American Athlete Jessie DigginsWins Salomon’s First Overall Title In Nordic Skiing
In an historic first in the sport of Nordic skiing, American skier and Salomon athlete Jessie Diggins has won the FIS Cross Country World Cup Overall title, concluding a magical season for the 29-year-old from Minnesota.
It is the first time in history that an American woman has won the biggest trophy in cross-country skiing. It is also the first World Cup overall title for Salomon’s Nordic ski organization. Along the way, Diggins became the first American to win the Tour de ski, a stage race in the middle of the season that is made up both skating and classic competitions, and also includes a variety of race types—sprints, mass starts, pursuits and individual starts.
When she grabbed six podium results in eight days during that stretch, Diggins was on her way to the season-long overall title, which crowns her as the best skier across a wide variety of distances and the sport’s two disciplines—classic and skating. She also won the Distance World Cup overall title for the season.
“It’s really crazy and exciting because this is something we have worked toward as a team and have been building a lot of momentum toward for many tears as a program, so I feel a lot of gratitude because this isn’t something you can achieve alone,” Diggins said. “Yes, I go race super hard and that’s what I do every time, but there are so many people behind the scenes that are getting us our skis, coaching us, writing training plans, helping with sports psychology and sponsors that fund our team. These people get us to the start line so it’s something we can celebrate as a team in a year that has been really challenging.”
For the season, Diggins was on the podium nine times and won four races. In her career, she has finished on the podium in World Cup races more times than any US Nordic skier in history. An outspoken ambassador for eating disorders and other causes,
Diggins has been on Salomon skis for the duration of her career and her season-long title was celebrated by the entire Salomon Nordic family, including International Race Team Manager Patrice Frison-Roche “Not only is Jessie a fantastic skier but she’s someone who has a big heart and that’s the reason we love her so much,” said Frison-Roche. “I met her for the first time in 2011 and now, 10 years later, she’s won the overall title and that is something we are very proud of as a whole team.”
Diggins relied on Salomon’s S/LAB Carbon skate skis and boots in the skate races, and the S/LAB Carbon classic skis and boots in the classic races all season long. “It’s been so much fun and so much work and I’m so excited to be part of this team, so thank you so much to the Salomon team for helping to make these globes a reality,”Diggins said in a video message to Salomon’s Nordic race support team. “It has been a long season and it’s going to take a while for it to sink in, but it’s very special and I’m excited to share it with the next generation of up-and-coming skiers from the US.
