Nordic World Ski Championships

10 km women’s individual start classic from 3.30 pm

Teresa Stadlober(Bild: GEPA)

Close, but still: cross-country skier Teresa Stadlober missed out on the bronze medal at the Nordic World Ski Championships in Trondheim by a mere 2.9 seconds!

The 32-year-old from Salzburg had her first medal at the World Championships in her sights in the 10 km classic individual start race on Tuesday after an intermediate lead, but finished fourth in the thick snowfall, narrowly beaten by Swedish winner Ebba Andersson, local hero Therese Johaug (+1.3 seconds) and Frida Karlsson (+12.1) from Sweden.

"Bittersweet is the best way to describe it," said Stadlober, who finished 15 seconds behind Andersson. It was the ÖSV ace's second medal at the World Championships; four years ago in Oberstdorf, the Olympic bronze medallist from Beijing 2022 also finished a thankless fourth in the skiathlon. "In Oberstdorf I was far away, today it was close and completely different," she emphasized. The ÖSV cross-country skiing division has thus been waiting for precious metal since the 1999 World Championships in Ramsau.

Best time after 5.9 kilometers
After 5.9 km, Stadlober even led the race with an intermediate best time. "I noticed that. That's amazing, I've never heard of me being ahead of Johaug in the individual start anyway," said the skier from Radstadt with a view to the 14-time world champion, who narrowly missed out on gold for the second time in Trondheim. Stadlober was on course for a medal for a long time, in the end she had to be consoled by her parents, ÖSV President Roswitha Stadlober and former cross-country skier Alois Stadlober, in the finish area of the Granåsen stadium.

Here are the final results:

(Bild: live.fis-ski.com)

At the last intermediate time 800 m before the finish, Stadlober still had a lead of almost eight seconds over Karlsson, but the Swede snatched the medal away from the ÖSV ace with a strong finish. She was "naturally disappointed" with the result, said Stadlober. "You wouldn't wish for a fourth place at a World Championships. I just didn't have the strength left at the end. But that's sport, life goes on."

Stadlober proud of improved performance
However, she was highly satisfied with her performance. "It was certainly one of my best classic races," Stadlober emphasized, adding that she had "amazing skis". She was also "incredibly proud" of her improved performance compared to the 20 km skiathlon last Sunday, when she didn't make it past 16th place.

Roswitha Stadlober, herself twice fourth at the Olympics, was downcast, but praised a "super race" by her daughter, who will be competing in the 50 km marathon on Sunday. "She put up a great fight, but the final count is at the end. That's when it got pretty tough and it just didn't work out," said the 61-year-old, who had helped out as a coach on the course. Alois Stadlober spoke of a "world-class performance" with a drop of bitterness.