HAYWARD, Wisc. - As snow continues to fall, some of the top athletes in the world are arriving in the northland to battle for a top spot on the podium in Saturday's American Birkebeiner 51 kilomester cross-country ski marathon. Subaru Factory Team stars Ivan Babikov and Abigail Larson will be among them.

Babikov, a native Russian who immigrated to Canada, is the most dominant North American-based skier to contest the Birkie since Subaru Factory Team star Carl Swenson won the race in 1999.

Babikov, named the Russian Rocket by other skiers, has proven his speed and fitness this season with eight victories in USSA SuperTour events and two victories in FIS-US Marathon Cup competitions.

At last weekend's Canadian Keskinada Worldloppet race, Babikov challenged FIS Marathon Cup leader Stanislav Rezac for 50 kilometers only to lose out in the final sprint by less than one second. His second place showing is a tremendous result and shows that Babikov is capable of challenging contenders for final victory at this weekend's American Birkebeiner. Babikov placed sixth at Birkie 2004, just four seconds out of first.

Birkie 2004 champion Gianantonio Zanetel and 2nd place finisher Stanislav Rezac will not be racing Birkie 2005.

Babikov is driven to compete and to win the Birkie in large part to provide for his wife and 2-year-old son who are still in Russia and will remain there until granted immigration rights by Canada.

In the women's American Birkebeiner Abigail Larson hopes to become the first American champion since 2002. A native of Minnesota, Larson has set her sights on peaking at this years Birkie. She finished eighth (third American) in her first Birkie in 2004.

With podium finishes in two events at the 2005 US National Championships and dominating victories in the Noquemanon and Finlandia Marathons, Larson hopes her improved marathon fitness and a "Birkie peak" will allow her to challenge for an American Birkebeiner victory.

The American Birkebeiner is North America's largest and most prestigious cross-country ski marathon. Spanning 51 kilometers from Cable to Hayward, the Birkie is part of the esteemed Worldloppet series of 14 international races, part of the International Ski Federation (FIS) Marathon Cup series of eight races, and part of the American Ski Marathon series of 11 races.

Participants are lured by the challenge of skiing the hills and the flats as well as the opportunity to experience the camaraderie and diverse gathering of cultures from around the world.

Skiers come from 19 foreign countries and nearly 50 of the United States. Aside from the United States, the top five countries represented are Canada, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, and Russia. The top five United States include Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan and Colorado.

The Subaru Factory Team, America's premier cross-country ski team, is comprised of 13 champion athletes, including two Olympians and one national champion. Winners of the American Ski Marathon series 10 years in a row, the team's mission is to use the exposure that their unparalleled racing success brings to show America's snowbound populace how cross-country skiing can maximize their enjoyment of winter.

For more information or to register for the 2005 Subaru American Birkebeiner, Johnson Bank Kortelopet, Prince Haakon 12K, Salomon Elite Sprints, Hayward Chamber of Commerce Citizen Sprints, Century Tel Junior Birkie, Cheqtel Communications 10K, or the Sons of Norway/Swiss Miss Barnebirkie, call 715-634-5025, e-mail birkie@birkie.com, or log on to www.birkie.com.