The Women's team sprint

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

competition at the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second t ...

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

was held on 14 February, at

Pragelato Pragelato (also ''Pragelà''; Vivaro-Alpine: ''Prajalats'', French: Prajalats) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about west of Turin, in the upper Val Chisone. The name ''Prag ...

. This was the first time the team sprint was contested in the Winter Olympics. Each race featured teams of two, with each skier completing 3 laps of a 1145 metre course. This event had been held once previously at the World Championships, but then as a free technique event, which Hilde G. Pedersen and

Marit Bjørgen Marit Bjørgen (born 21 March 1980) is a former Norwegian cross-country skier. She is ranked first in the all-time Cross-Country World Cup rankings with 114 individual victories. Bjørgen is also the most successful sprinter in Cross-Country W ...

won for Norway. The last classical style team sprint in the World Cup was held in Canmore on 18 December 2005 and won by

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, with

Manuela Henkel Manuela Henkel (born 4 December 1974 in Neuhaus am Rennweg, Bezirk Suhl) is a German cross-country skier who has competed since 1994. She won a gold medal in the 4 × 5 km relay at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Her best indiv ...

and

Viola Bauer Viola Bauer (born 13 December 1976 in Annaberg-Buchholz, Saxony, East Germany) is a retired German cross-country skier who competed from 1995 to 2007. She has won a complete set of medals at the Winter Olympics with a gold (2002) and a silver (20 ...

Results

Semifinals

Eight teams were entered in the two semifinals, with the top five in each advancing to the final. ;Semifinal 1 ;Semifinal 2

Final

The top three teams clearly separated themselves, with Sweden pulling away in the final metres to finish ahead of Canada and win the gold.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cross-country skiing at the 2006 Winter Olympics - Women's team sprint Women's cross-country skiing at the 2006 Winter Olympics Women's team sprint cross-country skiing at the Winter Olympics