Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo’s Journey Amid Olympic Pressure

MILAN — Arriving in the Dolomites, Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo was faced with immense pressure. This Norwegian cross-country skiing sensation has rightfully earned the moniker ‘King’ due to his impressive achievements. Already the owner of five Olympic gold medals, he stands three short of matching the all-time record. Furthermore, he currently holds the title of world champion across all six of cross-country’s events.

In the mountain town of Tesero, where the cross-country skiing events of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics are taking place, Klaebo is embarking on an extraordinary quest—to secure six gold medals in a single Winter Olympics. To alleviate the stresses and maintain a consistent routine during his extensive 250 days of travel each year for competitions, Klaebo turns to video games, notably the first-person shooter ‘Battlefield’ as a form of relaxation. ‘A great way to switch your mind off,’ he stated.

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The 29-year-old athlete carries a screen and console carefully packed in his luggage. This setup aids him in balancing the intense concentration and energy required to succeed with the relaxation needed for recovery. ‘I need the nerves to be able to perform at my highest level, and in the evenings, I just try to play a little bit online with my friends back home and talk about different things than skiing,’ Klaebo mentioned. ‘And I feel like that helps.’

However, in his initial days in Tesero, his usual gaming routine was disrupted as he struggled with getting his Playstation to function properly, hindered by poor Wi-Fi. ‘The conclusion was that the internet was a bit too weak,’ Klaebo remarked. ‘Now we have put Italy to work here and we will see if someone comes and fixes it. In the worst case someone turns up and cables up my internet. Then the Olympics are saved. I depend on it completely so I am willing to pay a lot to get it sorted.’

Cross-country skiing, as an endurance sport, requires its athletes to endure and thrive in punishing conditions. However, being without his regular relaxation routine was a challenge he could not ignore.

Klaebo is not the only Olympian utilizing such strategies for stress relief. Johannes Dale-Skjevdal, a biathlete representing Norway, shared with Reuters that he played against French competitors in ‘Battlefield’ during the Olympics. ‘I’m taking lives in the virtual world,’ he admitted. ‘Since I’m not that good, I don’t take that many lives, but I’m trying. In my first room, the internet was bad, so I took Arild (Monsen, a former cross-country skier)’s room, and it was a little better.’

Reassuring about his sleep patterns, Dale-Skjevdal said, ‘If you’re worrying about me staying up late at night, you don’t have to. Yesterday I was up until (9:15), although that was due to the poor internet too. I’m getting my hours in bed.’

As anticipated, nothing has impeded Klaebo’s progress as he already clinched a gold medal in the skiathlon on Sunday and again triumphed in Tuesday’s sprint classic final by sprinting uphill on skis at a pace faster than a six-minute mile. With one more victory, he will equal the record for the most Winter Olympics gold medals held by three other Norwegians—two cross-country skiers and a biathlete.

How does Klaebo plan to celebrate earning his seventh career gold medal on Sunday? ‘I guess I will celebrate with some evening games,’ he said with a smile.

Andrew Greif is a sports reporter for NBC News Digital.