Elia Barp and Federico Pellegrino, good indications ahead of Milan-Cortina 2026

The second stage of the Tour de Ski, the 10-kilometer classic technique race in Toblach, provided good indications ahead of Milan-Cortina 2026 for two athletes of the national cross-country skiing team, Elia Barp from Belluno and Federico Pellegrino from Aosta Valley, the latter among the four Italian flag bearers in the opening ceremony of the five-ring event. Both finished among the top 10 in the race won by Norway″s Mattis Stenshagen: Barp finished eighth at 39″2 from the winner, while Pellegrino finished 10th with a delay of 42″7.

“It was a good race – said Elia Barp to the official channels of Fisi, on the sidelines of Monday’s appointment -. I made it almost completely in control and with good rhythm, then in the last two kilometers I found the wake of Stenshagen which was a very good reference. The legs and arms are there: I think it is a good starting point for my Tour de Ski. I am happy that Korostelev is here to race with us, I have known him since junior, he is a great friend and I am happy for him. The stage I’m most looking forward to? Definitely the pursuit on Thursday”.

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Satisfied also Federico Pellegrino: “It is a good result: in the last years in classic I constantly keep myself among the best fifteen, so I am satisfied. Today the conditions were still easy, those who had more strength were able to express themselves better and I am happy to have been in front. The condition has been there since mid-November: it is not only a matter of ‘displacement’ or power, but also of track conditions, which are decisive on every single day. I am aware of this and I try to be ready for any condition”.

The other Italians competing in Toblach finished further back in the standings, with Davide Graz thirty-fourth (+1’19″8) and Simone Daprà thirty-eighth(+1’26″9). Scrolling down the standings are also Francesco De Fabiani at 1’43, Martino Carollo at 2’08, Giacomo Gabrielli at 2’15 and Simone Mocellini at 2’54. Michael Hellweger did not start, however.

In the overall standings, athletes from Norway dominate, with Johannes Hosflot Klaebo in first place, 53″ ahead of Lars Heggen and 57″ ahead of Harald Ostberg Amundsen. Federico Pellegrino is the first of the Italians, with a delay of 1’16” on top of the overall standings, which puts him momentarily in eighth place.