2006 Olympic Cross Country Skiing

Updated August 5, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

There are two techniques in cross country: classical (parallel skis) and freestyle (skating style). The Sprint features a qualification round with the fastest 16 skiers moving on to elimination heats. Top two finishers in each heat advance until there is a four-skier final. The Combined Pursuit is held on one day and consists of a classical race (10-km for men, 5-km for women) followed by a freestyle race (10-km for men, 5-km for women). The starting order in the freestyle portion of the Combined Pursuit is determined by the classical leg finish.

Information Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.