Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo anchored Team Norway with invincible speed to win in the men’s cross-country skiing 4x7.5km relay Sunday, becoming the winningest Winter Olympian of all time.
Team France came in second at 22.2 seconds behind for silver, while Team Italy came in 47.9 seconds behind to secure bronze. The bronze marked Italy's first cross-country skiing medal during the Milan Cortina Games.
"We were disappointed in Beijing when we got the silver. So, now we're finally back on the top again," Klaebo said. "And for me to be able to win my ninth one here with the team, it's unbelievable."
The 4x7.5km relay was the fourth men's cross-country event contested in Italy, and it was the fourth event in which Klaebo has captured gold, giving him nine total gold medals at the Winter Olympics in his storied career. His gold medal count now surpasses his fellow Norwegians — Marit Bjorgen (cross-country skiing), Ole Einar Bjorndalen (biathlon) and Bjorn Daehlie (cross-country skiing).
Team Norway of Emil Iversen (classic), Martin Loewstroem Nyenget (classic), Einar Hedegart (free), and "King Klaebo" were looking to redeem themselves after coming in 2nd to the ROC at Beijing 2022. They began to lead the pack by the second leg of the race. Nyenget skied to the front of the pack before exchanging to Hedegart, who got the team out front with a 16-second lead ahead of France and Italy. By the time the team passed to Klaebo, he was able to anchor with a nice lead.
In the third and final leg, Team Italy went up against France and Finland. Martino Carollo (free) said he tried to lose as little time as possible while staying close to the Finnish skier. For the Italians, earning the podium in front of the home crowd was a dream come true.
“Two years ago, when I started to think about the home Olympics, seeing the teammates increase their level, the dream became a goal. And today we achieved it,” Federico Pellegrino said.
American Ben Ogden (wearing lucky Team USA relay socks) launched the race with his strong classic technique strides, exchanging at the end of the first leg at the top of the pack. Once Gus Schumacher (classic) got into the race, he made good time on the descent and kept the team in the mix with composure. In leg 3, John Steel Hagenbuch (free) started the race in 5th place and started to lose ground before exchanging to Zak Ketterson (free) who helped the team finish in 6th.
The course froze overnight Saturday, creating better conditions than the women dealt with in their relay on Saturday. Sweden’s Ebba Andersson and several other skiers fell on the same incline where Jessie Diggins was injured.