Norway’s Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo made Winter Olympic history on Saturday by winning the men’s 50km classic cross-country race at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, leading a Norwegian podium sweep.
The 29-year-old claimed his sixth gold medal at these Games, the most by any athlete at a single Winter Olympics. He broke the previous record of five golds set by American speed skater Eric Heiden in 1980.
It was Klaebo’s 11th Olympic gold overall, placing him second on the all-time list behind U.S. swimming great Michael Phelps, who won 23.
“It’s unbelievable,” Klaebo said. “We knew it was possible, but it’s hard to describe.”
Klaebo pulled away on the final climb after teammate Martin Loewstroem Nyenget set the early pace. Nyenget won silver, finishing 8.9 seconds behind, while Emil Iversen took bronze. France’s Theo Schely finished fourth, nearly three minutes back.
Despite a comfortable win, Klaebo collapsed at the finish line in exhaustion after dominating all six men’s cross-country events at these Games.
Norway’s Harald Oestberg Amundsen and Finland’s Iivo Niskanen withdrew mid-race due to illness. Several others, including Italy’s Federico Pellegrino and American Ben Ogden, did not start for the same reason.
Canada Prepares for Hockey Final Canada geared up for the men’s ice hockey gold-medal match against the United States with early-morning bar openings across several provinces. Ontario Premier Doug Ford and British Columbia Premier David Eby approved early alcohol sales to allow fans to watch the final live from Milan.
The match marks the first Olympic men’s hockey final between Canada and the U.S. since 2010, when Canada won gold on Sidney Crosby’s overtime goal.
Curling: Gold, Silver and Bronze for Canada Canada also enjoyed success on the curling ice. Brad Jacobs led Canada to men’s curling gold with a 9–6 win over Britain, securing the country’s fourth men’s curling gold and seventh overall at the Winter Olympics.
In women’s curling, Canada beat the United States 10–7 to claim bronze, as skip Rachel Homan won her first Olympic medal after previous disappointments.
The women’s gold medal match will be contested between Sweden and Switzerland on Sunday.
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