VAL DI FIEMME, Italy — Johnny Spillane of Steamboat Springs, Colo., became the first American skier to win a gold medal at the Nordic world championships, drawing inspiration from a diabetic teammate's strong performance a week earlier.
Spillane won the Nordic combined sprint Friday to give the United States its first world championship medal since cross-country skiing pioneer Bill Koch earned a bronze in 1982.
Spillane was followed by Ronny Ackermann of Germany and Felix Gottwald of Austria. He erased a 28-second deficit at the start of the cross-country sprint, moved into a tie for fourth place and broke away from the leading group in the final meters.
"I just wanted to go out there and lay it on the line," Spillane said. "I knew there was a chance of a medal, but I wasn't expecting victory."
