Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo finished his final race at the Milan Cortina Games with gold in the men’s cross-country skiing 50km race — a record-breaking sixth gold medal for the legendary Norwegian in Italy.
Norway’s Martin Loewstroem Nyenget, Emil Iversen, and Klaebo formed a tenacious trifecta that triumphed in the grueling event that lasted over two hours. The three skiers swept the podium, with Loewstroem Nyenget 8.9 seconds behind, and Iversen in 3rd at 30. 7 seconds behind.
Klaebo surpassed all expectations to become the first Winter Olympian to win six gold medals in a single Games, also beating U.S. speed skater Eric Heiden’s record of five gold medals at a single Winter Games. Klaebo adds his 50km gold to the skiathlon, men’s 4x7.5km relay, men’s 10km free, men’s sprint classic, and men’s team sprint free.
It was a test of mental and physical fortitude as the athletes skied six laps around an 8.3km (5.15-mile) course for a total distance of 31.1 miles. In this race, the athletes covered more ground than all five Olympic cross-country races combined. The conditions at the Tesero Cross-Country Stadium were good for cross-country skiing with packed powder.
The field started off close together as athletes aimed to conserve energy in the two-hour race. In Lap 3, Iivo Niskanen of Finland and Harald Oestberg Amundsen of Norway pulled out. Both were at the front of the pack at the time and had podium chances in the race.
About 40 minutes in, the Norwegians started to pull ahead as the field fell off in the long climb. At the one-hour mark, Loewstroem Nyenget, Iversen, and Klaebo led the race comfortably in the top three positions.
The Norwegians decided not to change skis at the end of Lap 3 for a greater lead but risked slipping on the course. Most of the other athletes on the field took the chance to change their skis, which gives them better grip and fresh wax to go around the course.
With a two-minute lead, the three skiers wearing Norwegian red played the long game and went stride for stride with each other. With the massive lead in the last two laps, the race was all about patience as Iversen and Nyenget eyed Klaebo to see when he would attack the incline.
The final three went into the last lap on their original pair of skis, drafting off each other throughout the course. Leading the chase was Individual Neutral Athlete Savelii Korostelev, born in Russia.
In the final minutes of the race, Iversen dropped off the back and slipped out of his teammates draft. Klaebo and Loewstroem Nyenget remained locked together from the final downhill into the decisive climb where Klaebo went high-octane. He saved a critical burst of energy to pull ahead on the final uphill with an unstoppable push, as he is wont to do.
The Americans in the field were Gus Schumacher who finished 13th and Hunter Wonders who finished 35th out of a field of 61. Ben Ogden pulled out of the race due to sickness. He wasn’t the only racer from the team sprint podium, as Italy’s Federico Pellegrino also did not start the race.
"Nothing quite like a 50k to wrap up the Olympic Winter Games 🤯 that race is NO joke," the U.S. Ski Team wrote on social media.