Mannix takes second in the Johannson 30K

Talkeetna resident Tazlina Mannix took second place in the Sven Johanson 30 K freestyle ski race in Anchorage last Sunday. She finished a photofinish, six-tenths-of-a-second behind teammate Katie Ronsee in a field of thirty-seven women. The race, also called the Tour of Kincaid, is named after the first Alaskan to be named to the U.S. Ski Hall of Fame.

In the women’s Nordic skiing world championships in Czech Republic, Alaskan Kikkan Randall came in second, just six-tenths of a second behind champion Arianna Follis of Italy, in the cross country sprint race. Randall won both her quarterfinal and semifinal heat. It’s the first time since 1982 that a skier from the U.S. has won a medal in the championships. Bill Koch won a bronze in the men’s championships that year.