U.S. Ski Team member Kikkan Randall made history as the first American woman to win the FIS Cross Country Skiing World Cup sprint title. The 29-yearold native of Anchorage, Alaska, clinched the title in mid-March with an 11th place finish in Drammen, Norway. XCSkiResorts.com spoke with Randall to find out more about the woman who reached this pinnacle. See the photos from Aimee Berg and the US Olympic Committee at Kikkan Randall takes Manhattan.
Kikkan is the first American male or female to win a World Cup season title in xc skiing in 30 years. Bill Koch was the last American to reach such heights in the sport in 1982. Randall maintained consistency all season in sprint events, scoring several podium finishes and two victories.
As a 15-time US National Champion and a 3-time Olympian, Randall validated a major milestone in her career, hoisting the hard-earned Joska crystal globe she was awarded as the FIS Cross Country World Cup sprint champion at the season finale in Falun, Sweden.
Newest TV spot 8/24/13 about Kikkan Randall from Utah's KUSA: http://www.9news.com/
Sprint races have time trials where each contestant skis the course in interval starts. The fastest sixteen skiers advance to elimination rounds. The first two skiers in each of the eliminations move on to the semi-final races, which consist of two heats of four athletes each. The medal sprint is one race with the top two skiers from each semi-final heat.
Randall opened the season with two straight wins and clinched the title with one race remaining. She commented, “It's been an incredible season. It has been really fun and challenging. I feel like this is the perfect cap to end it.”
Actually her tour in Europe ended after receiving the award. She had a 4th place finish in the Red Bull NordiX competition where she raced a skiercross course with jumps, banked turns, and uphills against other Nordic ski racers vying for the finish line.” Kikkan proclaimed the NordiX “really cool” and thought that it could attract young people to xc skiing in the US because of the high intensity level of action in the race.
Chris Grover, US Cross Country Team Head Coach, said, “It’s been a long road leading to a crystal globe for Kikkan. She has been part of the U.S. Ski Team since 2000. During this time, she has been systematic and incredibly professional in her approach to training, racing, and living. She is now reaping the benefits of many years of hard work and her success should serve as a model for what can be accomplished with a bit of talent, a ton of hard work, and a positive outlook. We are all so proud of her.”
So who is Kikkan Randall? She’s the niece of two former Olympians and she was nicknamed “Kikkanimal” by her high school running teammates in Anchorage because she was always pushing them to do more and try harder. For some of the financial support needed to compete, Kikkan secured some Alaskan-based sponsors including Subway, an automobile dealership group, and various health businesses.
As a role model Kikkan visits elementary schools to talk with kids about working to attain their dreams and being active everyday. Proclaimed as a “Get Activist” she inspires kids to lead a healthy lifestyle in the “Healthy Futures” program. She also encourages female athletes in the “Fast and Female” programs. And now when she speaks to groups, she has the World Cup globe for show-and-tell, too.
Randall is dedicated to expand the popularity of cross country skiing in the US. After winning the World Cup title, she spoke with USA Today, NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, and other major media about her accomplishment and to spread the gospel that cross country skiing can be enjoyed at any level.
Randall’s record of American firsts in xc skiing includes first World Cup women’s podium, first World Cup women’s victory, first World Championship women’s medal, first Olympic women’s top ten and first World Cup Overall women’s discipline leader. In the 2010 Winter Olympics she placed eighth in the women’s sprint, the best ever American women’s finish and she participated in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Congratulations!
Kikkan Randall Sponsored by Kashi
It was announced that US Olympic hopeful XC sprint cross country skier Kikkan Randall will be officially sponsored by Kashi for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games. Kikkan Randall is the world cup cross country ski champion. Kashi products (cereal, crackers, bars, etc.) are natural, minimally processed and free of highly refined sugar, artificial additives and preservatives. The Kashi brand is a subsidiary of the Kellogg Company. The Kashi intention is to spread the word that living a healthy, positive lifestyle begins with eating right, and the Kashi marketing director commented. "We're passionate about the power of positive eating and we really found a perfect partner in Kikkan."
Randall endorsed Kashi products, "They provide me with the right nutrients to give me energy for my workouts. I believe in living a healthy and active lifestyle and one of my goals is to inspire others to do the same, which involves eating positively so they can pursue the things they love." XCSkiResorts.com recognizes this sponsorship as a great thing for cross country skiing. Kikkan Randall is the first American cross country skier to garner such a bigtime sponsorship and she is a great hope to popularize cross country skiing to a higher level.