Andrew Musgrave gave a performance in the Beltostolen 15KM cross country race that will have made the cross country world stand up. Britain is not noted for its Cross Country performances and the performance of the man from the Huntly Cross Country Club in Scotland will have raised the bar with this performance in coming 12th. In the ultra competitive world of cross country, a sport dominated by the Scandinavians and Russians, Mugrave has battled against the world almost on his own. Musgrave has spent the last few years living and competing in Norway to try and raise his game even further: In early 2012 he even finished 2nd in the 15km freestyle Norwegian Championships but due to not being a Norwegian, the silver medal was not presented to him.
This result though is exceptional, it may not have been a World Cup race, but the standard of the race was very much of a World Class standard. Next week sees the opening of the 15km World Cup in Gallivare, Sweden. many of the GB Team will be hoping that he can repeat the performance of Friday 16 November again. Already an Olympian from the 2010 Vancouver Games, Musgrave is definitely on the right road for the Sochi Games in 2014.
So how did a guy who was born in Dorset to parents who moved around a lot due to his father working in the oil business? Talking prior to the Winter Olympics in 2o12, he said: "My dad works in the oil business so I have moved around a lot,” he explains, “I was born in Dorset, spent five years on Shetland and then from the age of six until I was 11, I lived in Anchorage in Alaska.It was where I first started to ski properly. I'm sure I did a bit of downhill and even possibly cross country when I was a toddler as my parents lived in Norway and took us to the slopes a lot."
The success of Musgrave has fuelled other younger athletes and Musgrave is now part of a two strong British Nordic team that includes Andrew Young as well. Young is two years younger than Mugrave and is already touted as a strong contender in his year group in the world. Musgrave's performances have already seen him recognised by the Jaguar Academy of Sport.
For the full results of Andrew Musgrave's career to date click here (FIS website_