Federico Pellegrino enjoys a record-breaking silver medal
Federico Pellegrino è again silver medalist in the opening free technique sprint at the World Championships in Trondheim. And è it’s the seventh rainbow medal of Pellegrino’s beautiful career, after the title obtained in Lahti in 2017 and the silver in Seefeld 2019, and the four medals obtained in the Team Sprints (2 silvers and 2 bronzes), of which the last one at the 2023 World Championships in Planica. Not forgetting the two Olympic silver medals in PyeongChang and Beijing, the maximum possible in the era of cross-country alien Johannes Klaebo.
And in today’s race, too, the 34-year-old policeman from Nus, baptized just Klaebo, both in the semifinals and in the finals, and kept himself glued to him, taking advantage of his wake to disperse all opponents along the way, and thus arrive at silver, which is worth a gold, and represents the highest possible goal for the Italian. Gold, then, to Klaebo, and bronze to Finland thanks to Lauri Vuorinen. And glory for Pellegrino, a champion without end, who, 14 years after his first participation in the 2011 World Championships in Oslo and six years after his last individual medal, returns to the world podium in a big way, in the last possible rainbow occasion of his career, for which he has already decreed the end at the 2026 Olympic Games.
“It’ a sprinter” track, Pellegrino had said on the eve, and the two best sprinters in the world proved it by taking the most precious metals.
For Klaebo this is the fourth consecutive gold in the format at the World Championships: a sign of a supremacy that has lasted for years and does not seem to want to see an end.
“I am the oldest medalist between Worlds and Olympics and I am proud of it – said Pellegrino -. I managed to field the best version of myself, in a race that not è only physical strength, but also and above all mentality. I made choices during the race that led me to the result I did. Before the last corner, Klaebo was still egging while I was already skating, and that gave me great speed. And è it was nice to try to chase him in the finish. Then when I crossed the finish line and è it was great. As a matter of fact, already after the semifinal I burst into tears, because that was the toughest battery, the one I had to overcome. Then, I would only be left with the final to enjoy. And so itì è was”.
In the quarters, Pellegrino had ruled with a great finish the Norwegian Evensen and especially the Swede Anger, who were ahead of him on the’last climb of the course. The Italian’s tactical finish had put all opponents in trouble, and Pellegrino had crossed the finish line in first place.
The semifinals looked very tough, with Klaebo, Northug, Evensen, Jouve and Anger. Pellegrino started in the lead and kept Klaebo’s slipstream until the final sprint, where he and the Norwegian crossed the finish line almost matched, pulling away from all rivals. And’ final. And it’ll be silver.
