Cross Country Skiing
The main winner in the cross country events was Norway with seven medals, including five golds, all in the men's events. Petter Northug of Norway won three golds, earning them in the 15 km + 15 km double pursuit, 50 km, and 4 x 10 km relay. His teammate, Ola Vigen Hattestad, won golds in the individual and team sprint events. Estonia's Andrus Veerpalu became the oldest winner at 38 in the men's 15 km event. Kristin Størmer Steira was Norway's only medal in the women's events with a silver in the 7.5 km + 7.5 km double pursuit event. For the women's events, the biggest winner was Finland's Aino-Kaisa Saarinen with four medals, including three golds (Team sprint, 10 km, and 4 x 5 km relay) and one bronze (7.5 km + 7.5 km double pursuit). Poland's Justyna Kowalczyk won three medals at the championships with two golds (7.5 km + 7.5 km double pursuit and 30 km) and a bronze (10 km). The only gold not awarded to either Kowalczyk or Saarinen was the women's individual sprint won by Italy's Arianna Follis. In that same event, Kikkan Randall became the first American woman to medal in cross country skiing at the world championships with her silver.
Medal table – men's cross country skiing
| Event | Date | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Individual sprint freestyle | 24 February | Ola Vigen Hattestad (NOR) | Johan Kjølstad (NOR) | Nikolay Morilov (RUS) |
| Team sprint classical | 25 February | Ola Vigen Hattestad Johan Kjølstad Norway |
Axel Teichmann Tobias Angerer Germany |
Sami Jauhojärvi Ville Nousiainen Finland |
| 15 km classical interval start | 20 February | Andrus Veerpalu (EST) | Lukáš Bauer (CZE) | Matti Heikkinen (FIN) |
| 15 km + 15 km double pursuit | 22 February | Petter Northug (NOR) | Anders Södergren (SWE) | Giorgio Di Centa (ITA) |
| 50 km freestyle mass start | 1 March | Petter Northug (NOR) | Maxim Vylegzhanin (RUS) | Tobias Angerer (GER) |
| 4 x 10 km relay | 27 February | Eldar Rønning Odd-Bjørn Hjelmeset Tore Ruud Hofstad Petter Northug Norway |
Jens Filbrich Tobias Angerer Franz Göring Axel Teichmann Germany |
Matti Heikkinen Sami Jauhojärvi Teemu Kattilakoski Ville Nousiainen Finland |
Medal table – women's cross country skiing
| Event | Date | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Individual sprint freestyle | 24 February | Arianna Follis (ITA) | Kikkan Randall (USA) | Pirjo Muranen (FIN) |
| Team sprint classical | 25 February | Virpi Kuitunen Aino-Kaisa Saarinen Finland |
Anna Olsson Lina Andersson Sweden |
Arianna Follis Marianna Longa Italy |
| 10 km classical interval start | 19 February | Aino-Kaisa Saarinen (FIN) | Marianna Longa (ITA) | Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) |
| 7.5 km + 7.5 km double pursuit | 21 February | Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) | Kristin Størmer Steira (NOR) | Aino-Kaisa Saarinen (FIN) |
| 30 km freestyle mass start | 28 February | Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) | Yevgeniya Medvedeva (RUS) | Valentina Shevchenko (UKR) |
| 4 x 5 km relay | 26 February | Pirjo Muranen Virpi Kuitunen Riitta-Liisa Roponen Aino-Kaisa Saarinen Finland |
Katrin Zeller Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle Miriam Gössner Claudia Künzel-Nystad Germany |
Lina Andersson Britta Norgren Anna Haag Charlotte Kalla Sweden |
Read more about this topic: FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009
Famous quotes containing the words cross and/or country:
“How have I been able to live so long outside Nature without identifying myself with it? Everything lives, moves, everything corresponds; the magnetic rays, emanating either from myself or from others, cross the limitless chain of created things unimpeded; it is a transparent network that covers the world, and its slender threads communicate themselves by degrees to the planets and stars. Captive now upon earth, I commune with the chorus of the stars who share in my joys and sorrows.”
—Gérard De Nerval (1808–1855)
“It is almost as safe to assume that an artist of any dignity is against his country, i.e., against the environment in which God hath placed him, as it is to assume that his country is against the artist.”
—H.L. (Henry Lewis)