Latvian athletes Kitija Auziņa, Samanta Krampe, and Linda Kaparkalēja failed to advance past the qualifying rounds in the women's sprint at the Olympic Games.
In the Olympic sprint qualification for cross-country skiing, Latvian skiers Kitija Auziņa, Samanta Krampe, and Linda Kaparkalēja participated with Auziņa achieving the highest rank among them at 71st place. Krampe came in 78th while Kaparkalēja faced a particularly tough debut, struggling with balance that nearly led to a fall, ultimately finishing in 84th place out of 89 competitors. This performance was disappointing, especially for Kaparkalēja as she had aimed for a stronger showing in her first Olympics.
The qualifying rounds showcased some outstanding performances, particularly from Sweden's Linna Svana, who clocked the fastest time of three minutes and 36.21 seconds. Auziņa finished 39.82 seconds behind and Krampe was 46.60 seconds off the leading pace, while Kaparkalēja lagged behind by 51.41 seconds. The close competition in the women's event highlights the high level of skill among international competitors.
In the men's qualification, the results were intensely competitive, with the top 30 racers finishing within a narrow margin of 11.36 seconds, led by Norway's Johannes Klæbo who finished in three minutes and 7.37 seconds. Raimo Vīgants was the best-performing Latvian in the men's event, finishing just 18.89 seconds behind the leader, whereas Lauris Kaparkalējs placed four positions lower, indicating significant challenges faced by the Latvian team against a strong international backdrop.
