Cross-country skiing superstar Jessie Diggins on why her motivation is at an all-time high ahead of World Cup season

Motivated Diggins welcomes back Therese Johaug

“Ninety-nine percent of my goals have nothing to do with the outcome of races,” Diggins told reporters when they asked about her expectations for the penultimate season ahead of the 2026 Games, especially having claimed the overall World Cup last year.

“When you achieve something, then you have more eyes on you and that does create pressure,” she said. “But at the same time, I have to make sure I detangle my self-worth and who I am and how I show up for my team from the results and the pressure and what maybe other people might expect of me.

“So all I have to expect is that I show up ready to give 100 percent of myself.”

After a standout 2023-24, Diggins said her biggest challenge in the off-season wasn’t finding motivation to start back up again, it was her mandated two-week break from any of her extensive training regimen.

“It was actually harder to stop,” she admitted, laughing. “That was probably a good sign that I’m really not done mentally. … [When I] started training again, I was like, ‘I’m so ready. I’m psyched. I want to do this.’ And I was really motivated in setting process goals for the new season.”

There are external goals, too, Diggins admitted: “I think the ultimate holy grail would be to be part of the four by seven and a half relay [at] worlds to get a medal. That’s something that we’ve been working towards for so, so long.

Team USA has never won an Olympic or World Championships relay medal.

Diggins spent some of her pre-season on snow in New Zealand, alongside teammate Julia Kern and coach Jason Cork. She welcomes the return of four-time Olympic champion Therese Johaug of Norway, the 36-year-old who retired after a glittering Beijing 2022 – and giving birth to her first child in May of 2023.

“I think it’s really, really cool, especially for young girls to see [that] professional women’s sport be done in the way that works for you and your life,” Diggins said of the mesasge Johaug’s return sends.

“So to retire, start a family, come back, or for people to race later into their 30s… I think it’s so cool for young girls to see that you can make sport your own.”