Roller Skiing World Cup: Trollhättan Mass Starts see Slind still supreme, while it’s... chaos among the men

Complete chaos, especially in the aftermath of the men’s race, with the rain partly affecting the Mass Starts at event number 2 in Trollhaettan, the venue for the roller skiing World Cup opening.

During the classic-style race of the Alliansloppet, the men’s 32 km event was decided in a sprint, but after seeing the winning surge from home favourite Alvar Myhlback, the jury turned the result on its head; the victory was taken away from the Swedish 2006-born skier, and the entire podium changed because a course error made 3 km from the finish was detected late.

The victory was therefore awarded to Britain’s Andrew Musgrave, one of the pre-race favourites who had attempted an attack in the finale, with Ole Joergen Bruvoll and Alex Jutterstroem joining him on the podium; Myhlback thus finished a bitter 4°, ahead of Norwegian Taugboel (who had finished runner-up), completing the top five.

The Italians were well down the standings, with Stefano Mich in 69th, while Tommaso Dellagiacoma and Riccardo Lorenzo Masiero, from the Italian team competing in the World Cup, did not reach the finish.

Among the women, everything went according to expectations, with distance-race specialist Astrid Slind getting the better of Sweden’s Emilie Fleten by 1’15”, while Norwegian Smedas Magni, more than four minutes behind her compatriot, outsprinted Andorran Gina Del Rio. The top Italian was Maria Eugenia Boccardi in 33rd, with Anna Maria Ghiddi 41st.

In the junior events, also over 32 km, Sweden’s Manne Bernhardsson edged compatriot Vilmer Malm and Norway’s Herman Willer in the boys’ sprint, with Federico Sartori finishing a solid 18°, while Stefano Epis (12° in Friday’s tough sprint) was 35th. The women’s podium was entirely Norwegian, with Ingeborg Rystad ahead of Emilie Ruud Lia and Mille Sophie Aarnes; Maria Invernizzi finished 27th, with Nicole Falanelli just behind her in 28th.