Skiing | Great news for Kerttu Niskanen: a wet turn in Val di Fiemme's weather

Val di Fiemme

Morning dawned rainy and wet in the village of Tesero in the Val di Fiemme valley, where the penultimate stages of the Tour de Ski, the 15 km (p) co-start race, will be contested on Saturday.

The heavy snowfall that started in the evening has turned into water during the night hours. At eight in the morning local time, water was dripping from the eaves, and the streets were covered in wet mud and puddles. Only a few centimeters of snow has remained on the ground.

It is the best possible news for Finland Kerttu Niskanenwhich is second overall for women, just 44 seconds Jessie Diggins behind.

Weather forecasts promised up to 30 centimeters of snow for Saturday. If this had happened, it would have been very difficult for Niskanen or anyone else to escape from the group, as was seen in Davos on Thursday.

Now it seems that the race, which starts at 12:45 Finnish time, has an honest breeze. The situation is tough, but it should suit Niskanen perfectly. Niskanen has usually been strong in difficult water conditions, for which he has traditionally found skis that work perfectly.

The rain is supposed to continue throughout the morning, but a few hours before the race, water dripped from the sky instead of snow.