Feb. 20 (UPI) — Biathlete Johannes Dale-Skjevdal won Friday’s 15-kilometer mass start for Norway’s 17th gold medal, setting a record for the most ever won by a single nation at a Winter Olympics.
The Norwegians also held the previous mark, with 16 won at the 2022 Winter Olympics. At the time of Dale-Skjevdal’s victory, Norwegians had captured nine silver medals and 10 bronze medals, in addition to their 17 golds. Team USA ranked second, with 27 total gold medals, nine behind Norway’s Olympic-best 36.
Host Italy stood at 26 total medals as of Friday morning. The Norwegians need four more to break their Winter Olympics record of 39, which they set in 2018.
Dale-Skjevdal was the lone biathlete in the men’s field to hit all 20 targets Friday at Anterselva Biathlon Arena in Anterselva, Italy. He clocked a 39:17.1 en route to gold. Fellow Norwegian Sturla Holm Laegreid placed second, 10.5 seconds behind Dale-Skjevdal.
Quentin Fillon Maillet of France won the bronze medal, with a time of 39:42.7. Campbell Wright, the lone American in the 30-man field, placed 29th.
Martin Ponsiluoma of Sweden, who earned silver in the event in 2022, placed 21st. Norway’s Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen, the 2022 bronze medalist, placed fifth. Norwegian Johannes Thingnes Bo, the 2022 gold medalist, did not compete.
Norwegians won three of the last four gold medals in the men’s mass start.
Norwegian skier Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo leads all 2026 Winter Olympians with five gold medals. He earned those from the 10-kilometer + 10-kilometer skiathlon, 10-kilometer interval start free, sprint classic, 4×7.5-kilometer relay and team sprint free.
With his victory in Wednesday’s team sprint free, Klaebo joined American swimming legend Michael Phelps as the only Olympians to earn at least 10 gold medals in their careers.
Klaebo will attempt to win a sixth gold medal when he participates in Saturday’s 50-kilometer mass start.
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