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WINTER OLYMPICS

Norway’s Bjørgen equals Winter Olympics medals record

Marit Bjørgen equalled her compatriot Ole Einar Bjørndalen as the most decorated athlete in Winter Olympics history on Saturday.

Published: 17 February 2018 13:40 CET
Norway's Bjørgen equals Winter Olympics medals record
Norway's Marit Bjørgen (R) celebrates with teammate Ingvild Flugstad Østberg after winning the women's 4x5km classic free style cross country relay on Saturday. PHOTO: ODD ANDERSEN / AFP
The Norwegian's historic feat came as she anchored her nation to victory in the 4x5km cross country relay.
 
Bjørgen, 37, sealed her 13th Winter Olympics medal as Norway timed 51min 24.3sec to grab gold, 2.0secs ahead of Sweden with Olympic Athletes from Russia finishing third.
 
Bjørgen's gold medal follows her silver in the 15km skiathlon last weekend and a bronze in the 10km cross-country race on Thursday. 
 
Her record Olympic medal collection now includes seven golds, four silvers and two bronze. 
 
Not only did her 13th medal tie her with Bjørndalen for the most Winter Olympics medals ever, it also made her the most decorated cross-country skier of all time. She also holds the record for the most gold medals claimed by an Olympic cross-country skier.
 
As of Saturday, Norway was in command of the medal race in Pyeongchang with 21, comfortably ahead of second-place Germany's 15 medals. 
 

WINTER OLYMPICS

Italy vs Sweden: Who will host the 2026 Winter Olympics?

International Olympic Committee members will decide on Monday between bids by Stockholm-Are and Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo in the race to host the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

Published: 24 June 2019 15:49 CEST
Italy vs Sweden: Who will host the 2026 Winter Olympics?
Cortina d'Ampezzo, which hosted the Winter Games in 1956. Photo: Alberto Pizzoli/AFP

The vote to choose a winner from the Swedish and Italian rivals is expected to be closer than the 2015 vote when Beijing beat the Kazakh city Almaty to land the 2022 Winter Games.

READ ALSO: Polls show Italians more enthusiastic about Winter Games bid than Swedes

On the road to the 2026 decision, bids from Calgary, Graz in Austria, Japan's Sapporo and Sion in Switzerland have fallen by the wayside, mainly because of concerns over the cost or a lack of popular support. A bid by the Turkish ski resort of Erzurum was ruled out by the IOC in October 2018.

The bid by Stockholm and the Are ski area — which hosted the World Ski Championships in February — appeared to be running out of steam a few months ago due to a lack of funding commitments, but the government has now swung behind it.

On the eve of the vote, Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said after meeting IOC president Thomas Bach: “Sweden is ready to host the Winter Olympic Games in 2026 and the Swedish government is very supportive.”


Sweden presents its bid. Photo: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP

“While organising a great Games, we can end the age of extremely costly Olympics that threaten welfare spending and leave a trail of underused structures and public resentment,” the Swedish prime minister said. “You wanted change; we will deliver this change.” 

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte followed the Swedes with his pitch for Milan on Monday.

“Our bid is worthy of the highest consideration,” Conte told delegates. “If Italy is chosen, then work will start from this evening so that our Games leave a mark on history.

“This is the dream of an entire country, and not only the government but also the regions.”

Italy's champion skier Sofia Goggia was in Lausanne to back the Italian bid. Photo: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP

Italian Olympic 500m short track speed skating champion Arianna Fontana highlighted the climate advantages of the bid. “Milan-Cortina will be the sunny part of the Winter Olympics, with an average ten hours of sunlight every day,” she said.

Michela Moioli, Olympic snowboard champion in 2018, added: “The whole country believes in us; it's your turn to believe in us.” 

A total of 82 IOC members are reportedly likely to cast votes in the ballot to decide the host city, meaning a simple majority of 42 will be required to win.

Italy has twice hosted the Winter Olympics — in 1956 in Cortina d'Ampezzo and 2006 in Turin. Sweden has only hosted the Summer Olympics, in 1912 in Stockholm. 

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