Monday, January 2
Houghton, Mich. / Tech Trails
University of Denver
vs
10K Freestyle
Photo by: NCAA Photos
DU Skiing Opens 2023 Season with RMISA Nordic Qualifiers
12/30/2022 10:06:00 AM | Skiing
Pioneers also competing at the U.S. Cross Country National Championships
HOUGHTON, Mich. – The Denver Pioneers ski team opens its 2023 collegiate campaign on Monday with RMISA Nordic Qualifier races as part of the U.S. Cross Country National Championships.
Denver will compete in four days of races in the upper peninsula of Michigan, as Michigan Tech University is hosting this year's championship at its trail system adjacent to campus.
The national championships begin with the men's and women's 10-kilometer freestyle on Monday before classic sprints take over the competition on Wednesday. The men's and women's 20K classic are Friday before the week of racing concludes on Saturday, Jan 7 with freestyle sprints. All of the races in Houghton are also part of the U.S. Super Tour series, while the Jan. 7 events have been designated as a non-national championship race.
The results for the RMISA Nordic Qualifier will be pulled from the overall results during the first two days of races on Jan. 2 and Jan. 4, giving skiers from the western schools another opportunity to earn points to qualify for the 2023 NCAA Championships in Lake Placid, New York.
For the distance races, the competitors will do laps on a 5K course. Out of the stadium, the course dips roughly 600 feet before the skiers do three climbs to get back near the start to complete the lap. The sprint course is 1.244 kilometers and features roughly 60 feet of elevation gain.
Denver's Nordic squad last competed in late November at the Nordiq Cup/U.S. Super Tour races in British Columbia, Canada, as part of its winter camp. Andreas Kirkeng built off his successful freshman campaign at the event by winning both the men's freestyle sprints and 10K classic.
Overall, the Pioneers are returning nine athletes on the Nordic squad, including senior Bernhard Flaschberger and junior Hanna Ray, who joined Kirkeng as All-Americans in 2022. Denver added four newcomers to its team this season in freshmen Selma Andersen (Oslo, Norway), Aurora Cramer (Boise, Idaho), Micah Steinberg (Canmore, Alberta) and Sivert Wulff (Trondheim, Norway). Steinberg will likely miss the entire season while recovering from an injury.
Denver is coming off a third-place finish at the 2022 NCAA National Championship and its men's Nordic group was the best in the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association last season. Flaschberger (freestyle) and Kirkeng (classic) were recognized as RMISA's Most Valuable Skiers in their disciplines and DU's men's Nordic won the regular-season championship in the category, the only area that Utah did not win.
Below is the schedule for this week's races.
U.S. Cross Country National Championship Schedule
Monday, Jan. 2 (RMISA Nordic Qualifier)
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Women's 10K freestyle, interval start
10:30 a.m. MT/12:30 p.m. ET – Men's 10K freestyle, interval start
Wednesday, Jan. 4 (RMISA Nordic Qualifier)
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Men's classic sprints qualifying begins
8:35 a.m. MT/10:35 a.m. ET – Women's classic sprints qualifying begins
11:30 a.m. MT/1:30 p.m. ET – Classic sprints final begins
12:05 p.m. MT/2:05 p.m. ET – Junior quarterfinals begin
1:25 p.m. MT/3:25 p.m. ET – Junior finals begin
Friday, Jan. 6
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Men's 20K Classic, mass start
9:15 a.m. MT/11:15 a.m. ET – Women's 20K Classic, mass start
11 a.m. MT/1 p.m. ET – Junior Men 10K Classic, mass start
12 p.m. MT/2 p.m. MT – Junior Women 10K Classic, mass start
Saturday, Jan. 7 (U.S. Super Tour race only)
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Women's freestyle sprints qualifying begins
8:05 a.m. MT/10:05 a.m. ET – Men's freestyle sprints qualifying begins
10:30 a.m. MT/12:30 p.m. ET – Freestyle sprints final begins
11:10 a.m. MT/1:10 p.m. ET – Junior quarterfinals begin
12:40 p.m. MT/2:40 p.m. ET – Junior finals begin
LOOKING AHEAD: After their races in Michigan, several members of DU's Nordic squad will compete for their respective countries at the World University Games in Lake Placid, New York, on Jan. 13-22. The Nordic team's first NCAA meet of the season is Jan. 13-14 at the Montana State Invitational at Crosscut Mountain Sports Center in Bozeman, Montana. DU's alpine team begins its campaign with the alpine-only Westminster Invitational on Jan. 26-27 in Snowbird, Utah, before wrapping up the MSU Invite on Jan. 30-31 in Bozeman.
Visit DenverPioneers.com for complete coverage of all 18 of DU's NCAA Division I sports
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Skiing on Facebook
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_Skiing on Twitter
Follow @DenverPioneers and @DU_Skiing on Instagram
Denver will compete in four days of races in the upper peninsula of Michigan, as Michigan Tech University is hosting this year's championship at its trail system adjacent to campus.
The national championships begin with the men's and women's 10-kilometer freestyle on Monday before classic sprints take over the competition on Wednesday. The men's and women's 20K classic are Friday before the week of racing concludes on Saturday, Jan 7 with freestyle sprints. All of the races in Houghton are also part of the U.S. Super Tour series, while the Jan. 7 events have been designated as a non-national championship race.
The results for the RMISA Nordic Qualifier will be pulled from the overall results during the first two days of races on Jan. 2 and Jan. 4, giving skiers from the western schools another opportunity to earn points to qualify for the 2023 NCAA Championships in Lake Placid, New York.
For the distance races, the competitors will do laps on a 5K course. Out of the stadium, the course dips roughly 600 feet before the skiers do three climbs to get back near the start to complete the lap. The sprint course is 1.244 kilometers and features roughly 60 feet of elevation gain.
Denver's Nordic squad last competed in late November at the Nordiq Cup/U.S. Super Tour races in British Columbia, Canada, as part of its winter camp. Andreas Kirkeng built off his successful freshman campaign at the event by winning both the men's freestyle sprints and 10K classic.
Overall, the Pioneers are returning nine athletes on the Nordic squad, including senior Bernhard Flaschberger and junior Hanna Ray, who joined Kirkeng as All-Americans in 2022. Denver added four newcomers to its team this season in freshmen Selma Andersen (Oslo, Norway), Aurora Cramer (Boise, Idaho), Micah Steinberg (Canmore, Alberta) and Sivert Wulff (Trondheim, Norway). Steinberg will likely miss the entire season while recovering from an injury.
Denver is coming off a third-place finish at the 2022 NCAA National Championship and its men's Nordic group was the best in the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association last season. Flaschberger (freestyle) and Kirkeng (classic) were recognized as RMISA's Most Valuable Skiers in their disciplines and DU's men's Nordic won the regular-season championship in the category, the only area that Utah did not win.
Below is the schedule for this week's races.
U.S. Cross Country National Championship Schedule
Monday, Jan. 2 (RMISA Nordic Qualifier)
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Women's 10K freestyle, interval start
10:30 a.m. MT/12:30 p.m. ET – Men's 10K freestyle, interval start
Wednesday, Jan. 4 (RMISA Nordic Qualifier)
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Men's classic sprints qualifying begins
8:35 a.m. MT/10:35 a.m. ET – Women's classic sprints qualifying begins
11:30 a.m. MT/1:30 p.m. ET – Classic sprints final begins
12:05 p.m. MT/2:05 p.m. ET – Junior quarterfinals begin
1:25 p.m. MT/3:25 p.m. ET – Junior finals begin
Friday, Jan. 6
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Men's 20K Classic, mass start
9:15 a.m. MT/11:15 a.m. ET – Women's 20K Classic, mass start
11 a.m. MT/1 p.m. ET – Junior Men 10K Classic, mass start
12 p.m. MT/2 p.m. MT – Junior Women 10K Classic, mass start
Saturday, Jan. 7 (U.S. Super Tour race only)
7:30 a.m. MT/9:30 a.m. ET – Women's freestyle sprints qualifying begins
8:05 a.m. MT/10:05 a.m. ET – Men's freestyle sprints qualifying begins
10:30 a.m. MT/12:30 p.m. ET – Freestyle sprints final begins
11:10 a.m. MT/1:10 p.m. ET – Junior quarterfinals begin
12:40 p.m. MT/2:40 p.m. ET – Junior finals begin
LOOKING AHEAD: After their races in Michigan, several members of DU's Nordic squad will compete for their respective countries at the World University Games in Lake Placid, New York, on Jan. 13-22. The Nordic team's first NCAA meet of the season is Jan. 13-14 at the Montana State Invitational at Crosscut Mountain Sports Center in Bozeman, Montana. DU's alpine team begins its campaign with the alpine-only Westminster Invitational on Jan. 26-27 in Snowbird, Utah, before wrapping up the MSU Invite on Jan. 30-31 in Bozeman.
Visit DenverPioneers.com for complete coverage of all 18 of DU's NCAA Division I sports
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Skiing on Facebook
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_Skiing on Twitter
Follow @DenverPioneers and @DU_Skiing on Instagram
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