The third leg of the cross-country World Cup season got underway in Davos, Switzerland with cowbells ringing, as 15 teams went head-to-head in the women's and men's team sprint freestyle competitions.
Maja Dahlqvist and Jonna Sundling led Sweden I to a first-place finish in the women's team sprint free event. The pair powered through the 12-lap course and Sundling pulled away for the Swedish win in 15:34.77. The victory was the 14th World Cup win for Dahlqvist and the 21st victory for Sundling. The Swedish pair also were last year's world champions.
Astrid Oeyre Slind and Mathilde Myhrvold of Norway II completed the relay just 3.26 seconds behind their rivals to barely clinch second on the podium ahead of Norway I.
Kristin Austgulen Fosnaes and Kristine Stavaas Skistad raced for Norway I and took third in a very close finish. They crossed the line just 0.2 seconds behind their compatriots.
The U.S. women's team did not compete.
While the women's side relatively was a clean race, the men's event was full of tangled skis and messy crashes.
However, Norway I's Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo and Erik Valnes unsurprisingly were unaffected by the course collisions. The Norwegians outpaced the pack and crossed the finish line first in 14:00.95. Klaebo's tempo and power were unmatched on the final climb, and the final surge allowed the world's best to cruise to victory with raised arms to the crowd.
The second spot on the podium was clinched by a boot length in a photo finish. Italy I secured the runner-up spot after Elia Barp and Federico Pellegrino finished 2.04 seconds behind the Norwegians and just half a second ahead of Sweden I. Swedish teammates Johan Haeggstroem and Edvin Anger claimed the third and final spot on the podium.
The U.S. men's team did not qualify for the sprint free final after qualification races earlier in the day.
After the men's and women's races, skiers discussed the difficulty of racing in such a high-altitude venue in Davos, so recovery indeed will be a factor when competition resumes with the women's and men's sprint free finals.