In this Sunday, World Championship team sprint episode of the Devon Kershaw Show, we have a special guest from Québec , the actual Prince of Québec ... Alex Harvey. It has been ten short or long years since he and Kershaw won the classic team sprint at the 2011 Oslo World Championships. First off, before listening to the episode today...check out the videos posted below. To set the scene, this win goes down at the Holmenkollen, the Shangri La of cross-country skiing. The Holmenkollen is hallowed...
Feb 28, 2021•1 hr 24 min•Season 2Ep. 26
The most special of special guest on the podcast today, Kristin Størmer Steira. Størmer Steira, a retired Norwegian ski star, chats it up with Devon from Lillehammer, where the two are busy raising two young daughters. According to a 2014 FasterSkier article on the couple, evidently, Kershaw's "great smile", a legacy of his youth in Sudbury, won Størmer Steira over. In her own right, Størmer Steira was a Norwegian ski star. Back in 2005, Størmer Steira had a breakout in Oberstdorf at the World C...
Feb 27, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 2Ep. 25
The storylines were many during Thursday's classic sprint at the 2021 World Championships in Oberstdorf, Germany. As the backdrop for the racing -- the temps were high, the salted course began to breakdown in the final corner, and running uphill with skis on ... at lightning speed ... was mandatory. Norway swept the men's podium with none other than classic kingpin Johannes Høsflot Klæbo taking the win. For certain, as this was on display in both the men's and women's racing, Klæbo has helped re...
Feb 25, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 24
The legend is set in stone: Kikkan Randall brought a new intensity and bottom-line results to the U.S. Ski Team. Three overall sprint globes to her name, five Olympics, a bronze at the 2017 Lahti World Champs in the skate sprint, a silver at the 2009 Liberec, Czech Republic World Champs skate sprint, a gold at the 2013 Val di Fiemme, Italy World Champs in the team sprint (with Diggins), and the 2018 Olympic Gold in PyeongChang's team sprint. Stellar. Her story is infused with her firm belief in ...
Feb 24, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 23
In this episode, we chat about the weekend's racing from World Juniors and U23s. This is part two of our coverage of Worlds for the younger folks. This episode covers the relays and mass start classic races that concluded Sunday in Vuokatti, Finland. On the show is longtime Kershaw friend Noah Hoffman, who it turns out, beyond his cross-country skiing endurance exploits, is an investment partner with Kershaw. We hear about the weekend's racing, their experiences at Junior/U23 Worlds, and the fun...
Feb 16, 2021•54 min•Season 2Ep. 22
Devon jumps into the World Junior/U23 fray. This is part one of our coverage of Worlds for the younger folks. This episode covers the classic sprints and the individual skate races that concluded today in Vuokatti, Finland. The racing began on February 9 with the junior classic sprint. The U23 classic sprints were postponed on Wednesday due to the severe cold in Finland. Those sprints were held Thursday. Friday was a jam-packed race day with race officials and volunteers running four different i...
Feb 13, 2021•56 min•Season 2Ep. 21
In this episode, Devon and former Canadian National Team member Jess Cockney discuss the intricacies of Saturday's skate sprint and Sunday's team sprint in Ulricehamn, Sweden. The stage has been set, the first few acts are over, yet the curtain has not closed -- Jessie Diggins with a third place in Saturday's sprint brings her closer to securing the World Cup overall as the season enters it's last month and a half of racing. No other way of putting it, Diggins looks in-form and formidable. The m...
Feb 07, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 2Ep. 20
The second weekend with Norway back on the scene was a reveal. Therese Johaug, arguably the second greatest cross-country skier of all time, was bested by an in form and dialed in Jessie Diggins. Interval starts, for what its worth, most often do not command a television or streaming audience. This show is a must watch. It may just be Diggins' best career race. So we chat a ton about Diggins. But we also dive in head first and discuss some other stout race performances - Schumacher's 9th place, ...
Feb 01, 2021•59 min•Season 2Ep. 19
We all thought the big news would be the return of Norway. And certainly, that was the news, just not the lead. Norway swept both the men's and women's skiathlon podiums on Saturday and won the 4 x 5 k and 4 x 7.5 k relays on Sunday. But...and this is a big but, Alexander Bolshunov made headlines with his violent behavior as he crossed the finish line in Lahti on Sunday. Down the final straight, Joni Mæki from Finland went wide, closing off a charging Bolshunov - the two were battling for second...
Jan 24, 2021•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 18
In the big global picture, much has transpired since Jessie Diggins won the Tour de Ski. On the macro side of things, that being on the World Cup, a break has transpired. On Saturday, the cross-country World Cup returns with a skiathlon. The more notable news is the Norwegian national team will spice up the skiing as they return from a self-imposed hiatus from the World Cup since early December. We also answer some listener questions and discuss how we deal emotionally with less than desirable o...
Jan 21, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Season 2Ep. 17
The question is not where to start. That is with Jessie Diggins and her shining moment over eight stages at the Tour de Ski. Diggins secured the overall win in the Tour de Ski on Sunday, the first non-European skier, male or female to win the Tour. Ivan Babikov, former Candian National Ski Team member and master of the Alpe himself, joins Devon to discuss Diggins, the Russians, the Alpe, and the vagaries of the Tour de Ski. Thanks for listening along for our eight-episode series breaking down ea...
Jan 11, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Season 2Ep. 16
The Tour de Ski's Stage 7 cliff notes: Diggins remains the overall Tour de Ski leader after being eliminated in today's semi-finals of the classic sprint. The news day on the micro-level belongs to Sweden with a sweep of the women's podium and Oskar Svensson, yes a Swede, won on the men's side. More macro: Diggins wears the yellow bib heading into Sunday's final stage, the Alpe Cermis hill climb. Bolshunov has literally shut the door on the competition.
Jan 09, 2021•52 min•Season 2Ep. 15
The Tour de Ski's Stage 6 cliff notes: Diggins lands 9th on the stage but retains the overall lead, Brennan falls out of overall contention, Bolshunov wins, and Schumacher pops a top-10 for 8th place. (We are joined by guest Zach Caldwell.)
Jan 08, 2021•49 min•Season 2Ep. 14
The Tour de Ski's Stage 5 cliff notes: A feisty race from both Diggins and Brennan. Diggins places third, Brennan fourth. In the men's race, Schumacher paces to 15th, and a wall of red as Bolshunov is simply peerless. Gus Schumacher arrives with a career-best 14th.
Jan 06, 2021•36 min•Season 2Ep. 13
The 5 k loop in Toblach, Italy was a Diggins course - according to Kershaw - and she took charge. With Diggins and Brennan going 1-2, again, the Tour de Ski has a decidedly American look on the women's side. And with most of Russia's men's roster in the top-8, the boys in red Lycra control the standings. A bright note for men's U.S. skiing, Gus Schumacher put together a top-15 worthy effort on the day. The Stage 4 breakdown on the podcast.
Jan 06, 2021•44 min•Season 2Ep. 12
The show notes are short. Three long days of race coverage and we end stages 1-3 on a high note for U.S. women's skiing. Jessie Diggins, in a gritty race performance on Sunday, secured the Tour de Ski's overall lead while Rosie Brennan raced to second overall. If you have not taken the time to watch the race, please take the time. It is worthy. Here to discuss a late arriving email regarding the podcast's soft coverage of U.S. men's skiing and the day's racing is Nat Herz. Nat led the charge at ...
Jan 04, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 2Ep. 11
A big note upfront, in this episode we review a video when Devon was relegated for obstruction during a World Cup sprint. So, if you have a phone or other device handy, here's the link to the video . Take a look, because we'll get into this pretty deep in the episode. And .... we'll chat the racing of the day, Stage 2 of the 2021 Tour de ski - all mass start classic racing. The Race on the men's side shook out with a big Bolshunov win, while the women had a surprise winner of sorts with Swede Li...
Jan 02, 2021•44 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Let's cut to the chase ... this will be a long long 10 days of race coverage here at FasterSkier. Those 10 days include eight stages and two rest days. Phew. Today, Friday, January 1, saw Val Müstair, Switzerland host a stout skate sprint. Two laps of curves and whoops and hills at some altitude. Kershaw brings us into the action and susses out the trends. One major trend coming into the day, Rosie Brennan in the yellow bib as the overall leader of the World Cup. One major trend coming out of th...
Jan 02, 2021•49 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Full disclosure, we do get to the Dresden sprints, we swear, but it takes a few minutes in this episode. On a day when Devon's began his 39th trip around the sun - it was his birthday on December 20th - the discourse shimmied to a full spectrum of topics - most of which directly tie into sliding on snow. (For the most part.) There's the chat about backcountry skiing and the lovely video edits from Norwegian big-mountain ski phenom Nikolai Schirmer . Devon has lost some time to the wormhole that ...
Dec 21, 2020•1 hr 12 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Davos is many things and brings to mind fine high-mountain living, deep mountain valleys, and an old-school vibe stop on the World Cup. The weekend began with a zippy skate sprint that at least for the moment brought a familiar feel to sprinting when Italy's Federico Pellegrino took the win. However, on the women's side, a persistent and tenacious athlete, Rosie Brennan, took her first career World Cup win. She can sprint. But had we placed a wager on a first win coming in sprint or distance, we...
Dec 14, 2020•50 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Not two weeks ago, despite the pandemic, it appeared the FIS World Cup had dodged the proverbial positive-test bullet. The Ruka, Finland round of the World Cup went down with fantastic racing, and, as far as we know at the time of dropping this episode, no positive Covid-19 cases among the athletes in Ruka. The cracks began to appear shortly after the racing in Finland concluded. Several of Norway's star skiers independently withdrew from World Cup racing through December - they were the first t...
Dec 09, 2020•56 min•Season 2Ep. 6
So much to break down. Ruka, Finland presented a challenge on several fronts. Athletes contested a classic sprint, a 10 k / 15 k interval start classic, and a 10 k / 15 k skate pursuit over a three day period. A great way to exhaust some of the fastest skiers and a great way to entice us back into the verbal throws on the podcast discussing who is on form, and who maybe missed the kick. The racing in Finland transpired as the globe wrestles with a pandemic. As it should be, we discuss all the ra...
Nov 30, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Beitostølen, Norway and Bruksvallarna, Sweden hosted FIS Cup racing over the weekend. The news from Norway tells of a Johannes Høsflot Klæbo who might be back on form when it comes to his distance racing chops. He's also keyed in for the sprints. In his two races this weekend, he won the classic sprint and placed second in the 15 k classic. Therese Johaug, unsurprisingly, swept the women's distance events in Beito. Same old same old for her on the World Cup this season? Maybe. Devon also lets us...
Nov 23, 2020•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 4
Like so many organizations, FIS, the governing body for international skiing, is a slow-to-change entity. Doping reforms, for example, have evolved but at a yawn-worthy rate. So in rather atypical fashion, like a finger snap, FIS voted to oust its Secretary General, Sarah Lewis, on October 9th . Lewis had been considered a lifer at FIS. She'd been on staff for two decades. News on the "why" of her removal remains sparse. Yet it was an unexpected departure. Not so unexpected, the postponement of ...
Oct 22, 2020•32 min•Season 2Ep. 3
We mix things up in the episode. We deviate from the norm and jump into a discussion about the science of sport with journalist and author Alex Hutchinson . Some of you may know his work from Outside Magazine where he pens the Sweat Science column . Hutchinson is also the author of Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance, published in 2018. His Sweat Science pieces unravel the latest research exploring human performance and distills the findings into lively read...
Oct 06, 2020•59 min•Season 2Ep. 2
March 31st is the last day we posted a new episode. Depending on where you stand in the COVID time machine, that might as well be a light year. Or a nano-second. From Oslo, Norway Devon chats about the time that was and the time that will be as we lurch into fall and then winter. In other words, it's about time we rebooted this project. On the list of topics discussed, staying put when the air quality is grim, a brief discussion of doping, altitude training, and the prospects for a World Cup sea...
Sep 17, 2020•50 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Kershaw is free from quarantine and back at home in Lillehammer. As we all know, the race season has been shut down. That means it's time to discuss news items of note. Like...the "flexing" of some skiers as they ski an un-godly number of kilometers, Stina Nilsson's switch from cross-country to biathlon, the Norwegian Ski Federation's financial crisis, and, the retirement of Norway's Eirik Brandsdal. (The U.S. Ski Team's Erik Bjornsen also announced his retirement via Instagram . That news broke...
Mar 31, 2020•42 min•Season 1Ep. 32
Canceled. The North American leg of the World Cup became a blip as the weight of a pandemic became too much to bear for organizers. Minneapolis canceled. Canmore canceled. And....finally...Québec canceled. We discuss what was a crazy week when, accordingly, the globe shut down pro and amateur sport. We spoke with Kershaw when he was six days into a 14-day quarantine. Kershaw had been in Germany for World Juniors and upon his return to Norway, was part of a general quarantine for individuals who ...
Mar 16, 2020•46 min•Season 1Ep. 31
A return to semi-normal: Devon is back from World Juniors and better for it. It was a big week in Germany for North America. This episode is a return to our discussion of the World Cup. The famed Holmenkollen hosted the weekend's 30 k / 50 k classic mass start races. Hindsight is 20/20, the Norwegian women should have swapped skis, and frankly, not much anybody can do about a steamrolling Bolshunov.
Mar 09, 2020•35 min•Season 1Ep. 30
Straight up this is mostly about Junior Worlds -- specifically the junior women's 4 x 3.3 k relay and the 4x 5 k relay for the junior men. A good day all around: U.S. men in first, Canada second. And in the women's race, U.S. junior women in second overall. We do discuss the World Cup sprints from this past Wednesday...but not a big discussion. In this episode, Kershaw also mentions a video interview published by Norwegian broadcaster NRK, in which Jessie Diggins discusses her new book and her c...
Mar 06, 2020•44 min•Season 1Ep. 29
