On the final day of Tour de Ski, Sjur Røthe of Norway and Denis Spitsov did like Heidi Weng and Ebba Andersson in the women’s race earlier today: Made it a one-on-one battle all the way up the brutal final climb. 

And just like in the women’s race, the Norwegian crossed the finish line first. Røthe beat Spitsov by 2.4 seconds.

“It’s always fun to win ski races. I don’t do it very often,” Røthe says after his impressive finish on the final stage of Tour de Ski. 

This year, the final climb format was a mass start, rather than a pursuit. 

“I felt good from the start, but this is an extremely peculiar race. I’ve done this quite a few times now, so I know it’s important to be in the right position coming into the final hill climb, and its crucial to avoid accidents before you get there. I was extremely lucky to avoid going down in the crash early in the race,” Røthe says after his stage win. 

“But when we got to the final hill, I was a little uneasy that it came down to a battle between me and Spitsov. I had to make an extra effort in the last turn, so I managed to keep him behind me,” he says.

Top 3, 10km Skate, mass start men
1. Sjur Røthe, Norway, 31:42.1
2. Denis Spitsov, Russia, +2.4
3. Friedrich Moch, Germany, +18.9

Complete results

A ticket to China
For Røthe, the stage win was also extremely important in order to earn one of the last two spots on the Norwegian team to the 2022 Olympics. 

“There were three stages in the Tour de Ski that were particularly important: Today, yesterday and the 15-kilometer in Oberstdorf. I delivered on two out of three. Today’s race probably won’t matter much for the Olympics, but I hope the 15-kilometer in Oberstdorf does,” Røthe says, and continues: 

“I feel like I deserve one of those two last tickets to China.”

Klæbo wins overall Tour de Ski
In the overall Tour de Ski, Norway’s Johannes Høsflot Klæbo had a 2-minute lead to defending Tour de Ski champion Alexander Bolshunov of Russia in second place.

The two finished fifth and seventh on Alpe Cermis, respectively, with Klæbo increasing the overall gap by another 3.2 seconds. 

The overall Tour de Ski title was Klæbo’s third, and his 47th World Cup victory. He thereby

The real battle, then, was for the last spot on the podium in the overall stage race. 

Prior to the last stage, there were five racers fighting for that: Pål Golberg and Erik Valnes of Norway, Denis Spitsov and Ivan Yakimushkin of Russia, and Iivo Niskanen of Finland. 

However, Yakimushkin in reality fell out of that equation when he crashed on the first lap on the World Cup loop in the stadium before the course headed over to the Maricalonga trail toward the final climb. At the end of the course, Niskanen snagged the third place overall, by three seconds.

All you need to know about the final climb Alpe Cermis: Maps, course profiles, statistics and details about the brutal signature stage of the Tour de Ski. 

Top 3, Tour de Ski overall, men
1. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, Norway
2. Alexander Bolshunov, Russia
3. Iivo Niskanen, Finland

Complete results

The final climb up Alpe Cermis concluded Tour de Ski. Check out how the 16th edition of the traditional stage race unfolded, day by day. 

Stage 1: Sprint Free technique, Lenzerheide, Switzerland
Results, Sprint F, Women
Results, Sprint F, Men

Stage 2: 10km/15km Classic – individual start, Lenzerheide, Switzerland
Results, 10km Classic – individual start, Women
Results, 15km Classic – individual start, Men

Stage 3: 10km/15km Free technique – mass start, Oberstdorf, Germany
Results, 10km Free technique – mass start, Women
Results, 15km Free technique – mass start, Men

Stage 4: Classic Sprint, Oberstdorf, Germany
Results, Sprint CL, Women
Results, Sprint CL, Men

Stage 5: 10km/15km Classic – mass start, Val di Fiemme, Italy
Results, 10km Classic – mass start, Women
Results, 15km Classic – mass start, Men

FACTS: Tour de Ski 2021/22 

• Tour de Ski 2021/22 started in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, on December 28 and concluded in Val di Fiemme, Italy, on January 4. 
• The race consisted of six stages in eight days. 
• Tour de Ski 2021/22 is the 16th edition of the brutal stage race. These are the winners from the previous 15 Tour de Ski events. 
• The overall winners get 400 World Cup points for the Tour de Ski, which consists of six stages in eight days. Stage winners get 50 World Cup points. Accordingly, there are potentially 700 World Cup points for winning every stage of the Tour de Ski, which would determine the overall World Cup for the season.