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Sprint Race
By Jesse Hyde
Deseret News Olympic specialist
SOLDIER HOLLOW — Some cross country skiing purists say the sprint race, which made its Olympic debut Tuesday at Soldier Hollow, doesn't belong in the sport.
At 1.5 kilometers, it's not long enough, they say, and with all the jostling for position, broken ski poles and spectacular crashes, it sometimes looks more like roller derby than cross country skiing.
Which is exactly why Americans like it.
This is, after all, the country that invented monster trucks and a pro wrestler who smashes beer cans against his forehead.
"It's so easy even the Americans can understand it," said Tor Arne Hetland, the Norwegian who won the men's race. "It's good for the sport to have something new."
For many Americans at Soldier Hollow Tuesday, the men's and women's sprint was the first cross country ski race they had ever seen. Stomping their feet to rock music, neophytes to the sport cheered a cast of characters as interesting as the races themselves.
The women's race went to Julija Tchepalova, a Russian with smiling brown eyes who wears six earrings in one ear. Tchepalova hails from a country that has dominated women's cross country for decades, but she is clearly the most beloved.
After her victory, a teenage boy with a Russian flag flapping from his back rushed to her side begging for a picture. He stumbled away giggling; later he would join with other Russians in the stadium chanting her name as she took the podium.
Moments later in a press conference, a Russian journalist laid a pile of T-shirts in front of Tchepalova asking her to sign them.
"My husband told me to take a lot of risks today, and I did," she said of her race. "Today we are going to go without dinner because I don't think my mother will be doing the cooking tonight."
Tchepalova's mother usually cooks for the cross country team, and her father waxes her skis before she races. Rumor has it Tchepalova's father sold all of his assets — including the family car — to further her career. When she wins, she says it is for her entire family.
Tchepalova was the only skier all day who was able to break away from the pack and decisively win her race. The medalists in the men's race crossed the finish line within the same second, but Hetland crossed first.
Hetland is the visage of a Viking — his head is shaved, his eyebrows so light they are barely visible, and his features so sharp his face looks like it was carved from ice.
In each of the qualifying heats, as well as the final heat, Hetland hung back before exploding down the stretch.
By two-tenths of a second, he crossed before Germany's Peter Schlickenrieder and Italian Cristian Zorzi, who was favored by many to win the race. Bronze winner Zorzi and Hetland have become friendly rivals. Zorzi's bronze medal did little to derail his spirits. After the race he donned a black mask and a black cape with a yellow Z embroidered on the back. It was a promise to his fanclub, he said, who call him "Zorro."
Silver medalist Schlickenrieder, who has never won an Olympic medal, plans to stop racing after the Games, to the delight of his 5-year-old daughter who has asked him to limit his racing to Saturdays so he doesn't have to be away from home.
"I told her I would stop racing after the games and she asked me if that meant I didn't have to jog anymore, and I told her yes," he said with a smile. "A five-year-old doesn't know the difference between gold and silver. If I'm happy, I think she will be happy."
Canadian Beckie Scott, who hoped to medal, finished fifth, and teammate Sara Renner finished ninth. Carl Swenson had the best result for the U.S. team, finishing 30th. University of Utah student Torin Koos finished 36th, and Tessa Benoit finished 38th, the top result for the American women.
E-MAIL: jhyde@desnews.com
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February 20, 2002
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