Twenty years of the Tour de Ski

The 20th edition of the Tour de Ski runs from December 28 to January 4 and, for the second consecutive year, will take place entirely in Italy. With a stage format based loosely on cycling’s Tour de France, the winner is the athlete with the quickest overall time over the six stages.

Twelve months ago, Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (NOR) and Therese Johaug (NOR) scored record-equaling fourth overall victories. The former will bid to go clear of Dario Cologna (SUI) in this season’s renewal, while Johaug - who announced her permanent retirement in May - remains tied with Justyna Kowalczyk (POL) for women’s triumphs.

This edition boasts a new race format with Stage 3 in Toblach, the first Heat Mass Start event in World Cup history. Based on the overall classification, around 20-25 skiers per gender will race in separate heats over 5km with only one taking place at a time.

Born in a sauna - the origins of the Tour de Ski 

The brainchild of the Tour de Ski was a discussion between then-FIS Cross-Country Race Director Jürg Capol and FIS Cross-Country Committee chairman Vegard Ulvang in the latter’s sauna. The meeting took place in the wake of the Tour de France in the summer of 2006, mere months after Ulvang’s appointment.

As Capol once told Blick, a few beers consumed while the wood sauna was warming up helped the creative process. And the pair decided that a winter version of ‘Le Tour’ could become a highlight of the World Cup calendar.

Amid some skepticism from potential venues, Nové Město (CZE) was selected as the venue for the opening two stages. However, poor snow conditions forced those to be cancelled meaning the Tour de Ski era got underway with a Freestyle Sprint inside Germany’s Munich Olympic Stadium.

Marit Bjørgen (NOR) was the first winner of a Tour de Ski stage, followed by Christoph Eigenmann (SUI) who claimed what would be his sole World Cup triumph. After that, there was a Skiathlon Pursuit and a Classic Individual Start in Obertsdorf (GER), followed by a Freestyle Sprint in Asiago (ITA), and then the final two stages in Val di Fiemme (ITA).

The penultimate stage was a Classic Mass Start ahead of one of the race’s permanent fixtures, the Final Climb of Alpe Cermis. This is one of the most gruelling challenges in the sport, given that it sees Cross-Country skiers tackle what is essentially a steep Alpine Ski climb.

Virpi Kuitunen (FIN) and Tobias Angerer (GER) both led going into the Alpe Cermis test, and both stayed clear to claim respective women’s and men’s titles. Kuitunen also won the Sprint crown, akin to the green points jersey in the Tour de France, with Tor Arne Hetland (NOR) taking the men’s equivalent.

Bjørgen finished second behind Kuitunen, and would have to wait until 2015 - one of three editions to be held solely in January - before clinching her first and only title.

As is often the case with any innovation, reaction was mixed. And Ulvang admitted changes would have to be made with a third of the athletes suffering from illness or injury at the end of the week. However, the Tour de Ski has fulfilled the pair’s dream by becoming one of the centerpieces of the World Cup season.

The Tour de Ski down the years

Over time, FIS has tweaked the format of the Tour de Ski to make it more appealing to spectators and TV audiences. Factors beyond its control have also played a part in the structure of the event.

After Kuitunen won her second Tour de Ski in 2008-09, the race was dominated by Polish Classic specialist Kowalczyk who won four consecutive titles. But she withdrew on the eve of the 2013-14 race which, after unseasonably wet and mild weather, comprised five Freestyle and just two Classic stages.

When Kowalczyk held sway in the women’s, Cologna reigned supreme over the men’s race. The Swiss star won three titles in four years from 2008-09, and then clinched his fourth crown in 2017-18. Last year, Kowalczyk and Cologna were joined on four wins apiece by Klæbo and Johaug.

Besides Kuitunen, two other women have scored multiple Tour de Ski victories. They are Heidi Weng (NOR; 2016-17, 2017-18) and Jessie Diggins (USA), who became the first non-European to take overall victory in 2021 before earning her second title in 2023-24.

On the men’s side, three men have won the Tour de Ski twice: Lukáš Bauer (CZE; 2007-08, 2009-10), Martin Johnsrud Sundby (NOR; 2013-14, 2016), and Alexander Bolshunov (RUS; 2019-20, 2021).

Having been involved in the first three editions, the Czech Republic (now Czechia) has not been on the Tour de Ski schedule since. Switzerland entered the fray in 2012-13 with Val Müstair and Lenzerheide alternating for the next decade before a single appearance at Davos in 2023-24.

Germany has had a regular presence, but Obertsdorf in 2022-23 was the Tour de Ski’s last visit with Italy the sole host in 2024-25. The 2022-23 edition was the first where men and women raced over the same distance in all stages.

This next instalment of the Tour de Ski has perhaps greater significance that usual with the penultimate stage taking place on the Sprint course being used during the following month’s Olympic Winter Games. That gives athletes the opportunity to impress selectors who will be finalizing teams for Milano Cortina.

“Much has happened over the last 20 years, but one element remained: the Tour de Ski has become a staple of the Cross-Country world," says Lamplot. "Everyone circles these dates on their calendars, and this year, shortly before the Games, we have everything to draw the attention of many more people than ever before."

While Klæbo will be the hot favourite for a record fifth crown, the women’s race looks wide open. Diggins will be hoping to defy her Norwegian and Swedish rivals to claim a third title in her final Tour de Ski before retirement.