Planica 2023 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. It was billed as Sweden vs the rest and it was Sweden who came out on top: led by reigning world and Olympic champion Jonna Sundling, Sweden’s women claimed the top four spots in the Individual Sprint Classic, Emma Ribom and Maja Dahlqvist earning silver and bronze respectively. It was far from easy for Sundling and her compatriots, though. Kristine Stavaas Skistad – the tall Norwegian who won the last World Cup Classic sprint in Les Rousses, France in January – paid the price for going out fast in the first semifinal. She again hit the front in the final, but with pace much slower, was soon reeled in by the Swedish quartet and quickly fell back. Skistad finished fifth ahead of compatriot and overall World Cup leader Tiril Udnes Weng. Sundling, on the other hand, timed her run to perfection. Having won the last World Cup sprint race, a Freestyle in Toblach, Italy, three weeks ago, the 28-year-old has hit form just at the right time. In the final, she soon overtook Skistad and never looked back, with the other three Swedes nearly tripping over each other in the uphill section as they tried to keep up.
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