Mt. Blue High School graduate Emma Charles won the junior women national title in the classic sprint at the U.S. Cross Country Ski Championships on Wednesday in Houghton, Michigan.
Charles’ winning time of 3 minutes, 42.67 seconds in the six-person finals was nearly four seconds faster than runner-up Greta Hansen (3:46.55) of the Minneapolis Ski Club.
Charles, who is from Farmington and graduated from Mt. Blue in June, finished third in her semifinal heat, from which the top three qualified for the finals. Earlier, she took second in her quarterfinal heat.
The junior divisions at the national championships are for U20 and U18 skiers.
At Mt. Blue, Charles won every Class A Nordic skiing state championship race in which she competed. She is currently a freshman on the University of New Hampshire ski team. She reached the quarterfinals of the Nordic Jr. Nationals in March.
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