Norway’s Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo continues to make history in Northern Italy.
Klaebo on Saturday completed his clean sweep of the men’s cross-country skiing events, winning his record sixth gold medal of the 2026 Milano Cortina Games.
Klaebo won gold in every single race he entered: the men’s 10-kilometer free, 10km skiathlon, sprint classic, team sprint free, the 7.5km relay and, most recently, the 50-kilometer mass start classic, which he finished with a time of 2:07:07.1.
“It’s unbelievable,” he said after the historic win. “It still feels really good to race, and I’m always looking forward to going out there and fighting for the medal.”
Norwegian Martin Lowestroem Nyenget said he’s in awe of his teammate’s dominance and stamina.
“I’m starting to believe maybe he is a machine,” said Nyenget, who finished second in Saturday’s event. “It’s close to impossible to beat him in the finish.”
Nyenget looked like he might pull off the improbable upset leading into the final stretch of Saturday’s race.
But Klaebo sprinted uphill in Klaebo fashion – a skill that has caused him to go viral a few times now.
Klaebo can sprint uphill on skis faster than most people can run a mile. In the men’s sprint classic final on Feb. 10, Klaebo was clocked hitting a top speed of 11.4 miles per hour, or as fast as a 5:16 mile pace, during the 240-meter ascent near the end of the race.
Klaebo’s six gold medals broke a 46-year record for most golds in a single Winter Games previously set by American speed skater Eric Heiden, who captured five golds at the 1980 Lake Placid Games.
Klaebo joins the elite class of swimmers – Americans Michael Phelps and Mark Spitz and German Kristin Otto – and Belarusian gymnast Vitaly Scherbo as the only athletes to win at least six gold medals in a single Olympics.
Klaebo had already glided his way into the Olympic history books earlier this month when he captured his ninth gold medal in cross-country skiing to set a Winter Games record.
He’ll leave Northern Italy having extended his record to a total of 11 gold medals across three Games.
Klaebo owns the record for most career Winter Olympic wins and has the second-most Olympic gold medals overall. He trails only Phelps, who owns 23.
— with AP
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