TESERO, Italy — Johannes Klaebo led Norway to victory in the men’s 4x7.5km cross-country relay at the Winter Games on Sunday to win a record ninth career Olympic gold.
The 29-year-old has won four gold medals at these Games and is widely expected to take another two in the men’s team sprint on Wednesday and 50km classic race on Saturday.
Klaebo took over for the final leg with a lead of 12.2 seconds and extended it to 22.2 seconds by the time he crossed the line. France took silver and the bronze went to Italy.
Klaebo’s gold on Sunday puts him ahead of Norwegian cross-country skiers Marit Bjoergen, Bjorn Daehlie and biathlete Ole Einar Bjoerndalen, with whom he shared a previous record.
Norway kept a steady lead for much of the race, which was seen as Klaebo’s easiest path to a gold medal of these Games.
France’s Mathis Desloges, who has taken two silvers so far, pulled his team into medal position during the third leg of the race, while Italy’s Federico Pellegrino overcame Finland in the anchor leg to take bronze on home soil in his last Olympics.
