Kuitunen and Saarinen score 1-2 victory in Tour de Ski

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Virpi Kuitunen of Finland won the Tour de Ski cross-country title for the second time on Sunday after the most exciting climax yet in the event’s three-year history.
      The ecstatic winner saw special significance in her triumph.
      “This was one of the most emotional World Cup victories of my career”, said Kuitunen, a self-confessed emotional person, on her 20th World Cup win.
     
Wreathed in smiles, Kuitunen characterised herself as a “multihandicapped” winner minutes after crossing the finish line. Surrounded by Finnish reporters, the skier described all the procedures her old back injury and an acute heel problem had required in the morning before the decisive race.
      The Finnish team doctor was Harri Hakkarainen, who has previously worked a lot with ice hockey players, even on the national team level.
      “Harri laughed that my preliminary preparations were on a par with those with ice hockey players. The heel was taped, padding was added between my toes, I was given painkillers, and finally my back was injected with a local anaesthetic. After that I started testing if I could still fit my ski boots on.”
     
During her previous Tour de Ski efforts (victory in 2007 and the runner-up spot last year), Kuitunen suffered from back pain in the gruelling final uphill. Now, for the first time, she resorted to having her back anaesthetised before the race.
      The heel was taped because of an aggravated bursitis. Unlike the back complaint, the heel should heal with rest and anti-inflammatory medication. Padding was required between the toes because of a bunion.
      Owing to the bursitis, Kuitunen will have to rest for a week to ten days. This means she will have to skip the Finnish Championships raced in Jämi towards the end of this week.
     
Finland’s success in Tour de Ski was completed by the World Cup leader Aino-Kaisa Saarinen, who started the final race around half a minute behind Kuitunen and eventually came in second.
      At one stage, just over a kilometre from the finish, Saarinen even overtook Kuitunen and led her by ten or so metres.
      In the end Kuitunen was nevertheless the stronger of the two, and cashed in around EUR 105,000 in prize money from the overall win and various part competition results.
     
The World Cup leader’s yellow vest still remains with Saarinen, however. Kuitunen holds the second place in the World Cup standings after 14 of the season's 33 events have been held.
      The seven-race Tour de Ski has quickly established itself as one of the most prestigious events in the FIS World Cup season, with a gripping climax in Val di Fiemme on an "extreme" climb up an Alpine skiing slope.
      The results went pretty much according to form, as third on Sunday was Petra Majdic of Slovenia, who is currently just behind Kuitunen in the overall World Cup standings.
      Finns Riitta-Liisa Roponen and Pirjo Muranen finished in 11th and 12th respectively on Sunday, and the best-placed among the men was Sami Jauhojärvi in 10th.
      Victory in the men's event went to a new star, 22-year-old Dario Cologna of Switzerland.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  A very good weekend on skis (1.12.2008)
  Virpi Kuitunen overhauled by Charlotte Kalla on gruelling final climb of Tour de Ski (7.1.2008)

Links:
  FIS Tour de Ski

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