As the world watches the Olympics, Alaska gets a special spotlight as skier Scott Patterson of Alaska finishes in 8th place in cross-country skiing.
The last American to finish that high in this competition was back in 1976 when Bill Koch won the silver. For Scott Patterson it was a success for him, as well as his Anchorage ski team--The Alaska Pacific University elite ski club.
His goal was to finish in the top ten and he was only 33 seconds behind the first place winner, Alexander Bulshunov of Russia. The race was cut from 50 kilometers to 28 kilometers, due to high winds and bad track conditions.
This was Scott's last event in the Beijing Olympics but he doesn't head home to Alaska just yet. He is headed next to Finland for another skiing competition. He certainly finished his 2022 Olympic career on a high.
Photo: AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino
