The Swedes are kicking butt on snow, and what the Norwegian biathlete said

Veteran sportswriter Richard Deitsch takes an international view of the Olympics.

Discovery is one of the great joys of the Olympics and on Tuesday morning I found myself transfixed by the gruelling dominance of Sweden’s women’s cross-country team. 

At the front of the pack of the women’s sprint classic were a trio of Swedes — Linn Svahn, Jonna Sundling and Maja Dahlqvist. I know very little about what makes a cross-country skier great but it doesn’t take much to identify greatness. These women — and the Norwegians tracking them — were a perfect form of speed and stamina on climbs and flats at the Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium. 

The final was extraordinary, featuring three Swedes, two Norwegians and an American. Sundling was the defending Olympic champion. The crowd was a sea of Swedish yellow and Norwegian blue. I felt as if I were on the snow with all of them. 

The skiers climbed up the final hill and then to the finishing straight to decide gold, silver and bronze. The overhead shots of the skiers highlighted just how insanely fast on the snow these women were travelling. Exclaimed Duane Dell'Oca, the lead commentator working for the Olympic Broadcasting Service: “Svahn holding on, she swings wide, slingshots forward, skating with swagger, straight toward sporting immortality. She’s going to beat the world champion! She’s going to beat the Olympic champion! Linn Svahn is going to achieve the unthinkable and Sweden will secure the 1-2-3!”

The final times: Svahn (four minutes 03.05 seconds), Sundling (4:04.64), and Dahlqvist (4:07.88). It was the first time Sweden had three female athletes on the podium in the same event and the first podium sweep in any sport at the Games. The Swedish women’s cross-country