JOHAUG WINS FIRST GOLD

NORWAY’S Therese Johaug won the first gold medal of the Beijing Winter Olympics on Saturday, storming ahead of the competition in the women’s 7.5km-plus-7.5km skiathlon cross-country skiing. Johaug, the clear favourite ahead of the event, finished the course in 44min 13.7sec to take what is expected to be the first of many cross-country skiing medals for Norway at these Games.

Natalia Nepryaeva battled it out with Austria’s Teresa Stadlober for second place, with the Russian prevailing to finish 0.3 seconds ahead to clinch silver.