Therese Johaug joked: This is my last race

The cross-country skier Therese Johaug joked about her retiring, giving a fake hope for her opponents.

Therese Johaug won her second gold at the Beijing Olympics yesterday in the 10km classic-style distance, which was added to her skiathlon title. She has won a total of five Olympic medals in her career, three of which are gold.

The 33-year-old Norwegian was caught on camera saying “This is my last race”, but this sentence turned out to be a joke with her technician, who had previously asked her if she would give up, as she could no longer withstand the pressure.

Therese Johaug won the 10 kilometers by 0.4 sec ahead of Finland’s Kerttu Niskanen.

“Those two minutes of waiting for Kerttu Niskanen to improve my time were the hardest of my life”, said Therese Johaug, assuring reporters she had no intention of stopping cross-country skiing. “I crossed the finish line and immediately inquired how things were going behind me. I saw Niskanen cross the finish line, looked at the board and said to myself: God, the difference is so small”, said Therese Johaug of the exciting culmination of the race.