Jessie Diggins wins 1st Tour de Ski title for United States

Jessie Diggins won a first title for the United States in cross-country skiing’s Tour de Ski on Sunday.

Leading the women’s time standings after seven events, Diggins placed second in the 10-kilometer final stage of the 10-day competition raced in Italy and Switzerland.

Her final time of more than three hours was 1 minute, 24 seconds ahead of Russian Yulia Stupak. Ebba Andersson of Sweden was third.

In 15 years of the marathon competition, Diggins’s third place three years ago is the only other podium finish by an American man or woman.

Four different Norwegians combined to win the past seven editions of the women’s Tour de Ski. The cross-country skiing power did not enter the 2021 competitions because of safety concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.

Diggins, from Saint Paul, Minnesota, won an Olympic gold medal at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games in team sprint with Kikkan Randall.