Alexey Poltoranin


Alexey Yurevich Poltoranin is a Kazakh cross-country skier who has competed at the international senior level since 2004. He has three World Cup wins, one in 2010 and two in 2013. In the 2013 World Championship in Val di Fiemme he won two bronze medals. Most of his best results are in the classic technique.
At the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2019 Poltoranin was one of five athletes caught doping by Bundeskriminalamt in a police raid in Seefeld, Austria. He was arrested before the start of the 15 kilometre classical race. He admitted to using blood doping.
His wife is biathlete Olga Poltoranina.

Athletic career

World Championships and Olympics

Poltoranin competed at the 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics, the World Ski Championships in 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2013.
Poltoranin finished fifth in both the individual and team sprint at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
In the 2013 World Championship in Val di Fiemme, Poltoranin won two bronze medals. On the first day, Poltoranin competed in the classic sprint where he qualified to the semifinals, but he broke his ski poles at the start. On the next day, Alexey Poltoranin and Nikolay Chebotko won bronze at the men's team sprint. On the last day of the championship, he took bronze in the men's 50 km classic and finished after Johan Olsson and Dario Cologna. His other World Championship results include sixth in the team sprint in 2011 and seventh places at the 4×10 km relay in 2007 and the team sprint in 2009.

World Cup

The 2004/05 season was Alexey Poltoranin's first in the World Cup. First World Cup stage, where he competed, was 4×10 relay in Gaellivare in 2004, however he competed only in two races this season. Poltoranin claimed his first World Cup victory at the 15 kilometer classic race at Davos in 2010 and took that victory ahead of Alexander Legkov and Lukas Bauer. For Kazakhstan, the victory of Poltoranin was the first win since March 1998 when Vladimir Smirnov won the 30 km in Lahti. In the 2011–12 season, he made only one victory, when he won Nordic opening's 15 km classical handicap in Kuusamo. On December 17, 2011, he placed third at 15 kilometer classic in Rogla.
The 2013–14 season was more successful for Poltoranin, than previous years. He began his world cup run on November 11, 2012 in Gällivare, where he reached his first season podium finishing second in 15 km freestyle race. On December 2, 2012, he took third at Nordic Opening's 15 km classical handicap start in Kuusamo crossing the line 3.4 seconds behind Petter Northug. He finished Nordic Opening 3rd overall. Poltoranin won his first ever Tour de Ski stage in the 5 km classic individual in Toblach as Petter Northug finished second to maintain his overall lead. He also won stage 6 in Val di Fiemme and finished 11th overall in general classification. On January 19, 2013, Poltoranin won the men's 15-kilometre classical-style mass start race in a sprint finish, clocking 37 minutes, 11.6 seconds to beat Russia's Alexander Bessmertnykh by.01 seconds. On February 6, 2013, he won 1.5 k classic sprint in Davos. In the final run in Poltoranin coasted in comfortably with a time of 3:25.7, while Cologna narrowly out-sprinted Pellegrino for a second-place finish to please the home crowd. This was Poltoranin's first sprint victory on the World Cup. He placed second in last two stages of the season in Lahti and Drammen, where in both races was defeated by Petter Northug. Poltoranin finished 2012–13 World Cup season 4th overall with 995 points.

World Cup results

All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation.

Season standings

Individual podiums

No.SeasonDateLocationRaceLevelPlace
1 2010–11 26 November 2010 Kuusamo, Finland1.4 km Sprint CStage World Cup2nd
2 2010–11 11 December 2010 Davos, Switzerland15 km Individual CWorld Cup1st
32011–1227 November 2011 Kuusamo, Finland15 km Pursuit CStage World Cup1st
42011–1217 December 2011 Rogla, Slovenia15 km Mass Start CWorld Cup3rd
5 2012–13 24 November 2012 Gällivare, Sweden15 km Individual FWorld Cup2nd
6 2012–13 30 November
– 2 December 2012		 Nordic OpeningOverall StandingsWorld Cup3rd
7 2012–13 4 January 2013 Toblach, Italy5 km Individual CStage World Cup1st
8 2012–13 5 January 2013 Val di Fiemme, Italy15 km Mass Start CStage World Cup1st
9 2012–13 19 January 2013 La Clusaz, France15 km Mass Start CWorld Cup1st
10 2012–13 16 February 2013 Davos, Switzerland1.5 km Sprint CWorld Cup1st
11 2012–13 10 March 2013 Lahti, Finland15 km Individual CWorld Cup2nd
12 2012–13 13 March 2013 Drammen, Norway1.3 km Sprint CWorld Cup2nd
13 2013–14 7 December 2013 Lillehammer, Norway15 km Individual CWorld Cup2nd
14 2013–14 21 December 2013 Asiago, Italy1.65 km Sprint CWorld Cup2nd
15 2013–14 1 January 2014 Lenzerheide, Switzerland15 km Mass Start CStage World Cup1st
16 2013–14 19 January 2014 Szklarska Poręba, Poland15 km Mass Start CWorld Cup3rd
17 2014–15 7 December 2014 Lillehammer, Norway15 km Pursuit CStage World Cup2nd
18 2014–15 7 January 2015 Toblach, Italy10 km Individual CStage World Cup1st
19 2014–15 10 January 2015 Val di Fiemme, Italy15 km Mass Start CStage World Cup2nd
20 2014–15 8 March 2015 Lahti, Finland15 km Individual CWorld Cup2nd
21 2015–16 5 January 2016 Oberstdorf, Germany1.2 km Sprint CStage World Cup3rd
22 2015–16 6 January 2016 Oberstdorf, Germany15 km Mass Start CStage World Cup1st
23 2015–16 9 January 2016 Val di Fiemme, Italy15 km Mass Start CStage World Cup3rd
24 2017–18 17 December 2017 Toblach, Italy15 km Pursuit CWorld Cup3rd
25 2017–18 31 December 2017 Lenzerheide, Switzerland15 km Individual CStage World Cup2nd
26 2017–18 6 January 2018 Val di Fiemme, Italy15 km Mass Start CStage World Cup1st
27 2017–18 21 January 2018 Planica, Slovenia15 km Individual CWorld Cup1st

Team podiums

No.SeasonDateLocationRaceLevelPlaceTeammate
1 2013–14 22 December 2013 Asiago, Italy6 x 1.65 km Team Sprint CWorld Cup2ndChebotko

World Championship results

Year Age 15 km
individual		 30 km
skiathlon 		50 km
mass start		 Sprint 4 × 10 km
relay 		Team
sprint
200719—32—177—
2009211649—45107
20112331———136
201325——311133
201527—2173513—
2017297———917

Other career highlights

;FIS Nordic Junior World Ski Championships Medals
;FIS Nordic Under 23 World Ski Championships Medals
;Asian Winter Games
;Team World Cup podiums