Jessie Diggins Wins Fifth Cross-Country Skiing Race of the Season, Boosts Overall World Cup Lead!

Jessie Diggins has made headlines again by securing her fifth World Cup win of the season. She triumphed in the 10km freestyle event in Cogne, Italy, finishing 5.1 seconds ahead of Norway’s Astrid Øyre Slind. This win places Diggins firmly at the top of the World Cup overall standings, with a 282-point lead after 23 out of 31 races.

Diggins has already claimed the overall title in past seasons, including 2020-21 and 2023-24. This title goes to the best skier across various distances and techniques. Despite battling plantar fasciitis, which impacts her more in classic races than freestyle, she has continued to excel. “I’ve been pushing hard in training, and I’m glad to see my hard work paying off,” she shared.

With this recent victory, Diggins now has 28 World Cup wins under her belt, breaking American records in cross-country skiing. She has 24 individual race wins, along with three Olympic medals, one of each color, and six medals from the World Championships.

In cross-country skiing, athletes compete in both classic and freestyle techniques. After the 10km classic at the 2022 Olympics, Diggins captured the World title in the 10km freestyle, her preferred style. Upcoming competitions will see her compete in classic, but the 2026 Olympics will return to freestyle for the 10km event. Diggins has a chance to make history as the first American to win individual Olympic gold in cross-country skiing, building on her team sprint gold from 2018.

Norwegian star Therese Johaug, a triple Olympic champion, started the season strong with two 10km freestyle wins but recently stepped back from competition. Johaug, who has come out of retirement, doesn’t plan to compete in the 2026 Olympics.

The World Cup series continues next weekend in Falun, Sweden. This will be the last series of races before the World Championships in Trondheim, Norway.

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