02/14/26 08:49:00
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02/14 08:48 CST Swedish crash makes way for Norway to win 1st women's
cross-country gold in relay at Milan Cortina
Swedish crash makes way for Norway to win 1st women's cross-country gold in
relay at Milan Cortina
By DEREK GATOPOULOS
Associated Press
TESERO, Italy (AP) --- An early Swedish crash cleared the way for rival Norway
to snatch its first women's cross?country gold in a relay on Saturday at the
Milan Cortina Games.
Ebba Andersson tumbled and broke her ski in the second leg, giving Norway the
advantage on a day where warm weather caused slushy corners that created havoc
in the early stages.
Andersson slipped twice before the bad fall that cost the Swedes more than a
minute in the race. The 28-year-old pushed forward on one ski before being
handed a replacement, and her teammates fought back to finish with the silver.
In the stands, Norway fans celebrated by holding up red hearts for Valentine's
Day.
Norway anchor Heidi Weng crossed the finish line in 1 hour, 15 minutes and 44.8
seconds to win the 4 x 7.5 kilometer relay, 50.9 seconds ahead of Sweden.
Finland took bronze 1 minute, 14.7 seconds behind the winners.
"This is not the way I had imagined the race," Weng said. "I told myself not to
go all out from the start, to just find a good rhythm and enjoy being out
there. Most importantly, it was to stay on my feet on the downhills."
Jessie Diggins, anchoring the United States, finished fifth 1 minute, 52.2
behind Norway.
Weng was wrapped in a Norwegian flag by teammates as she crossed the finish
line and the team later consoled Andersson with a hug before the medal ceremony.
Despite the fightback, the Swedes, who had one all three previous races, were
inconsolable.
"My body is OK but my heart is not," Andersson said. "I can't blame anyone but
myself. I didn't act well enough in that moment. Then we had the worst possible
bad luck with the broken ski. It was mostly panic and chaos through that entire
leg."
Teammate Jonna Sundling, who anchored the race to second place, also appeared
downcast in the heavy post-race rain, but said the team did well to recover.
"Before the race, I reminded myself that you never really know what you're
heading out into," she said. "After what happened during the race, not every
team would have been able to handle that."
The conditions caused a group of chasing athletes to go tumbling on the first
bend at Tesero, northern Italy.
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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
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