Feb 22, 2026
3 min read
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo ended his second run at the Milan Cortina Games with a gold medal in the men's 50km cross-country skiing event on Saturday, February 21, at Milano Cortina 2026.
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo finished his final race with gold in the men's 50km cross-country ski race at the Milan Cortina Games - the sixth gold medal for the Norwegian legend in Italy.
Norway's Martin Lövström Nanget, Emil Iverson and Klebo formed a tough trifecta that won the grueling race that lasted more than two hours.Three skiers occupied the podium, with Lövström Nänget 8.9 seconds later, and Iversen third, 30.7 seconds later.
Klaebo surpassed all expectations to become the first Winter Olympian to win six gold medals in a single Games, also surpassing American figure skater Eric Heiden's record of five gold medals in a single Winter Games.Klaebo added his gold in the 50km schooner, men's 4x7.5km relay, men's 10km freestyle, men's classic sprint and men's team sprint freestyle.
It was a test of mental and physical endurance as runners covered six laps around the 8.3 km (5.15 mi) course for a total distance of 31.1 miles.In this race, runners ran faster than all five cross-country races.Conditions at the Tesero Cross Country Stadium were perfect for skiing packed powder.
At the beginning of the race, the goal of the racers was to maintain the momentum during the two-hour race, which was very close for both teams. On lap 3, the Finnish driver Iivo Niskanen and the Norwegian driver Harald Oestberg Amundsen retired. Both were leading at the time and had a chance to win the race.
After about 40 minutes, the Norwegians began to pull ahead as the field dropped on the long climbAt the one-hour mark, Lostrom Nijette, Iversen and Claibo comfortably led the race in the top three.
The Norwegians decided not to change skis at the end of the third lap for a bigger advantage, but risked sliding on the track. Most of the other athletes on the field took the opportunity to change their skis, giving them better grip and fresh wax to go around the track.
With a lead of two minutes, the three skiers in Norwegian red played the long game and went the distance with each other.With a big lead in the last two laps, the race was all about patience as Iversen and Ningit looked at Klaebo to see when he would attack the slope.
The final three went into the final round on the first pair of skis, drawing each other across the course.The pursuit was led by Russian-born individual athlete Savli Korostelev.
In the final minutes of the race, Iversen fell off his back and slipped out of the draft of his teammates.Klaebo and Loewstroem Nienget remained locked together from the final downhill until the decisive climb where Klaebo was high octane.He saved a critical burst of energy to push forward on the final climb with an unstoppable push, as is his wont.
Americans in the field Gus Schumacher finished 13th and Hunter Wonders finished 35th in a field of 61.Ben Ogden withdrew from the race due to illness.He was not the only rider on the podium in the team sprint, as the Italian Federico Pellegrino also did not start the race.
"There's nothing like a 50K to end the Winter Olympics 🤯 This race is no joke," the US Ski Team posted on social media.
