Classy moment Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo helps rival Einar Hedegart in 'pain' after clinching eighth Olympic gold medal in 10km event

All-conquering cross-country great Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo stormed to yet another gold medal on Friday - his third at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, and his eighth overall. After crossing the line five seconds ahead of France's Mathis Desloges in the 10km interval start free, Klaebo came to the aid of Einar Hedegart, as TNT Sports expert Scott Dixon gave insight into the pain he was feeling.

While Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo could have been revelling in the excitement of clinching an eighth Olympic gold medal on Friday, he instead stayed at the finish line and came to the aid of his compatriot Einar Hedegart.

Klaebo, once again, showcased his cross-country dominance as he powered to a third gold medal at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in the 10km interval start free.

He finished five seconds ahead of Frenchman Mathis Desloges, while Hedegart claimed bronze.

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And upon crossing the line, Klaebo helped his fellow countryman Hedegart, who was left crumpled on the floor in physical exhaustion, congratulating him and helping to take off his skis.

TNT Sports expert and former World Cup biathlete Scott Dixon gave insight into the physical pain athletes experience upon crossing the line.

"A gold medal once again to Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, who saunters over to congratulate his closest rival, who gave everything, but had nothing left on that final kilometre," he said.

"There, Klaebo respectfully helping him take off his skis, because the pain - you just want to wriggle about on the floor until the pain subsides."

Watch the UTTER exhaustion of Klaebo behind the scenes after latest gold

Video credit: TNT Sports

Hedegart was projected to challenge Klaebo for top spot, and largely matched his rival for much of the race, but the eight-time Olympic champion's strong finish proved the difference - as the 29-year-old continues to showcase his superior physical qualities in the gruelling event.

As Klaebo came to assist his rival, Dixon reflected on comparable scenes in which Hedegart acted similarly.

"Klaebo comes over to congratulate him, but this is a similar scene to what we saw at the World Cup," he said. "Hedegart went over to the guy who came second by just a fraction. Getting the skis off for him, so he can really suffer in peace."

Dixon identified a key reason why Hedegart was particularly physically drained following the finish - and said it was not solely down to the fact the Norwegian primarily competes in biathlon.

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"Biathlon, of course, is different," Dixon said. "You have a rifle on your back, you stop, shoot targets. If you miss, you have a time penalty. In this, you get going from the beginning, and you don't stop until you cross that line. You suffer through every moment of that.

"That's not actually the reason. The reason for his demise at the end was pacing. If you look at Klaebo, in the early stages of the race, he was seven seconds back off the leader, but he won by a significant margin. He paced it beautifully.

"Hedegart was the fastest at every single checkpoint, and then, at the end, just crashed. He just didn't pace it quite right.

"That combined with the fact the snow got slushier as the race went on. There were some unbelievable crashes in this race."

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Video credit: TNT Sports

The difficulties of navigating the 10km course were also on display when Rakan Alireza of Saudi Arabia lost his right ski and broke his pole on the same side.

He was tended to with new equipment, and wound up finishing 109th on the course, as a victim of one of many accidents during Friday's action.

"A ski binding broken, a ski pole broken," said TNT Sports commentator Ian Woods as he watched Alireza try to sort his gear out.

"He is being given one of the support staff's skis, and someone has kindly loaned him a ski pole."

Watch: Broken binding, broken pole - but help is at hand for unlucky skier

Video credit: TNT Sports

'It means a lot'

Klaebo was delighted to claim his first-ever Olympic gold in the 10km interval start, a feat which saw him make Winter Olympics history.

"It means a lot," he told TNT Sports. "This is my first time winning a 10km interval start, so being able to do that here at the Olympics is just amazing and with the weather, atmosphere, it’s just special.

"When you start early, you just kind of fight with yourself, and then you cross the finish line, it’s all about waiting. Luckily, I was able to see people losing a little bit at the end, and seeing I’m first is just crazy."

Klaebo aligned himself with Bjorn Daehlie, Marit Bjorgen, both cross-country skiers, and biathlete Ole Einar Bjorndalen by winning his eighth gold medal, the joint-highest tally of any Winter Olympic athlete.

It took his tally of Olympic medals to 10, having picked up a silver in the 4x10km relay and bronze in the 15km classic in Beijing.

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