CROSS-COUNTRY:

Harvey 18th as Tour de Ski kicks off in Europe

Dec. 31, 2010 — Cross Country Canada  

OBERHOF, Germany — Alex Harvey gave the legs a solid workout en route to posting an 18th-place result Friday to kick off an epic 10-day journey in the fifth edition of the Tour de Ski, which has the world’s best cross-country ski athletes hit the start line for eight competitions at five venues in two countries to determine the king and queen of cross-country skiing.

The 22-year-old Harvey, of St-Ferréol-les-Neiges, Que., began the ultimate test of endurance by finishing the 3.75-kilometre skate-ski prologue event with a time of 7 minutes, 47.9 seconds in Oberhof, Germany.

“It is a solid start, but nothing stellar,” said Harvey, who has two World Cup medals to his credit in just three seasons of racing on the World Cup. “I didn’t feel amazing so it was nice to get into the top 20 and know that I have more to give.”

Realizing the world’s best will be tightly packed together throughout the tour until the distance races, which will begin to separate the field, Harvey was focused on a having a solid start in a unique prologue race that tests athletes ability to pace themselves.

“The prologue is tricky. You can’t go all out from the start,” said Harvey, who had a solid Olympic debut in 2010. “You want to be powerful off the start, glide well, but you need to leave something under the feet for the finish. It is very important to pace yourself well.”

The prologue race marks the official beginning of the 10-day affair, modeled after the Tour de France in cycling, which wraps up in Val di Fiemme, Italy, on Jan. 9. The men’s contingent will have raced a total of 102 kilometres when they cross the finish line of the tour, which ends with a 425-metre climb to the top of Alpe Cermis.

“The prologue is a good way to shake up the legs. The real racing starts tomorrow in the 15-kilometre pursuit,” added Harvey, who finished 18th in the opening day of the tour last year. “We want to push hard every day, but you have to look at the overall pictures and the distance races will be critical to our success.”

Sweden’s Marcus Hellner captured the opening stage of the 2011 tour, clocking the time to beat at 7:19.5. Russia’s Alexey Petukhov locked up the silver medal with a time of 7:26.5, while Norway’s Petter Northug Jr. rounded out the podium on the opening day with a third-place time of 7:32.4.

Devon Kershaw finished in 37th spot at 7:52.3, while Ivan Babikov was 45th (7:55.6).

No Canadian women are entered in the Tour de Ski. Poland’s Justyna Kowalczyk won the women’s 2.8-kilometre prologue with a time of 6:34.0.

The second stage of the Tour takes place Saturday with the women’s 10-kilometre and the men’s 15-kilometre classic ski race. Athletes will start time behind the leaders of Friday’s prologue event. S-Magazine

Tour de Ski Day 1 results

Top-5 Men and Canadian Results:
1. Marcus Hellner, SWE, 7:19.5; 2. Alexey Petukhov, RUS, 7:26.5; 3. Petter Northug JR., NOR, 7:32.4; 4. Alexander Legkov, RUS, 7:39.3; 5. Loris Frasnelli, ITA, 7:39.6
Canadian Results:
18. Alex Harvey, St-Ferréol-les-Neiges, Que., 7:47.9; 37. Devon Kershaw, Sudbury, Ont., 7:52.3; 45. Ivan Babikov, Canmore, Alta., 7:55.6.