A Polish star and a relatively unsung American claimed the opening gold medals of the Winter Games yesterday.
Justyna Kowalczyk (women) and Andy Newell (men) swooped to victory in the Australia New Zealand Continental Cup cross-country sprint at the Snow Farm.
Kowalczyk, who won both women's events at the first round of ANC events in Wanaka, was always expected to be the class performer in the women's field.
The Olympic and world champion, ranked No 2 in the world in the sprint discipline, wasted no time in setting the standard yesterday, winning the prologue in 3min 27.25sec.
Olympic biathlon gold medallist Anastasiya Kuzmina (Slovakia) was second-fastest qualifier with 3min 32.24sec, and Olympian Perianne Jones (Canada) clocked 3min 36.42sec.
Kowalczyk, who was first across the line in her semifinal, comfortably won the final and the women's ANC title ahead of another Olympian in Daria Gaiazova (Canada), with Kuzmina finishing third.
Kowalczyk was upbeat about her performance in an event that provides useful preparation for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
''It was a good race on a very good track,'' she said.
''I am very happy. Racing here at Snow Farm and the Winter Games is very important for me for Sochi.''
New Zealand's sole entrant, Sarah Murphy, who competed at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver as the first Kiwi Olympic biathlete, tested her skills on the sprint course, completing the prologue in seventh in 3min 50.5sec.
Following the semifinal, she competed in the B final and finished third behind Japanese competitors Michiko Kashiwabara and Chisa Obayashi.
''I am more of an endurance racer but it was great to have the sprint experience and ski against some of the best in the world,'' Murphy said.
''You just had to put your head down and fight to stay with the others. I had trouble in the semifinal because of my start position but overall it was a good race.''
The men's race threw up the first minor upset of the games.
Newell was ranked ninth in the field but sent a strong message in the prologue when he clocked 2min 52.96sec over the 1.6km course.
Olympic bronze medallist Alexey Petukhov (Russia) was second-fastest in 2min 56.54sec, followed by two-time Olympian Devon Kershaw (Canada) in 3min 0.10sec.
Newell was a clear winner in his semifinal but had to fight to win a tight final, pipping Petukhov and Kershaw.
The top seed, Nikita Kriukov (Russia), who is ranked No 2 in the world, finished fifth in the prologue in 3min 1.51sec and had to be satisfied with winning the B final.
Newell was pleased with his win, having just arrived in New Zealand from the US two days ago.
''It's good to get on snow following summer training and the results let me know that my training is going well,'' Newell said.
''It was great to race the others, particularly the Russians, and get in the zone and pass them where possible.
''There were Olympic medallists and world champions in the field and I haven't been any of those yet so I am hoping maybe now my turn is coming on the podium.''
