Skiing

Two APU skiers make it to sprint quarterfinals at U23 world championships

A pair of skiers from the APU nordic program advanced to the quarterfinals of the women’s classic sprint race Monday at the U23 World Championships in Lahti, Finland.

Hannah Halvorsen and Hailey Swirbul both finished fifth in their respective quarterfinals. Neither advanced to the semifinals.

The two were among four Americans who made it as far as the quarterfinals. Julia Kern of Massachusetts finished sixth in Swirbul’s heat, and Peter Holmes of California placed sixth in his quarterfinal.

The race was the first this week for the world’s top young skiers. Monday’s race was for skiers 23 and under; also being contested this week in Lahti are World Junior titles for skiers 20 and younger. Several Alaskans are competing in the two race series.

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