TESERO, ITALY – Team USA captured three gold medals and one bronze in the Para cross-country 10-kilometer individual races Wednesday at the Tesero Cross-Country Stadium in Val di Fiemme, Italy.

Oksana Masters led the women’s sitting race, Sydney Peterson won the women’s standing event, and Jake Adicoff secured victory in the men’s visually impaired race. Kendall Gretsch added a bronze medal in the women’s sitting field as American athletes continued a strong run at the Milano Cortina Paralympic Winter Games.

Athletes raced four laps of a 2.5-kilometer course that featured a significant climb leaving the stadium and technical descents through forested sections of the venue.

Women’s Sitting

Masters delivered a measured performance to win the women’s sitting 10km, managing her effort across the four-lap course before pushing through the final stages.

Starting later in the interval order, Masters focused on staying controlled through the early laps. “I tried to ski patient early,” Masters said. “This course can really punish you if you go out too hard.”

Her splits moved her into contention midway through the race before she increased the pace across the final laps to secure the victory. “My team was telling me my splits at every single place they could, and was literally saying ‘How bad do you want it?’ I wanted to dig deep to get this for Team USA.”

Masters said the conditions and terrain required careful pacing throughout the race. “You had to keep something in reserve for the last lap,” she said. “That climb out of the stadium is long and it comes back around quickly.”

Gretsch remained in the medal fight throughout the race and secured the bronze medal, giving the United States two athletes on the podium.

Gretsch said the tight competition required a disciplined approach through the course’s major climbs.

“It’s such a long race that you have to stay patient,” Gretsch said. “You’re constantly adjusting your pace depending on what the course is giving you. I didn’t think that I was going to be able to get a cross-country medal this week, so this was really exciting. It was extra fun that it was such a tight race.”

Nicole Zaino finished 13th and Erin Martin placed 15th for Team USA.

Men’s Sitting

Representing the United States, Dan Cnossen finished 11th for Team USA and Michael Kneeland placed 25th in the race in his Paralympic debut, continuing to gain experience on the international stage.

Cnossen worked through the four-lap course against a deep field, while Kneeland added another major race to his first Paralympic schedule. For the U.S. men’s sitting group, the event offered both veteran presence and a first Games benchmark on one of the biggest stages in Para Nordic skiing.

Women’s Standing

Peterson delivered one of the closest finishes of the day in the women’s standing race.

Through the opening laps she built a small advantage on the field by maintaining strong climbing speed while carrying momentum through the descents.

Peterson’s lead narrowed late as competitors closed the gap entering the final lap.

“I knew it was going to come down to the end,” she said. “I just focused on staying smooth and skiing my own race.” Peterson held her margin through the final kilometers and crossed the line with the fastest factored time to secure gold.

On winning her first individual Paralympic gold medal Peterson said with a smile, “It’s really cool! I feel like I’ve been second and third a lot, so winning an individual gold is amazing.”

Men’s Standing

Jack Berry represented Team USA in the men’s standing race and finished 12th in his Paralympic debut.

The 10km marked Berry’s final event of the Games, closing his first Paralympic competition with another full effort against an experienced field. For the 18-year-old American, the race added one more step in a debut Games that gave him valuable experience on the sport’s biggest stage.

Men’s Visually Impaired

Adicoff produced one of the strongest performances of the day in the men’s visually impaired race.

Skiing with his guide, Reid Goble (USA), Adicoff established an aggressive pace early in the race and quickly moved ahead of the field. By the midpoint he held a significant advantage and continued extending the lead through the final laps.

“We got a split in the last lap, that we were a minute or something up, and one of the coaches said, ‘relax’, and then he also said, ‘rip them to pieces’, so we were kind of confused.”

He crossed the finish line comfortably ahead of the field to secure the gold medal for Team USA.

Max Nelson also competed in the race for the United States and finished 13th.

With the 10km races complete, the Para Nordic program now shifts to the final cross-country events in Val di Fiemme, including biathlon sprint pursuit, the mixed and open 4×2.5km relays and the men’s and women’s 20km races.