U.S. Cross Country Championships: Freeman and Compton win freestyle

By Published On: January 6th, 2009Comments Off on U.S. Cross Country Championships: Freeman and Compton win freestyle

The 2009 ConocoPhillips U.S. Cross Country Championships finally kicked off Monday after two days of cold temperatures postponed races in Anchorage, AK. The U.S. Ski Team’s Kris Freeman won his 11th U.S. title in a 10K freestyle and Caitlin Compton won her third in a 5K freestyle. The races were shortened from the their original lengths of 15K for men and 10K for women in order to fit both races in.The 2009 ConocoPhillips U.S. Cross Country Championships finally kicked off Monday after two days of cold temperatures postponed races in Anchorage, AK. The U.S. Ski Team’s Kris Freeman won his 11th U.S. title in a 10K freestyle and Caitlin Compton won her third in a 5K freestyle. The races were shortened from the their original lengths of 15K for men and 10K for women in order to fit both races in.

“I was second last year so it was good to just come out and show what I could really do,” Freeman told usskiteam.com. “At the 2K mark I was tied with a couple other guys so I started to speed it up throughout the race and the harder I went the better I felt.”



Freeman will tackle the 15K classic today if the temperature meets the requirement of -4 degrees Fahrenheit.

“The only other race I am really focused on is the 15K classic and I’ll go out and ski it the same way I did today, which is hard and in control,” Freeman says.

Compton was joined on the podium by Anchorage native Kikkan Randall in second and Liz Stephen in third.



OFFICIAL RESULTS
2009 CONOCOPHILLIPS U.S. CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Anchorage, AK – Jan. 5, 2009

Men’s 10K Freestyle
1. Kris Freeman, Andover, NH, 24:17.2
2. Leif Zimmermann, Bozeman, MT, 25:07.5
3. Matthew Liebsch, Plymouth, MN, 25:19.8
4. Vegard Kjoelhamar, Norway, 24:41.9
5. James Southam, Anchorage, 25:48.7

Women’s 5K Freestyle
1. Caitlin Compton, Minneapolis, MN 14:48.3
2. Kikkan Randall, Anchorage, 14:51.8
3. Liz Stephen, East Montpelier, VT, 14:56.6
4. Laura Valaas, Wenatchee, WA, 15:11.7
5. Kris Trygstad-Saari, Bozeman, MT, 15:15.2

NOTE: Only U.S. athletes are eligible for championship medals.

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About the Author: Pete Rugh