Charlotte Kalla of Sweden won the first gold medal of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games, taking the women’s 15-kilometer skiathlon. The legendary 37-year-old Norwegian Marit Bjoergen was second, 7.8 seconds back, and Krista Parmakoski of Finland was third.
Kalla broke from the lead pack with two and a half kilometers to go and pulled away, denying a chance for a seventh career gold medal to Bjoergen. (Kalla had two previous Olympic golds of her own, one from Vancouver and one from Sochi.)
In the skiathlon, athletes ski half the race in the classical style, then rapidly switch their skis and switch to the freestyle, or “skating” style.