Zhangjiakou (AP) – Therese Johaug is the first Olympic champion in cross-country skiing at the Winter Games in China. The 33-year-old Norwegian prevailed in the skiathlon in Zhangjiakou ahead of Natalia Neprjajewa from Russia and Teresa Stadlober from Austria.
As expected, the German cross-country skiers could not intervene in the fight for the medals. Katherine Sauerbrey from Hallenberg, as the best athlete from team manager Peter Schlickenrieder’s team, took 13th place in the extreme cold.
Katharina Hennig finished 15th. The main focus of the 25-year-old from Oberwiesenthal is the race over ten kilometers in classic technique, which is scheduled for Thursday. Sofie Krehl from Oberstdorf was 17th, Pia Fink from Münsingen was 25th.
For Johaug it was the second Olympic victory of his career. She won gold in the relay in Vancouver in 2010. Johaug was banned in 2017 after using a lip cream with an ingredient on the doping list. She came back strong after the lockdown. In the skiathlon, the athletes run 7.5 kilometers in the classic technique and 7.5 kilometers in the skating technique. For men, the discipline is on the Olympic program this Sunday.