Undefeated this season in the 10km freestyle. On paper, he is the one with the greatest chance of beating Johannes Høsflot Klæbo.

Even though many do not consider him a cross-country skier, but rather a biathlete. Einar Hedegart has stormed through the world elite this winter. Will he do the same at the Olympics?

The 24-year-old from Trøndelag got his chance in Holmenkollen last season. He struck immediately with second place in his favorite event, the 10km freestyle. He finished 5.2 seconds behind Harald Østberg Amundsen, but 7.6 seconds ahead of Johannes Høsflot Klæbo.

The media called it a sensation.

The week after, he returned home to Trøndelag and became the Norwegian biathlon champion.

Who exactly was this youngster who was suddenly the best in two different sports?

An Olympic opportunity in cross-country

After a disappointing season opener in biathlon in Geilo, it was back to cross-country. Hedegart responded with second place in the 20km mass start at the World Cup opener in Ruka, Finland.

He removed any doubt about his Olympic spot when he won his first two World Cup races in the 10km freestyle in Trondheim and Davos.

In Goms, he entered the fight for a place on the team sprint squad. He won together with Harald Østberg Amundsen and pulled away comfortably on the final leg.

Four World Cup races with results of 2-1-1-1.

He also became Norwegian champion ahead of Andreas Fjorden Ree, who has had Hedegart haunting him all winter. It ended with Fjorden Ree, beaten by 0.4 seconds in Trondheim, failing to make the Olympic team.

A random entry into the cross-country elite

Biathlete Hedegart had already shown he was a fast skier, though inconsistent on the shooting range. He entered a few cross-country races, and on December 6, 2024, he made his World Cup debut in Lillehammer.

“I think something happened that winter. I got into the World Cup in Lillehammer almost by coincidence, because I had also by coincidence competed in and won a Norwegian Cup race. I felt anything but fresh that day in Lillehammer; I felt sick and threw up, and still finished eighth on a bad day. That gave me something to think about. Am I that close to the top?” Hedegart told Trønder-Avisa.

“I began to understand that I trained well, got confirmation, and lifted myself mentally. When I started the next race, in Holmenkollen, I was completely certain that I would at least not finish worse than sixth. That was a good feeling and gave me great calm.”

What is he really?

Not even the main character himself could answer whether he is a biathlete or a cross-country skier after becoming Norwegian champion in biathlon the week after his sensational second place in Holmenkollen.

Or does he need to be only one?

In Norway, it is harder than anywhere else to qualify for the Olympics in cross-country and biathlon.

Now the opportunity opened in cross-country for the 24-year-old from Inderøy, something he had not thought much about.

The big weakness

He does, however, have one major weakness as a cross-country skier.

“Yes, I can’t ski classic.”

He trains more than 1,100 hours a year, with many long, easy sessions. He has specialized completely to become the best possible biathlete, cutting most classic sessions and focusing only on skating.

That has also created limitations, as he has no chance in classic races or skiathlons.

Something he needs to improve if he is to become a full-time cross-country skier.

“We’ll see what happens. I’ve never really skied classic cross-country, but of course I have the basic skiing skills, and the fitness, and after all, quite a lot is similar,” Hedegart told the local newspaper.

“It’s more fun to be at the Olympics as a cross-country skier than as a biathlete in the IBU Cup,” he says, but he does not agree that he is finished with biathlon. The Biathlon World Championships will be held in Holmenkollen in 2029. He wants to be there.

Missing his friend Bakken

Hedegart has many friends in the biathlon community. That is why he was also at the training camp in Passo Lavazé over Christmas, where his friend Sivert Guttorm Bakken was found dead in his hotel room.

“The night before December 23, we agreed to meet for training the next morning. Sivert didn’t show up. We thought he was delayed. It could have been anything, a doping control or something. We did a lap and came back. Still no Sivert. Gradually, I sensed that something was strange. A guy was running across the stadium at full speed. We asked ourselves what was happening.”

“We went back to where we were staying and saw an ambulance outside. Then we ran inside. We were told what had happened: Sivert was dead.”

“We sat and talked together from ten in the morning until around five-thirty in the evening. It was terribly sad, of course, and some cried, of course, but we really felt how good it was to be a group in such a situation,” Hedegart told Trønder-Avisa.

From “Northug country”

Norway’s Olympic hope in freestyle comes from the same municipality as Petter Northug Jr. Just before crossing the large Skarnsund Bridge in Inderøy municipality stands the house where Einar Hedegart took his first childhood steps.

After crossing the bridge and turning right, it is only a few kilometers to Framverran and the Selje farm, where Petter Northug Jr. and his brothers, Tomas and Even, grew up.

John Northug has occasionally helped Hedegart with skis, and there are strong ties between the Trøndelag ski stars.

A strange situation arose during the Norwegian Championships in Steinkjer in January. Einar Hedegart passed Petter Northug Jr., but the former ski king responded with a huge surge and passed the new comet again on a climb.

But those were his final reserves, and Northug had to admit that the new generation disappeared over the hill.

“I just wanted to show him who is still the biggest breeding bull in Inderøy,” Northug laughed in the interview afterward.

So there, Petter Northug Jr remains undefeated.

The question is, who in the municipality will have the most Olympic gold medals after Milano-Cortina 2026? Petter has two. Einar Hedegart could easily return home from Italy with three.

Even if he can’t ski classic.

FACTS 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympic Games – Cross-Country Skiing

• When: Saturday 7, to Sunday, February 22, 2026
• Who: Elite national skiers – women and men
• Where: Val di Fiemme, Italy
• What: Milano-Cortina 2026

Saturday, February 7: 20km Skiathlon C/F Women (More information can be found HERE)

• 13:00 CET: 20km Skiathlon C/F, Women

Sunday, February 8: 20km Skiathlon C/F Men (More information can be found HERE)

• 12:30 CET: 20km Skiathlon C/F, Men

Tuesday, February 10: Sprint C Women and Men (More information can be found HERE)

• 9:15 CET: Sprint Quali C, Women
• 9:55 CET: Sprint Quali C, Men
• 11:45 CET: Sprint Final C, Women
• 12:15 CET: Sprint Final C, Men

Thursday, February 12: 10km Interval Start F Women (More information can be found HERE)

• 13:00 CET: 10km Interval F, Women

Friday, February 13: 10km Interval Start F Men (More information can be found HERE)

• 11:45 CET: 10km Interval F, Men

Saturday, February 14: 4×7.5km Relay C/F Women (More information can be found HERE)

• 12:00 CET: 4×7.5km Relay C/F, Women

Sunday, February 15: 4×7.5km Relay C/F Men (More information can be found HERE)

• 12:00 CET: 4×7.5km Relay C/F, Men

Wednesday, February 18: Team Sprint Women and Men (More information can be found HERE)

• 9:45 CET: Team Sprint F Quali, Women
• 9:45 CET: Team Sprint F Quali, Men
• 11:45 CET: Team Sprint F, Women
• 11:45 CET: Team Sprint F, Men

Saturday, February 21: 50km Mass Start C Men (More information can be found HERE)

• 11:00 CET: 50km Mass Start C, Men

Sunday, February 22: 50km Mass Start C Women (More information can be found HERE)

• 10:00 CET: 50km Mass Start C, Women

Complete program for the Winter Olympic Games can be found HERE

Val di Fiemme, a classic Nordic skiing venue, promises thrilling racing on courses steeped in Olympic history. Fans around the World will have the chance to cheer on athletes across all distances, from explosive sprints to grueling marathons.

Are you interested in traditional cross-country skiing? Click HERE and read more about it.