Norway wins first gold medal of the 2022 Winter Olympics in skiathlon event

Norway secured the first gold medal of the 2022 Beijing Olympics on Saturday after Therese Johaug took first place at the 15-kilometer skiathlon.

Johaug, 33, is a 14-time world champion and three-time Olympic medalist. She skied the first half of the race in the “classical” style, greatly outpacing her opponents, and completed the second half in the “skating” style, according to The New York Times.

Natalya Nepryayeva of Russia and Teresa Stadlober of Austria trailed not too far behind Johaug in a battle for silver and bronze medals. Nepryayeva ended up edging out World Cup leader Stadlober by three-tenths of a second, the news outlet noted.

Both women finished the race more than 30 seconds after Johaug, who finished with a time of 44 minutes and 13.7 seconds, The New York Times reported.

The race was held at the Zhangjiakou National Cross Country Skiing Center, where skiers had to face freezing and windy conditions. Several of the competing skiers donned face masks, hats and tape on their cheeks in an effort to prevent windburn, a choice that is rare in a sport that requires much exertion, the Times noted.

American Jessie Diggins finished sixth on Saturday, coming in nearly a minute behind Johaug.

“A really promising start,” Diggins said of the race, according to the Times.

Saturday’s win reportedly marks Johaug’s second-ever gold medal in an Olympic race. She won gold in the 2010 Games and silver and bronze in Sochi in 2014.