Name day: Simona, Apolonija

The Swedish skiers set the tone in the competition, with Frida Karlsson the fastest and becoming the Olympic champion for the first time.

In the first 10 kilometers of the classic, four athletes - one Norwegian and three Swedish - were in the fight for victory for much of the distance. However, as the transition point approached and later in the classic step discipline, the Swedish representatives managed to break away from all competitors, with Karlsson winning the gold medal, finishing in 53 minutes and 45.2 seconds.

Eiduka started the race in the 28th position and stayed around that position for practically the entire distance, but in the last kilometers she was able to significantly increase her pace and move up a few places. In the final meter sprint, she fought shoulder to shoulder with American Julia Kern and took 23rd place in the photo finish, four minutes and 17.2 seconds behind the winner.

"The classic part just didn't work out. I felt good, but the weather conditions were quite difficult - [the skis] didn't slide or hold, I just had to survive," Eiduka said after the finish.

Eiduka's next start is scheduled for February 12, when at 2:00 p.m. Latvian time she will participate in the 10km freestyle.

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Elsewhere on the Olympic slopes, Latvian Elvis Opmanis recorded a 32nd place finish in the men's downhill. Opmanis was given the starting number 34 in his Olympic debut, and the Latvian completed what is arguably the most difficult downhill course in the world safely and cleanly, finishing 7.63 seconds behind the winner. He managed to overtake four athletes, two of whom fell.

On February 11th at 12:30 Latvian time, the alpine skier will also compete in the super-G, and on February 14th at 11:00 in the first run of the giant slalom.

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