FasterSkier’s coverage of this week’s FIS World Championships stands as a proud tribute to an icon of American Skiing, Marty Hall, who has generously supported our coverage of international cross country ski events. To learn more about Marty and Kathy Hall’s A Hall Mark of Excellence Award, please contact info@fasterskier.com. We’ll miss you, Marty.
Some day in the future, some other skier will do what Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo just did . . . and when they do, that skier will be hailed as the greatest skier of all time. Until then, that label should only be applied to Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo: all six World Championship events, all six World Championship gold medals. Sprint, Skiathlon, Team Sprint, 10 k Classic, Team Relay, and 50 k Freestyle: Klaebo spent a glorious week with his superiority on magnificent display in front of a thrilled and vociferous hometown crowd. In the final marathon event of these championships, Klaebo withstood the hottest pace and sternest attacks of his rivals and teammates; none were able to crack him. He faced a final push from William Poromaa (SWE), but in the end, no one had an answer for Klaebo’s finishing sprint. He rushed down the final straightaway, finishing with enough of a gap to pause in apparent disbelief as he crossed the line for his sixth win in Trondheim, his boldest step into true skiing immortality. It was an incredible thing to behold.
Klaebo seems to have thought so, too . . .
“It’s crazy,” he said in post-race interviews. “This is way more than I expected or dreamed of. It’s unbelievable.”
Injury, illness, exhaustion, tactical errors, training mistakes, equipment failure, effects of climate: that’s only the beginning of a list of things that could have interrupted Klaebo’s unlikely path to the winning of six gold medals at these World Championships. Not only would Klaebo be required to make a lengthy series of perfect steps on this journey, but the stars would need to align above him as well. When an athlete is the very best his sport has ever seen, the otherwise rare alignment of stars begins to seem commonplace.
“I’ve been working so hard to just be here and be in my best shape,” he said. “Managing that—and winning six out of six here—it’s just crazy. I don’t have any words.”
If anyone continued to wonder whether Klaebo is the best cross country skier of all time, all those questions were answered today in Trondheim.
Men’s 50 k Freestyle
Sun in the sky, shadows on the snow—after a week of coastal Norway’s fiercest atmospheric offerings, a Trondheim morning finally dawned clear. Time to race, time to fly, time to make history. What Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo (NOR) wanted to do today in Trondheim—cross the finish line first in the World Championship 50 k—he’d already done four years ago in Oberstdorf, Germany. Of course, diehard ski fans will remember how, on that day, he was disqualified for obstructing Alexander Bolshunov (RUS) in the final meters of that race. Emil Iversen (NOR) was awarded the gold medal; Bolshunov (who suffered a broken pole in the conflagration) crossed the line behind Iversen for silver. Klaebo’s team protested the jury decision; a protest that was dutifully looked into and officially denied. It was a regrettable mess—one that Klaebo seems eager (albeit discreetly) to rectify. Klaebo almost shook this 50 k monkey off his back two years ago in Planica, Slovenia with his silver medal performance behind his countryman, Paal Golberg, a podium appearance that would’ve been a career-defining achievement for any mere mortal. But Klaebo is no mere mortal, and his résumé won’t be complete with any medal other than gold. And if he can’t get back his DQ’d 50 k win from Oberstdorf, then he’ll just have to settle for a win in 2025 in Trondheim.
Klaebo also seems eager (albeit discreetly) to establish another record that no other skier—man or woman—has approached. Winning today’s 50 k would award Klaebo his sixth gold medal of these World Championships. Only the legendary Yelena Valbe (RUS) had ever swept a World Championship event card; that was in 1997 (also hosted in Trondheim) when she won all five events . With the 2025 World Championships being six events (five of which Klaebo has already won), Klaebo has the opportunity to set a new standard, while also becoming only the second man to win both the Sprint and 50 k events (after his countryman, Petter Northug).
Only a day ago, Klaebo cheekily predicted that the 50 k would be won in a sprint by Sweden’s Willim Poromaa. It may be that Klaebo was simply messing with the media (in response to a direct request for a prediction), or it may have been that he was trying to deflect attention from his own presence in the field. Granted, it would be convenient for Klaebo if he were able to go unnoticed for at least a few of the upcoming 50 kilometers. Good luck with that, Johannes . . .
But Klaebo’s rivals weren’t willing to award him a sixth gold medal just yet. There were 50 grueling kilometers to race, and a whole host of contenders who would like nothing better than to spoil Klaebo’s date with destiny. Many of those contenders would be Klaebo’s own Norwegian teammates.
The course in Trondheim—six laps of an 8.3 kilometer loop—offered slow conditions and variable snow. Klaebo, Simen Hegstad Krueger, Martin Loewstroem Nyenget, and Harald Oestberg Amundsen led the field out of the stadium. By 15 kilometers, the field had begun to dwindle as the pacings of Mika Vermeulen (AUT) and Poromaa whittled the lead group down to 20. Gus Schumacher (USA) and Kevin Bolger (USA) found themselves on the wrong side of the gap. Even the defending World Champion—Paal Golberg (NOR)—was struggling visibly at the back of the lead group. Krueger came to the front to keep the pace from fading, along with Vermeulen and Remi Lindholm (FIN) while Klaebo continued to pick a line that differed from the leaders, consistently picking the shady side of the track. If Klaebo needed to make a move forward, he’d put himself in position with open ground to cross.
The field went through the halfway mark with none of the leaders changing skis, forging ahead into the remaining kilometers as Andrew Musgrave (GBR) and Hugo Lapalus (FRA) began to wobble. Amundsen pressed the pace, followed by his Norwegian teammates and Sweden’s Poromaa. That became the five-man lead group, and the pace ratcheted up to a degree that made it all but impossible for anyone else to come across the gap. Musgrave gave chase, but Team Norway was on the throttle.
All the leaders stopped for a ski exchange at 33 kilometers. Five contenders at the front; two laps to go. No real “attack” had come yet, though it should come soon. Merely keeping the pace high just isn’t enough. Noted commentator, Northug, had criticized the World Championship field earlier in the week for failing to attack Klaebo during the mass start Skiathlon. With 10 kilometers remaining in today’s 50 k, the pace-makers had still not succeeded in shedding Klaebo. Amundsen continued to set the pace at the front while Klaebo continued to measure his effort, weaving through the other skiers to maintain a defensible position. He dropped back slightly from time to time, but his always-efficient technique made it difficult to determine whether or not he was near a breaking point.
One lap to go—8.3 kilometers—and the leaders knew they had only one more chance to shed Klaebo on the climb. Northug would’ve called for a decisive move: shed the sprinter, or deliver him the gold medal. Northug should know: he was the kind of sprinter who sat in and sprinted to wins in numerous Distance races. Having spent a few kilometers on Klaebo’s tails, Krueger finally pushed to the front to see if he could make something happen.
Ski racing at these distances is a cruel machine. Up the final hill, Amundsen was the first to crack. Klaebo maneuvered around him, setting off in pursuit of Krueger, Nyenget, and Poromaa. Four men for the medals . . .
Klaebo glided to the front to clog the course on a short, steep pitch of mashed-potato-snow only a few kilometers from the finish line. The other leaders were forced to find wider lines around him, led by Nyenget who showed his hand perhaps earlier than he would’ve hoped. Nyenget’s effort quickly devolved into disaster as he tumbled in soft snow on the final pass through the stadium. Just like that, Nyenget was out of contention. Klaebo, Poromaa, and Krueger skied on without him.
In the half lap remaining, Krueger and Poromaa repeatedly surged to the front only to find themselves overtaken by Klaebo who once again clogged the trail on the uphills. Poromaa made it to the very top of the final lap with the lead, but his efforts had never managed to shake Klaebo. Klaebo may have “predicted” that Poromaa would win this 50 k by a boot throw . . . but it’s obvious that Klaebo never believed his own prediction. This is the best sprinter in the world. If the field fails to drop him, then he wins. The crowd knows this, Poromaa knows this, Klaebo knows this. And all were witness to perhaps the greatest win in the history of the sport as Klaebo skipped around Poromaa on the final downhill, eased his way around the treacherous finishing curve one last time, and briefly unleashed his famous finishing kick. A roar rose from the crowd, Kings and princesses rose to their feet, an entire nation held its breath, and history played out before them.
Some day in the future, some other skier will do what Johannes Klaebo has just done. Until then . . .
“I feel like I say this every single race here,” said Klaebo. “This has been the best day so far.”
There may never be a better one. If ever there is, it’s likely that Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo will be the one to orchestrate it.
2025 World Championship 50 k Men’s Mass Start Freestyle RESULTS
John Teaford
John Teaford—the Managing Editor of FasterSkier — has been the coach of Olympians, World Champions, and World Record Holders in six sports: Nordic skiing, speedskating, road cycling, track cycling, mountain biking, triathlon. In his long career as a writer/filmmaker, he spent many seasons as Director of Warren Miller’s annual feature film, and Producer of adventure documentary films for Discovery, ESPN, Disney, National Geographic, and NBC Sports.
