Ever Stronger, Ever More Legendary: Johannes Høsflot Klæbo on Track for an Olympic Grand Slam

Johannes Høsflot Klæbo: ever stronger, ever more legendary — on course for an Olympic Grand Slam

Crowned on Friday in the most perilous event of his programme, the 10 km freestyle, Johannes Høsflot Klæbo took his third gold medal at Val di Fiemme — a huge step toward his quest for a six‑for‑six at Milan‑Cortina.

You can pile up 116 World Cup wins, 15 world titles and nine Olympic medals including seven golds and still surprise people. A year after his clean sweep at the Trondheim World Championships, Klæbo arrived at the Milan‑Cortina Games intent on taking everything again.

Many doubted the feat could be repeated. Not least because the individual 10 km skate has long been a thorn in Klæbo’s side. “That made people think it wouldn’t happen,” said Maurice Manificat on Thursday. France coach Thibaut Chêne predicted, “He won’t win the individual.” Even Klaebo himself — usually careful with words — refused to call himself the favourite: “A lot of others have won this year.”

But there was one clear challenger: Einar Hedegart. Most observers had tipped the precocious Norwegian talent for this format, and the race looked headed that way for a long time. Up until the final intermediate, with one kilometre to go, Hedegart led a very high‑level race.

The young prince (24) however cracked on the Olympic stage, and the king of cross‑country exploded him in full flight, dropping him by 15 seconds over the last thousand metres to claim Klæbo’s third title in three races at these Games. A feared finisher in head‑to‑head formats — where he is known for explosive final bursts — Klæbo has now shown he can also dominate individual starts where each skier races alone against the clock.

“One of the toughest races we’ve ever done. Everyone was completely exhausted at the finish,” Klæbo said. “I tried to control the start and then I gave everything at the end.” The champion smiled — understandably.

With this victory, which Martin Fourcade — present in Val di Fiemme — called “a turning point in the history of cross‑country skiing”, Klæbo rockets full speed toward an unprecedented six‑for‑six at Milan‑Cortina. He remained characteristically unflustered: “This distance has been the one I’ve struggled with most, so succeeding here means a lot to me.”

With his eighth Olympic title at age 29, the Norwegian now joins compatriots Marit Bjørgen, Bjørn Dæhlie and Ole Einar Bjørndalen among the most decorated Winter Olympians. “It’s cool to be up there with a lot of great athletes,” he said. He won’t be idle long: the 4 x 7.5 km relay is coming up and there are still the team sprint and the 50 km mass start — the final steps toward his record. “I’m not thinking about it too much. We’ll go again on Sunday and see how it goes.”

In the absence of the Russian team — which had denied him a title in Beijing 2022 — the Norwegian quartet, who placed four athletes in the top five in the individual, are clear favourites. Barring a calamity, the greatest athlete in the sport’s history looks set to sit atop the Winter Olympic pantheon on Sunday night — and two wins away from a legendary sextuple.

(Article by Quentin Coldefy from Val di Fiemme. First part free; rest reserved for subscribers.)