Completed Event: Skiing versus 20K Freestyle (M) on March 8, 2025 , , 1st
Final Score
Skiing
1st
vs 20K Freestyle (M)
Sunday, January 2
Midway, Utah
All Day
University of Utah
vs
Freestyle Sprints
Keeffe, Palmer-Leger Post U.S. Nationals Podiums at Soldier Hollow
1/2/2022 11:18 PM | Skiing
Jarzin also hits podium in Utah Invitational; Utes lead in team standings after Day One
MIDWAY, Utah – It was a strong start to both the new calendar year and the RMISA racing slate for Utah on Sunday, as the Utes began the Utah Invitational at Soldier Hollow with three individual podium finishes in freestyle sprints and hold the lead in the team standings with 187 points after Day One.
In the team standings, Utah's 187 points are 39 ahead of a tie for second place between Alaska Anchorage and Colorado (148). The RMISA race took place within the U.S. National Championships, which itself encompassed two of Utah's three college podiums.
Park City, Utah, native Sydney Palmer-Leger won the women's collegiate freestyle sprints and finished second overall in the U.S. Nationals field. She was joined on the college podium by Abby Jarzin in third. On the men's side, Noel Keeffe was the standout Ute with a second-place college finish and third among Nationals competition.
"It was a beautiful day out there at Soldier Hollow today," said head Nordic coach Miles Havlick. "Sydney and Noel were the highlights of the day. Both are really beginning to show their maturity in sprint skiing. Throughout the heats they skied smart, tactical races, and claiming podiums at U.S. National Championships is no small feat. A really impressive start to the new year for both of them!"
Palmer-Leger won both her quarterfinal and semifinal heats in the women's collegiate field and Julia Richter rounded out a solid 1-3-6 effort for the Utes in the final results. With Jarzin and Colorado's Weronika Kaleta each finishing third in their respective quarterfinals, Jarzin placed third overall and broke the tie with Kaleta based on qualifier time. Richter broke a similar tie based on her qualifier to secure sixth place at the end of the day.
For the men, Keeffe cruised to victory in his quarterfinal and semifinal, and was part of a tight finish with the top-three overall Nationals skiers separated by just .91 seconds. Walker Hall tabbed sixth in the collegiate field and Brian Bushey was ninth.
The Nordic portion of the Utah Invitational concludes on Thursday, Jan. 6, with classic races taking place as part of the U.S. National Championships. After that, action continues at Soldier Hollow on Friday, Jan. 7 with a separate qualifier in classic sprint races.
Follow UtahUtes.com and @utahskiteam across social media for continuing coverage of the team.
Notes:
In the team standings, Utah's 187 points are 39 ahead of a tie for second place between Alaska Anchorage and Colorado (148). The RMISA race took place within the U.S. National Championships, which itself encompassed two of Utah's three college podiums.
Park City, Utah, native Sydney Palmer-Leger won the women's collegiate freestyle sprints and finished second overall in the U.S. Nationals field. She was joined on the college podium by Abby Jarzin in third. On the men's side, Noel Keeffe was the standout Ute with a second-place college finish and third among Nationals competition.
"It was a beautiful day out there at Soldier Hollow today," said head Nordic coach Miles Havlick. "Sydney and Noel were the highlights of the day. Both are really beginning to show their maturity in sprint skiing. Throughout the heats they skied smart, tactical races, and claiming podiums at U.S. National Championships is no small feat. A really impressive start to the new year for both of them!"
Palmer-Leger won both her quarterfinal and semifinal heats in the women's collegiate field and Julia Richter rounded out a solid 1-3-6 effort for the Utes in the final results. With Jarzin and Colorado's Weronika Kaleta each finishing third in their respective quarterfinals, Jarzin placed third overall and broke the tie with Kaleta based on qualifier time. Richter broke a similar tie based on her qualifier to secure sixth place at the end of the day.
For the men, Keeffe cruised to victory in his quarterfinal and semifinal, and was part of a tight finish with the top-three overall Nationals skiers separated by just .91 seconds. Walker Hall tabbed sixth in the collegiate field and Brian Bushey was ninth.
The Nordic portion of the Utah Invitational concludes on Thursday, Jan. 6, with classic races taking place as part of the U.S. National Championships. After that, action continues at Soldier Hollow on Friday, Jan. 7 with a separate qualifier in classic sprint races.
Follow UtahUtes.com and @utahskiteam across social media for continuing coverage of the team.
Notes:
- Four Utes earned points in the SuperTour season standings
- Through Sunday's races, Noel Keeffe is No. 2 in the men's standings (92 points)
- Walker Hall added to his SuperTour point total and now sits No. 18 (34 points)
- In the women's SuperTour standings, Abby Jarzin is now sixth (69) and Sydney Palmer-Leger is 16th (42) after securing points on Sunday
- The full SuperTour standings (both men and women) are available here.
Players Mentioned
Nordic
/ Skiing
Nordic
/ Skiing
Nordic
/ Skiing
Nordic
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Nordic
/ Skiing
Nordic
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