Norwegian cross-country skiing champion Johannes Høsflot Klæbo became the most decorated Winter Olympian at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. He deserved his new nickname, King Klæbo of Norway.
“I imagined becoming like Petter Northug, perhaps becoming Petter Northug himself, with his steel muscles, his square jaw, and the medals hanging around his neck,” Johannes Hoesflot Klæbo recalled of his boyhood dreams.
With his ninth Olympic gold, he joined three other legendary Norwegian athletes. The win marked his fourth gold medal at Milan Cortina 2026, as he targets history by surpassing the Winter Games gold medal record in his next three events.
************************************
Related: Modern History of Skiing in Norway
************************************
The Norwegian’s latest triumph, gold in the men’s cross-country skiing, his fourth at Milano Cortina 2026, means Klæbo has now won nine gold medals in the Winter Olympics, more than any other athlete in history. But that was not enough! The total gold medals for Klæbo during the Milano Cortina 2026 was six gold medals!
Klæbo has scooped up almost every title available. 15 world titles, 107 World Cup wins – more than double those of the second-place finishers – already make him the most decorated cross-country skier on the planet. He won all six cross-country events at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in 2025.
“This is the first time I have won a 10k skating (freestyle technique) interval start (including the FIS Cross-Country World Cup or at a championship),” Klaebo said. “So, being able to do that here at the Olympics, it’s just amazing, and with the weather and the atmosphere, to kind of have my best day here at the Olympics, it’s special.”
**************************************
Related: 4,000 Years of Skiing in Norway
**************************************
The 29-year-old matched Norwegian compatriots Bjørn Dæhlie, Marit Bjørgen, and Ole Einar Bjørndalen when he won his eighth gold medal on Friday, 13 February, in the men’s 10km interval start free.
He won three golds from PyeongChang 2018 and two at Beijing 2022
With ruthless elegance, Klaebo’s stride seems to consume the snow. His “hops” have been honed through pronounced hip and knee flexion during the ‘leg-swing’ phase and through a superhuman anaerobic capacity.
King Klæbo of Norway, Tor Kjolberg reporting.
Feature image (top) © Geir Owe Fredheim / Team Norway