Olympics Women’s 4 x 5 km Relay medal results, highlights and more

Norway and Sweden battled to the very end in another cross-country skiing event. The Norwegians won the women’s 4 x 5 km relay by just two seconds.

Entering the women’s 4 x 5 km relay, Norway had already been on the podium in every cross-country skiing event to date at the 2018 Winter Olympics. The Norwegian dominance has been omnipresent at Alpensia Cross-Country Centre. From the outset, whether a men’s or women’s event, Norway has been in the thick of the medal hunt.

While its men’s team has struggled, Sweden has been right there alongside Norway in women’s cross-country skiing. Thus there was little surprise when the two Scandinavian powerhouses battled from beginning to end in the race for gold in the women’s 4 x 5 km relay.

Four years after finishing off the podium in the relay, Norway snatched the gold by just two seconds over the Swedes. Filling out the podium were the Olympic Athletes from Russia. The Russians competing under the Olympic flag crossed the line nearly 20 seconds ahead of defending Olympic silver medalist Finland. The Russians took their first medal in the 4 x 5 km relay since 2006, but it will not count for the official record as a victory for Russia.

MEDAL RESULT | Cross-country women's 4 x 5 km relay

Team Norway

Team Sweden

Team Olympics

The Russian contingent led through the first two skiers, as Norway and Sweden were content to let Natalia Nepryaeva and Yulia Belorukova set the early pace. Leading at every split, the Olympic Athletes from Russia started to fade on the third skier as Sweden’s Ebba Andersson passed Anastasia Sedova.

The fastest time in the third leg, however, belonged not to Andersson but rather Norway’s Ragnhild Haga. She set up Norwegian legend Marit Björgen for an epic finish against Sweden’s Stina Nilsson.

For most of the final leg, Nilsson lagged less than a second behind Björgen. No other country was anywhere near the Scandinavian pair as they each struggled to gain an advantage. In the final kilometer, Björgen managed to pull away a little more to cross the line two seconds before Nilsson.

The victory gives Norway its fourth Olympic gold medal in cross-country skiing so far at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

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