On the women's side, Maja Dahlqvist won ahead of sprint queen Jonna Sundling.
That the two stars would dominate was not unexpected.
However, it was Grahn who would defeat Anger, second in the overall World Cup and third in the Sprint Cup last season.
“Incredibly good skis”
The Mora rider was sharper in the sprint.
I felt like I had incredibly good skis, so I just had to keep going. And then on the run I felt strong. It was a small victory in the vallaboden that made it a little easier, but fun, says Grahn, who has won World Cup gold at both junior and U23 level.
Edvin Anger on being defeated:
I had to work a little today and couldn't be completely relaxed in the ride. A good finisher. Anton did well, took steps during the summer. It's sad for me that everything other than a win is not approved. But that's something positive too. But now is not when I'm going to be at my best, he says.
Veteran Calle Halfvarsson had a tough day and was eliminated in the quarterfinals.
"It feels like it's just sluggish. I feel alert, but my body isn't responding," he says.
“Beyond expectations”
Maja Dahlqvist, Falun-Borlänge, won the women's final by a margin of two tenths to Jonna Sundling, the sprint queen who has won three straight World Cup gold medals and Olympic gold in 2022.
It was beyond expectations. I'm very happy that I also took home the prologue. I don't remember the last time I won a prologue. It's something I've been training for, to be better from the start and not grow into it. A good result, says Dahlqvist.
Frida Karlsson says she wants to focus a little more on sprinting, but had no luck in her debut. She was eliminated in the quarterfinals.
"I thought I wanted to go hard from the start, but I'm a little too slow. I have to practice at the start if I'm going to keep sprinting. There probably won't be a sprint in Ruka," she tells SVT.
The Swedish premiere continues with 10 kilometers classic on Saturday and 10 kilometers freestyle on Sunday. The World Cup premiere in Ruka, Finland, will be held next weekend.
