Maiken Caspersen Falla

Maiken Caspersen Falla (born 13 August 1990) is a Norwegian former cross-country skier who specialized in sprint and short-distance races. She is the 2014 Olympic champion in the individual sprint and three-time Olympic medalist. She became the individual sprint World champion at the 2017 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships and successfully defended her World title in 2019. Falla won a total of five gold, one silver and four bronze medals at the World Championships in her career and she is the most medalled skier in the individual sprint discipline in the Championship history with five medals.[1] Winner of three consecutive Sprint World Cup crystal globes, Falla's highest finish in the overall World Cup standings was sixth-place which she achieved in 2014–15 and 2015–16 World Cup seasons.

Maiken Caspersen Falla
Falla in 2019
Country Norway
Full nameMaiken Caspersen Falla
Born (1990-08-13) 13 August 1990
Fet, Akershus, Norway
Height1.61 m (5 ft 3 in)
Ski clubStrandbygda IL
World Cup career
Seasons14 – (2009–2022)
Individual wins22
Team wins6
Indiv. podiums55
Team podiums15
Indiv. starts168
Team starts22
Overall titles0 – (6th in 2015, 2016)
Discipline titles3 – (3 SP: 2016–2018)
Medal record
Women's cross-country skiing
Representing  Norway
International nordic ski competitions
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 1 1 1
World Championships 5 1 4
Total 6 2 5
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place2014 SochiIndividual sprint
Silver medal – second place2018 PyeongchangIndividual sprint
Bronze medal – third place2018 PyeongchangTeam sprint
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2015 FalunTeam sprint
Gold medal – first place2017 LahtiIndividual sprint
Gold medal – first place2017 LahtiTeam sprint
Gold medal – first place2017 Lahti4 × 5 km relay
Gold medal – first place2019 SeefeldIndividual sprint
Silver medal – second place2021 OberstdorfIndividual sprint
Bronze medal – third place2011 OsloTeam sprint
Bronze medal – third place2013 Val di FiemmeIndividual sprint
Bronze medal – third place2015 FalunIndividual sprint
Bronze medal – third place2019 SeefeldTeam sprint
Junior World Championships
Gold medal – first place2009 Praz de Lys-Sommand4 × 3.33 km relay
Bronze medal – third place2009 Praz de Lys-SommandIndividual sprint

With 22 World Cup sprint victories, Falla is the second-most successful female World Cup sprinter of all time, only behind Marit Bjørgen.[2] She also shares the record of most sprint victories in a single season with Petra Majdič at eight victories.

She announced her retirement from cross-country skiing in April 2022.[3]

Career

Falla made her World Cup debut with a classical sprint race in Kuusamo on 29 November 2008, where she finished in 22nd place.[4] She reached her first World Cup podium in Düsseldorf in her second ever World Cup race.[5] With that promising start, Falla was given a spot in the individual sprint race at the 2009 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Liberec, but she failed to qualify for the quarter-finals by finishing 39th in qualifying round.[6] After a podium appearance in her rookie season, Falla could not make the World Cup podium for more than two years. During that span, her sixth-place finish at the classical sprint in Kuusamo helped her to secure a spot in the Norwegian Olympic team for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.[7] At the Olympics, she finished 20th in the individual sprint event.

Falla returned to World Cup podium in 2010/11 season with a third place at the classical sprint in Otepää, then she backed up that performance with a second-place finish in Drammen.[4] With two podiums in the last two sprints prior to the 2011 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, she became one of the medal favorites in the upcoming home World Championships in Oslo Holmenkollen.[8][9] At the World Championships, after setting the third fastest time in the qualification Falla took a fall in her quarter final heat and eliminated from the competition in that stage after finishing third in the heat.[10] After the disappointment in the individual sprint, Falla was not initially considered for the team sprint but after the withdrawal of Marit Bjørgen, she was selected for the event alongside Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen and the pair went on to take a bronze medal behind the Swedish and Finnish teams.[11][12]

Falla during the podium ceremony after winning her first World Cup race in Rogla in December 2011

In 2011/12 season, Falla won her first World Cup victory in a freestyle sprint race in Rogla, Slovenia.[13] She also reached four more podiums during the season and finished the season in second place in sprint rankings behind Kikkan Randall.[14]

Falla started 2012/13 season in very good form with one victory and three podiums from her first three sprint races. She also reached a podium in a distance race for the first time, a 10 km mass start race in Canmore, but her level dropped after mid-January, and she could not make a single top 10 in the remainder of the World Cup season.[4] Despite the decrease in performance, at the 2013 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Val di Fiemme, Falla won her first individual World Championship medal with a bronze medal in the individual sprint event.[15] For the team sprint race she teamed up with Ingvild Flugstad Østberg but the pair missed the medals and finished in fourth place mainly due to Østberg’s fall in the penultimate leg of the race.[16]

Falla has not started well to 2013/14 season and she managed to reach only one podium in World Cup sprints before the Olympics.[4] At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi Falla won the gold medal in individual sprint despite more than one year without a victory in the World Cup. She dominated the event from start to finish by setting the fastest time in the qualifying round and winning every heat she competed.[17] She was left out in the team sprint since her teammates Marit Bjørgen and Ingvild Flugstad Østberg has shown better performance in classical discipline throughout the season.[18][19] Although the reason was understandable for many, some people – including Bente Skari – criticized the decision of putting Bjørgen into the team instead of Olympic champion Falla.[20] After the Olympics, Falla earned her sole World Cup victory of the season in the prestigious classical sprint race in Drammen.[21]

In 2014/15 season, Falla recorded four World Cup podiums and her only victory of the season once again came in Drammen.[4] She finished the season in third place in sprint rankings behind her teammates Bjørgen and Østberg.[22] At the 2015 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Falun, Falla earned her first World Championship gold medal in the team sprint event with Østberg,[23] but once again she had to settle for bronze medal in the individual sprint behind Marit Bjørgen and Stina Nilsson.[24]

Falla's best season to date in terms of wins came in 2015/16 season. She was the dominant force in sprint races of the World cup throughout the season by winning eight of eleven sprint races, she participated in and missed the podium only once in the entire season.[4] That came in Planica where she was dealing with illness.[25] With eight sprint victories, Falla equaled the Petra Majdič’s record of most World Cup sprint victories in a single season.[26] At the end of the season she clinched the seasonal sprint World Cup title for the first time in her career.[27]

In 2016/17 season, Falla defended her sprint World Cup title despite being outsprinted by Sweden's Stina Nilsson in most of the sprint races.[28][29] Although Falla has only one sprint victory compared to Nilsson's six, she took the advantage in sprint rankings when Nilsson opted not to ski in Toblach and she maintained it until the end of the season.[30] At the 2017 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Lahti, Falla took the gold medal in the individual sprint in a similar fashion to her Olympic title and won the only sprint title that has eluded her in her career. She set the fastest time in the qualification and won every heat she competed during the process, while her archrival Nilsson was disqualified in the semifinal.[31][32] By winning the gold medal, she became the second female skier to win Olympic, World and World Cup sprint title after her compatriot Marit Bjørgen who reached that triple crown in 2010 but Falla has the distinction of holding those three honours at the same time. During the championships, Falla added two more gold medals to her medal tally and finished the championships with three gold medals. Along with Heidi Weng, she once again brought the World team sprint title to Norway.[33] She was also the member of the Norwegian relay team that won the gold medal in 4 × 5 km relay, running the opening classical leg.[34]

Personal life

Falla resides in Lillehammer along with her partner Kristian Hågensen Aune, a former football player who has served as a captain for the Norwegian club Levanger FK.[35] Her twin brother Marius Caspersen Falla is also a cross-country skier.[36]

Cross-country skiing results

All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).[4]

Olympic Games
  • 3 medals – (1 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze)
 Year   Age   10 km 
 individual 		  15 km 
 skiathlon 		  30 km 
 mass start 		  Sprint   4 × 5 km 
 relay 		  Team 
 sprint 
201019———20——
201423———Gold——
201827———Silver—Bronze
202231———8—8

World Championships
  • 10 medals – (5 gold, 1 silver, 4 bronze)
 Year   Age   10 km 
 individual 		  15 km 
 skiathlon 		  30 km 
 mass start 		  Sprint   4 × 5 km 
 relay 		  Team 
 sprint 
200918———39——
201120———13—Bronze
201322———Bronze—4
201524———Bronze—Gold
201726———GoldGoldGold
201928———Gold—Bronze
202130———Silver—6

Season titles
  • 3 titles – (3 sprint)
Season
Discipline
2016Sprint
2017Sprint
2018Sprint

Season standings
 Season   Age  Discipline standings Ski Tour standings
Overall Distance Sprint Nordic
Opening		 Tour de
Ski		 Ski Tour
2020		 World Cup
Final		 Ski Tour
Canada
20091839—15—————
20101955—25—————
20112024NC6DNF——DNF—
20122112352nd place, silver medalist(s)11——16—
20132219354———14—
2014231637516——18—
2015246373rd place, bronze medalist(s)7DNF———
2016256201st place, gold medalist(s)10DNF——10
2017267241st place, gold medalist(s)7DNF—7—
20182711321st place, gold medalist(s)21DNF—15—
20192811522nd place, silver medalist(s)—DNF—13—
20202924NC5—DNFDNF——
20213080—47—————
20223122617—————

Individual podiums
  • 22 victories – (16 WC, 6 SWC)
  • 55 podiums – (39 WC, 15 SWC)
No. Season Date Location Race Level Place
12008–0920 December 2008Germany Düsseldorf, Germany0.8 km Sprint FWorld Cup3rd
22010–1123 January 2011Estonia Otepää, Estonia1.2 km Sprint CWorld Cup3rd
320 February 2011Norway Drammen, Norway1.2 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
416 March 2011Sweden Stockholm, Sweden1.0 km Sprint CStage World Cup3rd
52011–1211 December 2011 Switzerland  Davos, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint FWorld Cup3rd
618 December 2011Slovenia Rogla, Slovenia1.0 km Sprint FWorld Cup1st
714 January 2012Italy Milano, Italy1.4 km Sprint FWorld Cup3rd
817 February 2012Poland Szklarska Poręba, Poland1.6 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
914 March 2012Sweden Stockholm, Sweden1.0 km Sprint CStage World Cup3rd
102012–138 December 2012Canada Quebec City, Canada1.6 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
1113 December 2012Canada Canmore, Canada10 km Mass Start CWorld Cup3rd
1215 December 20121.3 km Sprint FWorld Cup1st
1312 January 2013Czech Republic Liberec, Czech Republic0.85 km Sprint CWorld Cup3rd
142013–1421 December 2013Italy Asiago, Italy1.25 km Sprint CWorld Cup3rd
155 March 2014Norway Drammen, Norway1.3 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
162014–1529 November 2014Finland Rukatunturi, Finland1.4 km Sprint CWorld Cup3rd
1714 December 2014 Switzerland  Davos, Switzerland1.3 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
1814 February 2015Sweden Östersund, Sweden1.2 km Sprint CWorld Cup2nd
1911 March 2015Norway Drammen, Norway1.3 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
202015–1627 November 2015Finland Rukatunturi, Finland1.4 km Sprint CStage World Cup1st
2113 December 2015 Switzerland  Davos, Switzerland1.6 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
2219 December 2015Italy Toblach, Italy1.3 km Sprint FWorld Cup1st
231 January 2016 Switzerland  Lenzerheide, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint FStage World Cup1st
243 February 2016Norway Drammen, Norway1.2 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
2511 February 2016Sweden Stockholm, Sweden1.2 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
2620 February 2016Finland Lahti, Finland1.6 km Sprint FWorld Cup1st
271 March 2016Canada Gatineau, Canada1.7 km Sprint FStage World Cup1st
284 March 2016Canada Quebec City, Canada1.5 km Sprint FStage World Cup2nd
298 March 2016Canada Canmore, Canada1.5 km Sprint CStage World Cup1st
302016–1726 November 2016Finland Rukatunturi, Finland1.4 km Sprint CWorld Cup2nd
312 December 2016Norway Lillehammer, Norway1.3 km Sprint CStage World Cup2nd
3211 December 2016 Switzerland  Davos, Switzerland1.6 km Sprint FWorld Cup1st
3331 December 2016 Switzerland  Val Müstair, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint FStage World Cup2nd
3414 January 2017Italy Toblach, Italy1.3 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
3528 January 2017Sweden Falun, Sweden1.4 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
3618 February 2017Estonia Otepää, Estonia1.3 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
3717 March 2017Canada Quebec City, Canada1.5 km Sprint FStage World Cup2nd
382017–182 December 2017Norway Lillehammer, Norway1.3 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
399 December 2017 Switzerland  Davos, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
4030 December 2017 Switzerland  Lenzerheide, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint FStage World Cup3rd
414 January 2018Germany Oberstdorf, Germany10 km Mass Start FStage World Cup2nd
4220 January 2018Slovenia Planica, Slovenia1.4 km Sprint CWorld Cup3rd
4327 January 2018Austria Seefeld, Austria1.1 km Sprint FWorld Cup3rd
443 March 2018Finland Lahti, Finland1.4 km Sprint FWorld Cup1st
457 March 2018Norway Drammen, Norway1.2 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
462018–1919 January 2019Estonia Otepää, Estonia1.3 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
479 February 2019Finland Lahti, Finland1.4 km Sprint FWorld Cup1st
4812 March 2019Norway Drammen, Norway1.2 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
4916 March 2019Sweden Falun, Sweden1.4 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
502019–2029 November 2019Finland Rukatunturi, Finland1.4 km Sprint CStage World Cup1st
5114 December 2019 Switzerland  Davos, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint FWorld Cup2nd
5229 December 2019 Switzerland  Lenzerheide, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint FStage World Cup2nd
5322 February 2020Norway Trondheim, Norway1.5 km Sprint CStage World Cup1st
542021–2226 November 2021Finland Rukatunturi, Finland1.4 km Sprint CWorld Cup3rd
553 March 2022Norway Drammen, Norway1.2 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st

Team podiums
  • 6 victories – (2 RL, 4 TS)
  • 15 podiums – (2 RL, 13 TS)
No. Season Date Location Race Level Place Teammate(s)
12008–0921 December 2008Germany Düsseldorf, Germany6 × 0.8 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup2ndBrun-Lie
22009–106 December 2009Germany Düsseldorf, Germany6 × 0.8 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup3rdBrun-Lie
32010–115 December 2010Germany Düsseldorf, Germany6 × 0.9 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup2ndBrun-Lie
416 January 2011Czech Republic Liberec, Czech Republic6 × 1.3 km Team Sprint CWorld Cup1stBjørgen
52011–124 December 2011Germany Düsseldorf, Germany6 × 0.9 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup1stEide
62012–137 December 2012Canada Quebec City, Canada6 × 1.6 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup3rdBrun-Lie
713 January 2013Czech Republic Liberec, Czech Republic6 × 0.85 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup1stØstberg
82013–1422 December 2013Italy Asiago, Italy6 × 1.25 km Team Sprint CWorld Cup2ndØstberg
912 January 2014Czech Republic Nové Město, Czech Republic6 × 1.3 km Team Sprint CWorld Cup1stØstberg
102014–1518 January 2015Estonia Otepää, Estonia6 × 1.2 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup2ndØstberg
112015–166 December 2015Norway Lillehammer, Norway4 × 5 km Relay C/FWorld Cup1st Østberg / Johaug / Weng 
122016–1715 January 2017Italy Toblach, Italy6 × 1.3 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup3rdJacobsen
132018–1913 January 2019Germany Dresden, Germany6 × 1.6 km Team Sprint FWorld Cup3rdEide
1410 February 2019Finland Lahti, Finland6 × 1.4 km Team Sprint CWorld Cup2ndT. Udnes Weng
152019–208 December 2019Norway Lillehammer, Norway4 × 5 km Relay C/FWorld Cup1st Jacobsen / Johaug / Weng 

Overall record
As of 11 March 2022
Result Distance Races[a] Sprint Ski
Tours		 Individual
Events		 Team Events All Events
≤ 5 km[b] ≤ 10 km[b] ≤ 15 km[b] ≤ 30 km[b] ≥ 30 km[b] Pursuit Skiathlon Team Sprint Relay
1st place–––––––22–224228
2nd place–1–––––18–195–24
3rd place–1–––––13–144–18
Podiums–2–––––53–5513270
Top 10151––43845103165124
Points91313–1479813158175180
Others28––14–8–23––23
DNF––––––––99––9
Starts112113118710622190175211
a. 1 Classification is made according to FIS classification.
b. 1 2 3 4 5 Includes individual and mass start races.

References
  1. "All-Time Podiums List in World Championship Sprints". FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  2. "All-Time Winners List in Cross-Country Sprints". FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  3. Vesteng, Camilla (2022-04-22). "Falla legger opp: – Det har vært et eventyr". Verdens Gang (in Norwegian Bokmål). Retrieved 2022-04-22.
  4. "Maiken Caspersen Falla". FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 4 January 2016.
  5. Haugli, Kurt B. M. "En liten sensasjon". aftenposten.no (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  6. "Jentesprinterne skuffet". adressa.no (in Norwegian). Adresseavisen. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  7. "OL-troppen i langrenn er klar" (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  8. "Falla større favoritt enn Bjørgen". adressa.no (in Norwegian). Adresseavisen. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  9. "Det kommer til å bli helt rått". adressa.no (in Norwegian). Adresseavisen. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  10. "Bjørgen tok gull: – Det råeste jeg har vært med på". VG.no (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  11. "Kalla: – Like godt å slå Norge uten Bjørgen". VG.no (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  12. "Marit trenger hvile". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  13. "FALLA UND COLOGNA CLAIM SPRINT VICTORIES IN ROGLA". fischersports.com. FISCHER. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  14. "2011/2012 SPRINT WORLD CUP STANDING LADIES" (PDF). FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  15. "Maiken taklet nervene". langrenn.com (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  16. "Østberg-fall ødela Norges gullmulighet". vg.no (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  17. "Norway's Falla and Hattestad claim gold in Sochi cross-country sprints". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  18. "OL-mesteren vraket til lagsprinten". VG.no (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  19. "Jeg gjemte gullmedaljen godt, men vurderte å hente den fram igjen". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  20. "Bente Skari ville vraket Marit Bjørgen". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  21. Kahn, Pasha. "Falla Triumphs in Drammen; Randall Secures Third-Consecutive Crystal Globe". FasterSkier.com. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  22. "2014/2015 SPRINT WORLD CUP STANDING LADIES" (PDF). FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  23. "Gull-jentene om seieren: – Utrolig stort" (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  24. "Maiken Caspersen Falla: – Ikke stygge mot hverandre". langrenn.com (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  25. "Målet nådd for Falla: – Vondt i hele kroppen" (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  26. "Chiusura con vittoria e record per Maiken Caspersen Falla nella Sprint di Canmore". neveitalia.it (in Italian). Neve Italia. Retrieved 21 February 2018.
  27. "STINA NILSSON WINS CITY SPRINT IN QUÉBEC, FALLA THE SPRINT GLOBE". fischersports.com. FISCHER. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  28. Naranja, Gabby. "Another Sprint Victory for Nilsson; Falla Defends Sprint Crystal Globe in Quebec". FasterSkier.com. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  29. "2016/2017 SPRINT WORLD CUP STANDING LADIES" (PDF). FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  30. "Längdlandslaget till vc-tävlingarna i Toblach". skidor.com (in Swedish). Swedish Ski Association. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  31. "Falla and Pellegrino are World Sprint Champions 2017". FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  32. "Russisk-svensk krangel etter Nilssons fall". vg.no (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  33. "Falla og Weng sikret sprintgull til Norge". tv2.no (in Norwegian). TV 2. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  34. "Gull-Falla fikk tips av vrakede Østberg". framtidinord.no (in Norwegian). Framtid i Nord. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  35. "Kristian er blitt en ekte gullgutt". innherred.no (in Norwegian). Innherred. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  36. "Tvillingbroren om gulljenta: – Hun sliter med selvtilliten". aftenposten.no (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. Retrieved 26 January 2018.

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