Overview
- Alexander Bolshunov won the 15 km freestyle at the Cup of Russia stage in Kazan in 32:22.2, finishing ahead of Egor Mitroshin (+16.9) and Ivan Gorbunov (+30.7) for his first victory of the season.
- Head coach Yuri Borodavko said a recent illness layoff helped Bolshunov reset psychologically, noting it is still early to judge his overall form.
- Nikita Filippov placed third in the ski mountaineering sprint at the World Cup in Courchevel in 2:46.2, earning his first career World Cup medal behind Oriol Cardona and Thibault Anselme.
- Filippov holds a personal Olympic invitation from the IOC, making him the first Russian to qualify for Milan–Cortina 2026 via World Cup results, which his coach Dmitry Bregeda called validation of their preparation.
- Anastasia Bagiyan won the women’s visually impaired 10 km mass start at the Para Nordic World Cup in Finsterau in 28:47.5 with guide Sergey Sinyakin, as Russian para athletes return to international events.