Johannes Høsflot Klæbo once again totally dominates the field and bags his fourth Tour de Ski stage win in six days. If he wins tomorrow, he will make history.

Johannes Høsflot Klæbo won the 15-kilometer classic mass start event in Val di Fiemme, the fifth stage of Tour de Ski, by more than 20 seconds.  

“It was an amazing day. We had amazing skis, and I think I used the rest day yesterday pretty well,” Klæbo says after his race on Monday afternoon. 

Started out easy
For the first part of the race, Klæbo and Iivo Niskanen of Finland hung out near the front of the pack. 

When Niskanen surged about halfway through the race, Klæbo was the only one capable of keeping up with him. But when Klæbo picked up the pace a lap and a half later, Niskanen eventually had to let go. 

The 26-year-old Norwegian then increased the gap to Niskanen and the rest of the field, crossing the finish line more than 20 seconds ahead of the Finn. 

“I just couldn’t follow Johannes (Høsflot Klæbo). Maybe my strategy was a little too aggressive, because I had no more gas to follow when Johannes pulled away,” Niskanen says after the race. 

The 29-year-old Finn jokingly points out that he’s getting old and out of shape. 

“Johannes is young and recover faster than us old guys,” Niskanen says. 

However, after winning four of the five stages in this year’s Tour de Ski, the Klæbo admits that he is starting to feel the toll. 

“For sure I’m tired. I think we are all tired now. Today, I was trying to push as hard as I could, so it was fun to be in front all the way,” he says. 

Top 3, 15km classic, mass start men
1. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, Norway, 41:31.2
2. Iivo Niskanen, Finland, +20.8
3. Alexey Chervotkin, Russia, +23.7

Complete results

Natalia Nepryaeva of Russia won the women’s 10-kilometer classic mass start earlier today. 

Impressive overall lead
Heading into the final stage of Tour de Ski tomorrow, the infamous Alpe Cermis hill climb in Val di Fiemme, Klæbo leads the overall Tour de Ski by two minutes to Alexander Bolshunov in second place.  

However, Klæbo doesn’t take the overall victory for granted before the last inch of the brutal hill climb is completed. This year, the hill climb is run as a mass start rather than a pursuit. 

“It (the mass start) is not my favorite for sure. But I am going to push all I can as always, and then we’ll see how it goes,” Klæbo says. 

On track to make history
The 15-kilometer classic mass start in Val di Fiemme on Monday was Klæbo’s 46th World Cup victory. Klæbo is now even with legendary Bjørn Dæhlie, who also posted 46 FIS World Cup victories in his career. 

If Klæbo wins the Alpe Cermis hill climb tomorrow, he will surpass Dæhlie’s record.

One stage to go
Tour de Ski concludes tomorrow. Stage 6 features a 10km mass start skate race for men and women. 

Top 3 Tour de Ski overall, men
1. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, Norway
2. Alexander Bolshunov, Russia, +2:00
3. Iivo Niskanen, Finland, +2:49

Check out the Tour de Ski 2021/22 day-by-day schedule and ProXCskiing.com’s predictions for the overall stage race: Who Will Win Tour de Ski? 

Curious about where to watch Tour de Ski in your area? We got you covered! 

FACTS: Tour de Ski 2021/22 

• Tour de Ski 2021/22 starts in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, on December 28 and concludes in Val di Fiemme, Italy, on January 4. 
• The race consists of six stages in eight days. Here are all the Tour de Ski details and the day-by-day schedule
• Tour de Ski 2021/22 is the 16th edition of the brutal stage race. These are the winners from the previous 15 Tour de Ski events. 
• The overall winners get 400 World Cup points for the Tour de Ski, which consists of six stages in eight days. Stage winners get 50 World Cup points. Accordingly, there are potentially 700 World Cup points for winning every stage of the Tour de Ski, which would determine the overall World Cup for the season.