Cross‑country star Johannes Høsflot Klæbo — Thanks to grandpa to the greatest Winter Olympian

Johannes Høsflot Klæbo — thanks to grandpa to the greatest Winter Olympian

Stand: 15 February 2026

Johannes Høsflot Klæbo is not only the greatest cross‑country skier of all time, he is now also the most successful Winter Olympian in history. The 29‑year‑old secured that distinction on Sunday afternoon (15 Feb 2026) when he won gold with Norway's 4×7.5 km relay at the Milan‑Cortina Winter Olympics, giving him nine Olympic gold medals.

Klæbo's ninth gold places him ahead of Norway's Marit Björgen and biathlete Ole Einar Bjørndalen as well as Norway's Bjørn Dæhlie — each of whom had eight Olympic titles. Klæbo achieved his record in just eight years and three Winter Games.

Thanks to grandpa

Klæbo himself credits a large part of his success to his grandfather, Kare Høsflot. "Without him I am not sure I would have been able to perform at this level all these years," Klæbo says. When Johannes was two years old his grandfather gave him a pair of skis for Christmas — and the boy ran around the living room on them. From that moment the desire to become the best cross‑country skier in the world grew, with his grandfather always by his side. Klæbo never called him "coach", he always said "grandpa".

A remarkable career

Klæbo raced junior events until 2016 and won his first World Cup race in 2017 at age 20 in Otepää. Since then his World Cup tally has grown to 107 victories and he has claimed the overall World Cup five times. In addition he has won 15 world championship titles and — now — nine Olympic gold medals. His Olympic success began in 2018 with wins in the sprint, team sprint and relay; he added two more golds in Beijing and continued to dominate in Tesero and at Milan‑Cortina.

A family sacrifice

Klæbo's grandfather Kare even postponed chemotherapy in spring after a prostate cancer diagnosis in the summer of 2019 so he could continue to support his grandson during the winter season. He later beat the illness and returned to celebrate Klæbo's ninth Olympic gold with him — medals that Klæbo says are, in part, also his grandfather's.

A brief retirement and return

In 2023 Klæbo shocked the sport by announcing his retirement from the Norwegian national team to help a federation in financial difficulties reduce costs and allow funds to be redirected to other athletes. The break was short; athlete and federation quickly reached an agreement and Klæbo returned to competition.

Records and context

With nine Olympic golds Klæbo leads the list of Winter Olympic gold medallists, but in total medals he still trails Marit Björgen (15 total medals to Klæbo's 11). Across both Winter and Summer Games the all‑time leader remains US swimmer Michael Phelps with 28 Olympic medals, 23 of them gold.

Klæbo has redefined cross‑country technique and is widely regarded as a versatile athlete able to win sprints and distance races alike — a status that the Swiss newspaper Tages‑Anzeiger once summed up by calling him an "all‑rounder of cross‑country skiing." His record at Milan‑Cortina 2026 and his long list of World Cup and world championship victories underline that reputation.

Further reading and video

The article links to Sportschau videos covering Klæbo's Olympic record and the men's relay finish, plus background pieces on the greatest Winter Olympians and other highlights from Milan‑Cortina 2026.