Marit Bjoergen is heading to the Winter Games in South Korea looking for a three-peat of her three-peat.
Bjoergen, the most successful women’s cross-country skier in history, has won three gold medals in each of the past two Winter Games and will be looking to make it three in a row when the Pyeongchang Olympics begin this week.
Bjoergen has won 10 medals overall, tied with Raisa Smetanina and Stefania Belmondo as the most decorated female Winter Olympian ever.
Behind Bjoergen, Norway won 11 medals overall in cross-country at the Sochi Games in 2014 - including five gold - to tie the country’s record. The Norwegian team once again looks like the team to beat despite losing one of its top athletes to a doping ban.
“They are the traditional powerhouse in our sport,” said Jeff Ellis with the International Ski Federation. “They know how to get ready on time for the Olympics, which is a big deal. They are one of those nations.”
Things to know about the sport entering the Pyeongchang Olympics :
WHAT IS IT: Cross-country skiing is a competition where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move themselves across snow-covered terrain - some flat, some hilly - wearing skinny skies and with the aid of poles. Cross-country skiing has been an event at the Winter Olympic Games since their inception in 1924 in Chamonix, France.
WHAT THEY’RE COMPETING FOR: There are six men’s and six women’s cross-country events at this year’s Winter Games. The men compete in the 15-kilometer classic, 30-kilometer skiathlon, sprint free, team sprint, 50-kilometer mass free start and 4x10 kilometer relay. The women compete in the 10-kilometer classic, 15-kilometer skiathlon, sprint free, team sprint, 30-kilometer mass start and 4x5 kilometer relay.
MEDAL FAVORITES: Dario Cologna from Switzerland is considered one of the favorites to bring home some hardware after winning gold medals in the 15-kilometer classic and the 30-kilometer skiathlon in Sochi four years ago. The 31-year-old Cologna, known as “Super Dario,” passed Sweden’s Marcus Hellner on the final climb and went on to win a tightly contested 30-kilometer skiathlon. Cologna remains at the top of his game, winning his fourth Tour de Ski Championship to start the new year. On the women’s side, Bjoergen could be challenged for medals by teammates Heidi Weng and Ingvild Flugstad and Sweden’s Charlotte Kalla.
RUSSIANS WAITING GAME: It’s still unclear if Russian gold medal winner Alexander Legkov will be competing in Pyeongchang. He was of 28 Russians whose doping ban was overturned recently by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. If Legkov is cleared to participate this week he will be a name to watch.
BEST MATCHUPS: Expect some fireworks in the women’s 4x5 kilometer relay following an edge-of-your-seat finish in 2014 in which Charlotte Kalla fought back from 25 seconds down on the final leg to win the gold medal for the Swedish team. Surely, Finnish and German skiers haven’t forgotten their epic meltdown on the final leg and will be looking for a bit of revenge. Kalla has spent most of her career in Bjoergen’s shadow, but could be ready for a breakout Olympics.
RISING STARS: Norway’s Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo is one of the rising stars of men’s cross-country skiing. Just 21, he won seven of nine World Cup races before Christmas and is expected to be a threat in Pyeongchang. For the women, Kalla was atop the World Cup leaderboard before Christmas before taking time off - as many of the top Olympians do - to begin focusing on South Korea. Also, keep a close eye on Weng, who recently won her second straight Tour de Ski title on Alpe Cermis and figures to be a factor.
AMERICAN HOPEFUL: The Americans don’t have a great history with cross-country skiing - they have only won one Olympic medal in the sport’s history - but Jessie Diggins might be the country’s best hope . The fun-loving Diggins is the most decorated U.S. cross-country skier, male or female, in world championship history. She is third in the world in cross-country standings, according to the International Ski Federation.
FALLEN STAR: Former Olympic champion Therese Johaug is barred from racing until mid-April following a doping ban. The 29-year-old star from Norway tested positive for an anabolic agent listed in the contents of a treatment for sunburn, and a Court of Arbitration for Sport panel announced last August an 18-month ban was “appropriate.”
POTENTIAL RECORD-SETTERS: Norway’s Ola Vigen Hattestadand won gold in Sochi in the sprint free event and is capable of bettering his time in Pyeongchang. For the women, Poland’s Justyna Kowalczyk, who won the 10-kilometer classic in Sochi, could be a factor. Former Tour de Ski champion Sergey Ustiugov from Russia is expected to medal at Pyeongchang, too.
OLYMPIAN EFFORT: Pita Taufatofua, the shirtless, oiled-up flag-bearing taekwondo competitor from Tonga who turned heads at the Summer Games in Rio two years ago is now trying his hand at being a cross-country skier. He has qualified for the Pyeongchang Olympics in his final attempt and will represent the tropical nation that knows no snow. Although it’s hard to imagine him shirtless and oiled up in sub-freezing temperatures at the Winter Games.
WHERE IT HAPPENS: The cross-country events will be held at the Alpensia Cross-Country Centre, which is located in the Pyeongchang Mountain Cluster.
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