The performer of the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina ends the golden season with a new triumph
Article by Luminița Paul – Published Monday, March 23, 2026, 2:25 p.m. / Updated Monday, March 23, 2026, 2:25 p.m.
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo (29) capped off an outstanding year by winning the 20km block start freestyle in Lake Placid (USA) on Sunday, March 22, on the final day of the 2025-26 Cross-Country World Cup season. This year he won 6 world titles and 6 Olympic gold medals in Milan Cortina.
As of February 27, 2025, Norwegian Johannes Klaebo won six gold medals out of a possible six at the World Cross-Country Skiing Championships in front of hundreds of thousands of fans in his hometown of Trondheim.
Then, in addition to climbing the top step of the podium six times again at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics – becoming the most decorated Winter Olympic athlete in history – he dominated the World Cup, becoming the first skier to record 100 career individual victories on his way to conquering all the Crystal Globes: overall, sprint and cross-country.
It is the eighth sprint crown and sixth overall title for the Norwegian, but the long-distance title had eluded him until now. With seemingly nothing left to gain or improve in the sport, Klaebo's name transcends the boundaries of his discipline, already being compared to the swimmer Michael Phelpsthe most Olympic medalist in history, with 28 medals at the Summer Games, including 23 gold.
With the sprint title already secured and having suffered a concussion in Drammen on 12 March, Klaebo opted out of Saturday's classic sprint event at Lake Placidwhich not only paved the way for Italy's Federico Pellegrino to win his final World Cup stage, but also meant the Norwegian – who won the 10km split start on Friday – was well rested for Sunday's final.
After heavy snow on Friday and overcast skies on Saturday, light rain greeted the racers on the course at Mount Van Hoevenberg on Sunday. Despite the best snow conditions of the weekend, an exciting course full of technically challenging turns still promised to test the world's best over the 5 laps of 4km.
Johannes Klaebo, winner on the final straight
Johannes Klaebo, winner in the last race of the 2025-2026 World Cup in Lake Placid Photo: Imago Images
Only Harald Oestberg Amundsen (Norway) could catch up with Klaebo at the top of the long standings, and the 2023/24 overall champion led much of the race in an attempt to distance himself from Klaebo and avoid a final sprint between the two.
But Klaebo produced characteristic acceleration on the last of the short climbs before the long descent to the stadium area, but Amundsen somehow managed to stay close to him and moved to the outside entering the final straight, but did not have the energy or speed to overtake his compatriot, finishing 0.8 seconds behind.
“I'm glad the season is overKlaebo said, visibly exhausted.Time for a little rest, but it was the perfect place to end. To be able to crown everything with a victory and the Globe at the end, it's amazing. Even though the weather wasn't the best today, it was really incredible out there“, he added.
“It will be hard to have a better season than this one. I'm going to frame it, put it on the wall and look at it when I'm old“, concluded Johannes Klaebo.
