SALT LAKE CITY (ANP) – Dutch skiers have entered the team pursuit over World Cup distances at the World Cup competitions in Salt Lake City. Chris Huizinga, Bo Snellenck and Bart Holwerf ran a time of 3.38.35 and placed fourth.
Victory went to the US team. Americans Casey Dawson, Emre Lehmann and Ethan Ciboran beat European and Olympic champion Norway with a time of 3.33.66. They also snatched the world record set by the Norwegians in January at the European Championships in Heerenveen at 3.34.22. Norway came in second place and Italy was also faster than the Dutch team.
The women's win went to world champion Canada. Valerie Maltese, Isabelle Weidmann and Evanie Blondin defeated Japan in a direct duel at 2.54.07, for which she won the classification. The United States team came in third place.
Due to the disqualification in Poland, the Dutch skaters will only take part in the second group later in the Dutch night. The team can no longer reach the top seven in the World Cup rankings and must then be the fastest to win the final ticket to the team chase in the World Cup distances.
