Minnesota’s Jessie Diggins Wins Cross-Country Ski World Cup Title
Minnesota's own Jessie Diggins has just become the first U.S. woman to EVER win the Cross-Country Skiing World Cup Title over in Italy.
Anytime one of our fellow Minnesotans shines on the national stage, it's pretty cool. And when that stage is actually an international one, like the 2021 FIS Cross-Country Ski World Cup Finals, currently underway in Val di Fiemme, Italy, it's even cooler. Literally.
And for Afton native Jessie Diggins, her cross-country skiing win Sunday was record-setting, as Team USA reported that she is now the first U.S. woman to win the World Cup title and is only the second American to ever win the title, as well. The Minnesota native the first overall world cup champion from Team USA since Bill Koch won back in 1982, a release noted.
You might remember Jessie Diggins from the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, China, when she and her fellow Team USA member, Kikkan Randall, won the Gold Medal in team sprint freestyle. Diggins, who got her start skiing on the slopes over at Afton Alps (about an hour and twenty minutes northeast of Rochester in Afton, Minnesota), also represented Team USA during the winter games in Sochi, Russia.
Interestingly, the World Cup series is STILL underway over in Italy, but Diggins has such a big lead in the race that no other skier can catch her. Wow! And this victory is actually Diggins' second of 2021, as well. Back in January, she became the first American to win the 2021 Tour de Ski race.
An impressive job for a fellow Minnesotan who once was on the cross country ski team at Stillwater High School. And speaking of famous celebrities who ALSO went to high school here in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, keep scrolling to see if you recognize THESE familiar names!
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