VAL DI FIEMME, Italy — Kikkan Randall and Jessica Diggins gave the United States its first world championship gold medal in cross-country skiing Sunday by winning the women’s team sprint by nearly eight seconds.
After Diggins opened up a small lead on her last leg, Randall anchored the American duo to the victory with a scorching final lap to pull away from the Swedish and Finnish teams.
The U.S. pair finished the 6x1.2-kilometer event in 20 minutes, 24.4 seconds, beating Swedish defending champions Charlotte Kalla and Ida Ingemarsdotter by 7.8 seconds.
“It feels incredible," Randall said. “This is something we’ve looked forward to for a long time. It’s my seventh world championship and I’ve had to spend a lot of time watching award ceremonies, so we’re pretty excited to do it, and in a team event especially."
—The Associated Press
