Johannes Hösflot Klaebo sets new standards at the 2026 Winter Games: with his eleventh Olympic victory, the Norwegian leads the all-time leaderboard. The most successful Swiss athletes - Simon Ammann and Dario Cologna - remain outside the top 50 with four gold medals each.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Johannes Hösflot Klaebo won his eleventh Olympic gold medal at the 2026 Winter Games and set another record with six gold medals at the same Games.
- The Norwegian thus surpasses former cross-country skiing and biathlon greats such as Marit Björgen, Björn Dählie and Ole Einar Björndalen, who each won gold eight times.
- The most successful Swiss Winter Olympians, such as Dario Cologna and Simon Ammann with four gold medals each, are outside the top 50, while Vreni Schneider is ranked 82nd.
Johannes Hösflot Klaebo also won his sixth cross-country gold medal of the 2026 Winter Games on Saturday. The Norwegian won the 50 km classic technique race, including the mass start, taking his tally of the most successful Olympians to 11 gold medals. His six gold medals at the same Games are also a record.
With 11 gold medals, Klaebo now has three more Olympic victories than his closest rivals - three of them his compatriots. Marit Björgen won eight cross-country gold medals from 2002 to 2018, as did Björn Dählie from 1992 to 1998, while Ole Einar Björdalen won eight gold medals in the biathlon.
The best Swiss in the rankings are cross-country skier Dario Cologna and ski jumper Simon Ammann. They both have four gold medals - but that is not enough to make the top 50 in the history of the Winter Games.
Vreni Schneider, the most successful Swiss Olympian, follows in 82nd place. Incidentally, if you add up the medals won by Cologna, Ammann and Schneider, you get exactly the same haul as Johannes Hösflot Klaebo: 11 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze - which underlines just how incredibly successful the Norwegian was at the Winter Games.
The most successful Olympians of the Winter Games
- 1. Johannes Klaebo (NOR)
2018-2026, cross-country skiing
11 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze, 13 total - 2. Marit Björgen (NOR)
2002-2018, cross-country skiing
8 gold, 4 silver, 3 bronze, 15 total - 3. Ole Einar Björndalen (NOR)
1998-2014, biathlon
8 gold, 4 silver, 2 bronze, 14 total - 4. Björn Dählie (NOR)
1992-1998, cross-country skiing
8 gold, 4 silver, 0 bronze, 12 total - 5. Tobias Arlt and Tobias Wendl (GER)
2014-2026, sledging
7 gold, 0 silver, 1 bronze, 8 total - 7. Ireen Wüst (NED)
2006-2022, speed skating
6 gold, 5 silver, 2 bronze, 13 total - 8. Lyubov Yegorova (CIS/RUS)
1992-1994, cross-country skiing
6 gold, 3 silver, 0 bronze, 9 total - 9. Martin Fourcade (FRA)
2010-2018, biathlon
6 gold, 1 silver, 0 bronze, 7 total - 10. Viktor Ahn (KOR/RUS)
2006-2014, short track
6 gold, 0 silver, 2 bronze, 8 total - Also:
51. Simon Ammann (SUI)
2002-2010, ski jumping
4 gold - 51. Dario Cologna (SUI)
2010-2018, cross-country skiing
4 gold - 82nd Vreni Schneider (SUI)
1988-1994, alpine skiing
3 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze - 116. Franjo von Allmen (SUI)
2026, alpine skiing
3 gold
