Pre-competition facts Davos Nordic

PREVIEW SPRINT FREESTYLE – Saturday 15 Dec 2018

Ladies

• Jonna Sundling won the last sprint World Cup event, the sprint free in Lillehammer (3-Days Tour) on 30 November. It was Sundling's first ever World Cup victory.
• The last woman to win successive individual World Cup events in the sprint freestyle was Stina Nilsson from January to December 2017 (4 in a row).
• Sundling, who finished in second place in the sprint free in Falun (World Cup Final) on 16 March, has now reached the podium in both her last two World Cup sprint events, her only two podium finishes in World Cup history.
• The last four sprint World Cup events in the freestyle have been won by different skiers: Laurien van der Graaff and Sophie Caldwell shared the win in Seefeld, Maiken Caspersen Falla won in Lahti, Hanna Falk in Falun and Sundling in Lillehammer.
• Nilsson has won 12 individual sprint events in the World Cup (classic and free), joint-fifth most with Kikkan Randall among women.
• Nilsson's last individual World Cup win the sprint freestyle came on 9 December 2017, when she won in Davos.
• Seven of the last 11 freestyle sprint World Cup events have been won by Swedish skiers, including each of the last two.
• Falla has won 16 individual sprint World Cup events (classic and free), fourth most all-time among women and one shy of Bente Skari in third place (17). Only Petra Majdic (20) and Marit Bjørgen (40) have won more
• Only Bjørgen (24) and Randall (12) have won more individual sprint World Cup events in the freestyle than Nilsson (8) and Falla (8).
• Only Bjørgen (33) has claimed more podium finishes in individual freestyle sprint World Cup events than Falla (25). Falla finished a record 12 times as runner-up.

Men

• Federico Pellegrino has won three of the last five sprint freestyle events in the World Cup, including the most recent one in Lillehammer (3-Days Tour) on 30 November.
• The last skier to claim back-to-back World Cup wins in the sprint free was Sergey Ustiugov in December 2016.
• Pellegrino has won a men's record 11 individual sprint freestyle World Cup events. Among women, only Marit Bjørgen (24) and Kikkan Randall (12) have won more.
• Pellegrino (19) needs one more top-three finish to equal Tor Arne Hetland on a record 20 podium spots in individual men's sprint freestyle World Cup events.
• Klæbo (8) needs one more win to join Eirik Brandsdal (9) and Petter Northug (9) in fourth place among male skiers from Norway with most victories in individual sprint World Cup events.
• Klæbo finished in 11th place in the sprint free in Lillehammer (3-Days Tour) on 30 November and can now fail to claim a podium finish in consecutive sprint World Cup appearances (classic and free) for the first time ever.
• Brandsdal (9) can become the sixth male athlete to win 10 individual sprint World Cup events (classic and freestyle).
• Alexander Bolshunov won the first sprint World Cup event of the season, in Ruka (classic style) on 24 November. Bolshunov can become the fifth skier from Russia with multiple individual sprint World Cup wins after Ustiugov (5), Nikita Kriukov (5), Alexey Petukhov (3) and Nikolay Morilov (3).

PREVIEW 10/15KM – Sunday 16 Dec 2018

Ladies 10KM

• Overall World Cup leader Therese Johaug has won all four individual distance events of this World Cup season.
• In 2015/16, Johaug recorded the longest winning streak in individual distance races to the start of a World Cup season when she won each of the opening six events.
• Johaug went on to claim a record 12 individual distance wins in the 2015/16 World Cup season and also won the overall and distance World Cup titles that campaign.
• With 80 podium finishes in individual World Cup distance races, Johaug only trails Bjørgen (99).
• Johaug won the first 10km freestyle event of this World Cup season, in Lillehammer (3-Days Tour) on 1 December. The last skier to win back-to-back 10km freestyle events in the World Cup was Johaug herself in January-February 2016.
• Eight of Kalla's nine individual World Cup distance wins have come in freestyle events, with the only exception her victory in the skiathlon in Lillehammer on 3 December 2017.
• Østberg has won the last two individual distance World Cup races in Davos, the 15km free on 10 December 2016 and the 10km free on 10 December 2017.
• The last nine individual distance World Cup events in Davos have all been won by Norwegian athletes. On 12 December 2009, Irina Khazova was the last athlete to avoid Norwegian success when she won the 10km free.
• Ebba Andersson is hoping to become the 13th different female athlete to hand Sweden an individual World Cup victory.

Men 15KM

• Martin Johnsrud Sundby finished in second place in the 30km free in Beitostølen last week, to hand Norway a 1-2 finish. It was Sundby's first podium of this World Cup season.
• Sundby is the only athlete to have claimed at least one top-three finish (all events) in each of the last 12 World Cup seasons (2007/08-2018/19).
• One day after his second place finish in the 30km free, Sundby won the 4x7.5 relay event with Norway. It was Sundby's first World Cup victory since 7 January, when he won the 9km pursuit in Val di Fiemme (Tour de Ski).
• World Cup leader Alexander Bolshunov and Denis Spitsov are both hoping to become the first athlete from Russia to win a 15km freestyle World Cup race since Sergey Ustiugov in Falun on 14 February 2016.
• Janosch Brugger, winner of the 15km pursuit classic style in Lillehammer (3-Days Tour), is aiming to become the first athlete from Germany since Axel Teichmann in 2008/09 (2) to win multiple individual distance World Cup races in a single season.