This week, Anchorage will host the U.S. Cross Country Ski Championships at Kincaid Park. It’s the first time since 2018 the city has hosted the national event.
The races will kick off in Anchorage at Kincaid Park on Thursday, Jan. 2, and wrap up on Tuesday, Jan. 7. The four main events include an individual start 10-kilometer and a mass start 20-kilometer race, as well as a freestyle and a classic sprint race.
Olympic gold medalist Kikkan Randall is executive director of the Nordic Skiing Association of Anchorage, and says the championship is an opportunity for Alaska’s largest city to highlight its talent and winter trails.
Below is the transcript of an interview with Randall that aired on Alaska News Nightly. It has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Kikkan Randall: This is a huge honor to be able to host the national championships in Anchorage, because it gives us a chance to showcase our city, our trails and give our hometown athletes a little bit of a home field advantage.
Wesley Early: What's it been like to prepare for this event and all of the people who are going to be showing up?
KR: Well, this has been a really cool exercise for me, because for so many championships, I showed up as the racer. You know, I'd show up and the stadium would be all set, and I would just go off and race. And so getting to see under the hood and see all the people it takes... and we've been preparing for this race series for about two years now, laying the groundwork, recruiting partners. So it's great to see it finally all come together.
WE: I'm curious, are you concerned at all about the relatively snowless December that we've had and how it might impact some of the events?
KR: Well, it's uncanny how many venues that have hosted national championships have experienced unlikely weather and disadvantaged weather. So we're kind of prepared that we might get the “nationals curse” this year. We were encouraged by the early start we had with good snow in October, November, but we still made as much man-made snow as we could, and that has really kept us in business. So we're a little disappointed we won't be able to use all the courses that we had originally planned, but our teams have been working really hard to lay down the man-made snow and prepare the course, so we still have a lot of terrain to work with.
WE: And you mentioned earlier that Anchorage hosted the championship six years ago. I guess for listeners, how big of a player is Anchorage on the national cross-country skiing circuit?
KR: You know, distance wise, we're separated from a lot of the rest of the U.S., but we have some of the best venues and most experienced volunteers up here in Anchorage. So anytime we get to host national championships, it's something we just love to do, because we welcome the skiers from all over the country, and we get to showcase what we have at Kincaid Park.
WE: How exciting is it for you personally to have the national championship here in your hometown?
KR: Well, one thing I took for granted was getting to see all the people in the greater ski family all the time, and so selfishly, hosting the Nationals here in Anchorage means I get to see a lot of old friends who are coming, some former teammates who are now coaching in various clubs around the country. And you know, it's just a big gathering. I love watching the head-to-head racing, and knowing that a lot of these athletes are using these championship races as a springboard towards even bigger goals over in Europe later in the season.
WE: One of the things I'm really curious about is, you know, you've been involved in skiing for a long time, both as a competitor and now as an organizer, and even in my lifetime, I feel like Alaska's position in cross-country skiing has really, really changed dramatically. There have been a lot of new additions to make it so that it's easier to practice and work out while still staying in Alaska. Can you talk a little about how it feels to have seen it then to now?
KR: It really does feel full circle for me, because I grew up here, kind of honed my skills, supported by the club and all the racing here, and then went off and traveled around the world. And so to come back here and look at it with kind of fresh eyes, and both appreciate all the tradition and history that we have here, but also see that there's opportunity, that we can't be complacent, because the rest of the U.S. is also developing venues, they're developing programs. And so part of my passion for coming back and being with the Nordic ski association is really helping bring that experience and keep Alaska cutting-edge. And so when we get to host national championships, that really puts us to the test. You know, we've got to increase our timing technology, and we have new equipment control protocols. We have a volunteer force with a lot of great veteran knowledge, but we've got to bring new people into that force. So we're really excited for this, this chance to blend kind of old and new and keep Alaska and Anchorage a really progressive place for cross-country skiing.
WE: And I saw the roster of athletes who've signed up to compete so far, and there's a lot of Alaska representation between APU, UAF, the Alaska Winter Stars. Who are some racers that listeners should keep an eye out for?
KR: Well, there's several members of the U.S. Ski Team that hail from Alaska, and while some of them are competing in Europe at the Tour de Ski right now, we will see a few of them racing here at Kincaid Park. It looks like Luke Jager should be on course. Michael Earnhart, Kendall Kramer from Alaska. Murphy Kimball, who is brand new to the U.S. Ski Team, he'll be racing. So we've got them on kind of the senior ranks, but then we've got a lot of our younger racers who have been doing well in the high school circuit, and they're looking to make spots on the World Junior team.
