Cross Country Winners at 2023 Snow Australia Awards

By Karen Forman

Lars Young Vik and Ellen Sohol Lie were named Male and Female Cross Country Skiers of the Year at the recent 2023 Snow Australia Awards in Melbourne.  Hugo Hinckfuss was also crowned Junior Cross Country Athlete of the Year, while Alexei Sotskov was a nominee for the Coach of the Year Award, joining athletes and coaches from other snow sports disciplines recognised for their performances and achievements during 2022-23. The Snow Australia Awards in April highlight achievements in high performance sport. Achievements in other aspects of snow sport, such as developing athletes, officials, and volunteers, are recognised at the Snow Australia Community Sports Awards at the end of the domestic winter season. We interviewed our cross country winners about their thoughts on their awards and asked them what they are up to as the Australian season approaches.


Lars Young Vik: Male Cross Country Skier of the Year

Lars, 22, was the best performing Australian male cross country skier at the 2023 World Championship in Planica, Slovenia. His 40th place (out of 134 starters) in the classic sprint was the best individual result by an Australian male since 2007. 

Lars also teamed up with Seve de Campo in the Team Sprint, achieving a highly creditable 18th place and narrowly missing out on a place in the finals.

At the World U23 Championship in Whistler, Canada Lars finished 31st, only a fraction of a second outside the top 30 and the head-to-head finals. He backed this up with a solid 44th place in the 20km Classic.

With his first two top 50 World Cup results under his belt (48th in Falun, 50th in Drammen), Lars is now the highest ranked Australian male cross country skiing athlete for sprints, ranked 167th in the world (up from 470th at start of the season).

Born in Oslo to an Australian mother and a Norwegian father, Lars began skiing and racing in Norway. He was set to join the Australian Team at Falls Creek in 2020 but was restricted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Skiing his first World Cup in 2021, Lars went on to make his Olympic debut in Beijing aged 21 and scored a top 30 result at the 2022 World U23 Championships in Norway.

Lars said it was a great honour to win the Male Cross Country Skier of the Year Award.

“This season definitely had its ups and downs, catching COVID in mid-December and struggling with sickness at World U23's in Canada,” he said.

“Thanks to good training and excellent vibes at the pre-camp in Austria with my good friend and teammate Seve de Campo and coach Alexei, I managed to bounce back and perform at the World Championships in Planica. 

“As a team I think we're moving in the right direction and I'm confident that we are on track for some great results over the next few years! With many young and eager athletes eyeing out the 2025 World Champs in Norway and the 2026 Olympics I'm sure the team's results will only improve over the next couple of years.”


Ellen Sohol Lie: Female Cross Country Skier of the Year

Ellen took a big step up this season to become the highest FIS ranked Australian female cross country skier, up from 730th to 334th in distance and 1217th to 262nd from the start of the season.

At the 2023 World Championship Ellen competed in all four individual events, with her best result being 37th in the 15km Skiathlon and 38th in the 30km Classic. Teaming up with Phoebe Cridland, Ellen also finished 17th in the Team Sprint.

She also made her World Cup debut this season, competing in Lillehammer, Beitostolen and Falun, and scored her first top 50 in the 10km in Falun. Together with Phoebe, Lars and Phillip Bellingham, Ellen was part of Australia’s first World Cup Mixed Relay team, finishing 13th in Falun.

Ellen, who lives in Jar, Akershus, Norway, said she felt honoured to be the 2023 Australian Female Cross Country Skier of the Year.

“There are so many great skiers in Australia, and they all work hard to achieve their goals,” she said.

“This season has been my greatest season ever with debuting in both World Cup and World Championships. I had a rough season last year breaking my leg in February, but there was never an option to not fight my way back. And to all youngsters out there, dream big and work hard, everything is possible!”

Ellen said she planned to spend the coming Australian winter in Norway. “I wish I could go skiing in Australia, but for now I will stick to roller skiing and summer training.”


Alexei Sotskov: Coach of the Year - Cross Country Nominee

Born in St Petersburg, Russia, Alexei coached in the USA for nearly 30 years, both at US Ski Team and college level. 

He has been working with a number of Australia’s top junior skiers since mid-2020 remotely and became the NSWACTXC coach in 2021. Alexi stepped into the role of Australian National Team Coach for the Northern Hemisphere season in 2022-23 and has secured the permanent position for the 2023 season.     

He is now based in Jindabyne during the Australian winter, spending time between the three NSWACTXC training centres of Jindabyne, Canberra and Sydney, while also working with the National Team in Perisher and Falls Creek.

“The success of the coach is always dependent on the success of the team,” he says.

“The Australian XC ski team had one the best seasons in recent history based on the results. World University Games in Lake Placid, NY, USA and FIS World Championship in Planica, Slovenia were two key events for 2022-23 race season.

“Many top 20 results at the Uni Games and very promising individual results at the World Championship set a solid base for the bright future of the team.          

He says the team’s main goal is stay the same: success at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games. 

“This past Northern winter season sent a solid signal that we are on a right pattern,” he said.

“I appreciate the team members for their effort and commitment to the sport. I appreciate Snow Australia for the recognition.”


Hugo Hinckfuss: Cross Country Junior Athlete of the Year

Hugo had a breakthrough result at the 2023 World Junior Championship in Whistler, Canada, with Australia’s first ever top 10 result in the Classic Sprint Qualification.
He was just 2.7 seconds behind the fastest qualifier. Knocked out in the heats Hugo ended up 26th, still posting one of Australia’s best-ever results at a World Juniors.

It was a promising winter for Hugo racing his first season for the University of Colorado. With multiple top 10 results on the NCAA circuit, he also had two very impressive sprint qualifiers at the US Championship, finishing sixth in the classic sprint and fourth in the Freestyle Sprint, before claiming seventh in the classic sprint finals.

Born well away from snow in Brisbane but growing up in Sydney, Hugo, 20, a former The Scots College student represented Australia at the 2020 Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne and the 2022 Olympics in Beijing.

His best international results prior to this season were at the 2022 World Junior Championships in Lygna, Norway, where he finished with two top 30 results (27th in the 30K freestyle and 30th in the 10K classic).

He said it felt “quite good” to win the award for Junior Cross Country Skier of the Year. 
“I think the sport is starting to progress well in Australia, and I'm really hoping to help develop the sport in Australia for years to come,” he said.

“For the upcoming Australian winter, I will spend some time in Boulder, Colorado, where I study, getting some great training with a fantastic team.

“Then I will also spend some time in Norway training with Lars, which I'm super excited about. Fortunately, I will also get to spend some time in Poland to visit my extended family, which I haven't seen in a long time!”

Snow Australia’s Cross Country Skiing Program Director and Coach Education Coordinator, Finn Marsland, says the cross-country awards help shine a light on the sport in which Australia is steadily making its mark internationally.

“It’s been fantastic to see so many athletes improving and achieving PBs in the past two seasons,” he said. “I’m looking forward to seeing further progress as we build towards the 2025 World Championship in Trondheim and the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympics.