Inside the booth with Chad Salmela and Kikkan Randall, NBC Olympic cross country ski analysts

Nordic Nation

In this episode, we’ve got Chad Salmela and Kikkan Randall on to discuss the experience of calling the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games, live from a booth in Stamford, CT. The duo worked as cross country analysts, alongside long-time NBC play-by-play announcer Steve Schlanger. While Chad is a veteran in the role, this was Kikkan’s first Olympics inside the booth.

During this conversation, Kikkan and Chad field a variety of questions on their experience – everything from staying fresh while calling races in the middle of the night for two weeks straight, to maintaining professional composure while watching your former teammates and long-time friends win Olympic medals - or come up short - and even, why are you suddenly pronouncing the Norwegian distance champion’s name “You-haug”?

Full of insights and laughs, this conversation was a treat, and it’s clear that both Chad and Kikkan are deeply invested in growing and serving the cross country ski community in the US.

Thanks for listening, and thanks to this week’s podcast sponsors Boulder Nordic Sport and New Moon Ski & Bike.