and consistent podium results will grow easier to grasp.
