Crosscountry-Norway's Klaebo dominates historic Games marked by viral moments

TESERO, Italy, Feb 22 : Norway’s Johannes Klaebo stamped his authority on sport while Sweden’s women were nearly unstoppable and a runaway dog somehow stole the biggest headline of all in a historic - and sometimes viral - cross-country programme at the Milano Cortina Olympics.  

Klaebo, 29, swept all six men’s cross-country skiing events, becoming the first athlete to claim six gold medals at a single Winter Games. The triumphs lifted his career tally to 11 golds, a record for the Winter Olympics, and the most behind U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps, who has 23. 

“He’s the best skier in the world. I will try to just do the same, maybe one day,” said France’s Mathis Desloges, who heads home with three silver medals.

"King Klaebo," as he has come to be known, outpaced his rivals by commanding margins in almost every race and briefly set social media alight when he charged up a brutal final climb on his skis, one of several surges that defined his Games.

"It's hard to find the words. It's unbelievable," he said at the end of his final event. "Even though I've been nervous at some of the competitions, it still feels really good to race, and I'm always looking forward to going out there, fighting for the medals."

The United States men also made history, winning two medals, their first in 50 years and the most they have ever claimed at a single Olympics, signalling what could be a new era of American prominence in the sport. Ben Ogden took silver in the men’s classic sprint before adding another alongside teammate Gus Schumacher in the team sprint.

"This era started a while ago, but it's cool to prove it at the Olympics," said Schumacher. 

SWEDISH DOMINATION

Sweden's women also nearly swept all gold medals, with the exception of the