Stage 3 of the Tour de Ski in Toblach, Italy, featured a brand-new event: the men's and women's 5km heat mass start free competitions. The first-time race on the final day of the year proved to be the perfect format for Team USA's cross-country skiers.

Gus Schumacher started off the New Year's Eve party after he topped the podium for only the second time in his career.

Schumacher skated through the short-distance race to victory in 9:35.4 and now sits 6th on the overall Tour de Ski leaderboard. 

"It's really cool, ski racing is really fun when it's going well, and fighting for the win is always a good time," Schumacher said after the race.

The 25-year-old cross-country skier edged out Benjamin Moser of Austria by just 0.2 seconds for the dramatic win.

Moser's 2nd-place finish was also a celebration, as he earned the first World Cup podium of his career.

Norwegian Lars Heggen finished 0.6 seconds behind the American winner and claimed the final spot on the podium in an extremely close finish.

It was a double-win day for Team USA in Toblach, as Jessie Diggins followed up Schumacher's win with a victory of her own in the women's 5km heat mass start free race. Wednesday marked the first time ever that cross-country skiers from both the men's and the women's fields took home World Cup victories on the same day and in the same event for the U.S.

"It was really, really cool. ... This is the last 5k I'll ever race in my whole life and in Toblach 10 years ago, I won my first race, and it was a 5k, so this is a very full-circle moment that my first and last was here," Diggins said after the race.

Sweden claimed the final two podium spots after Emma Ribom finished 5.5 seconds behind Diggins to take 2nd and Moa Ilar crossed the line 1.4 seconds later to clinch 3rd.

Diggins remains the overall leader in the World Cup and Tour de Ski standings. 

Team USA's Julia Kern placed 10th on the day for her first top-20 finish of the season so far.

The Tour de Ski will ring in the new year with the men's and women's 20km pursuit classic competitions tomorrow in Toblach.