American Birkebeiner ends with uncommonly close, crowded finishes

The week started with uncertainty for the organizers of the American Birkebeiner. Warm and rainy weather forced some of its earlier events to be postponed and moved.

Then, just in the nick of time, came a return of freezing temperatures and significant snow cover. The effect was an optimal base that, with some grooming, created a lightning-fast skate deck for the 12,000 participants in North America’s largest cross-country ski race.

An estimated 30,000 spectators showed up in Hayward, Wis., for the 52nd running of the event. Those who gathered downtown Saturday, Feb. 21, near the finish line on snow-covered Main Street, were treated to close and crowded finishes for the elite men’s and women’s 50-kilometer freestyle races.

“We’ve had some close finishes in the past, but to have as big and as tight of a group for both the men’s and the women’s races was really something special,” said Shawn Connelly, marketing director of the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation.

“Watching the top finishers in a tight pack cruising down Main Street definitely turned the crowd energy up to eleven this year.”

First came the top eight women, all finishing within a minute of each other.

Alayna Sonnesyn of Plymouth, Minn., crossed the line first in 2:08:09.61, followed by Anna-Maria Dietze of Germany just 0.3 seconds later. Emma Reeder of Bozeman, Mont., finished third 2.9 seconds behind Sonnesyn.

“I tried to break away at about halfway, and it was working for a bit, but because it was so fast, the chase pack was moving faster than a solo skier,” Sonnesyn said. “So, I regrouped with the pack and relied on my sprint abilities for a big last effort to sprint to the finish line.”

Moments later, the elite men stormed into the finishing stretch, led by Luke Jager of Anchorage, Alaska, a member of the U.S. Ski Team. In the mix were fellow Alaskan Michael Earnhart and Ben Dohlby, who was the 2023 Wisconsin state high school champion and now races for University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Also fighting for a podium place was 2022 U.S. biathlon Olympian Jake Brown and two-time Birkie winner David Norris. All crossed the bridge before the final stretch with a good chance at snagging the top spot.

“The trail conditions made the race very fast and almost impossible for really strong people ... to get away on all the long climbs because it kept coming together again on the downhills,” said Jager.

“I was so close to getting dropped so many times, but had incredible skis and was able to keep getting back in contact.”

Besides the premiere 50K freestyle and 55K classic, the weekend featured the 29K classic and skate Kortelopet event. The docket also included the Prince Haakon 15K, as well as kids and junior races, skijoring, and a host of other events. The Birkebeiner foundation invites skiers of every stripe and skill level to take part.

“I’m so thankful for all the people who worked so hard to put on such an incredible event and am so impressed with all the people out there for 5-plus hours grinding it out” Jager said.