Alex Harvey of Saint-Ferreol-les-Neiges, Quebec has won the bronze medal at a World Cup men’s cross country skiing sprint race in Lillehammer, Norway on Friday. It is the 27th World Cup medal in Harvey’s career, and first this season. The 30 year-old veteran of the Canadian men’s cross country ski team is expected to retire at the end of the 2018-19 season.
Harvey posted a third place time in the final of three minutes, 19.85 seconds. Federico Pellegrino of Italy won the gold medal with a time of three minutes, 19.14 seconds. Emil Iversen of Norway won the silver medal with a time of three minutes, 19.61 seconds. Harvey reached the podium by 0.23 seconds over Sindre Bjoernestad of Norway, who had a fourth place time of three minutes, 20.08 seconds. Finn Haggen Krogh of Norway and Ristomatti Hakola of Finland also reached the final.
Harvey won the bronze medal despite only having the 17th fastest qualification time. The top 30 skiers qualified from the qualification to the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, Harvey had the fastest time of three minutes, 17.03 seconds in the fifth quarterfinal stage. In the semifinals, Harvey had the sixth fastest time in the semifinals of three minutes, 9.71 seconds and the fourth fastest time in the second semifinal stage.
The men’s freestyle sprint on Friday was the first of three stages of the ninth Nordic Opening Overall stage competition from Lillehammer. There will be a men’s 15 kilometre freestyle race on December 1 and a men’s 15 kilometre classical pursuit race on December 2.
