Team Norway are a powerhouse at the winter Olympics. The country has hosted the winter games twice, in 1952 in Oslo and 1994 in Lillehammer. Norwegian athletes have won the most overall medals in the Winter Olympics—405—of which 148 are gold.

Despite a population of only 5.6 million—about the same as Los Angeles and Philadelphia combined—Norway punches above their weight due to the nation’s love for outdoor winter recreation. They are sending 55 athletes to the Winter Games. 

With just two weeks to go until the 2026 Winter Olympics taking place in Cortina, Italy, February 4-22, here’s a quick overview of a few Olympians to watch from Team Norway.

Johannes Hosfløt Klæbo. Photo Credit: Granada, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cross-country skiing, the Norwegian national pastime, has Johannes Hosfløt Klæbo, as a household name. He is such a big star that he trains in Utah, because everyone recognizes him in Norway. The talent of a generation, Klæbo recently swept the World Cup race held in his hometown of Trondheim, clinching gold medals in six out of six races. He is favored to medal in the classic sprint in Cortina.

Veteran Olympian Heidi Weng took home the bronze medal in the 20-kilometer race back in 2014 at the Sochi Olympics, and has earned several World Championship and World Cup medals over the years. In Cortina, Weng is hoping for a medal in the 10-kilometer category. She will need to bring the ___, as another contender in this category is American phenom Jessie Diggins.

Cross country ski relay
The cross country border battle between Norway and Sweden is always hard-fought. In the women’s relay category (stafetten), victory has alternated between the countries in the world championships, with Norway being the dominant team. Sweden was the last to win, so it would seem this is Norway’s year to take gold!

Downhill skiing
Another highly decorated medalist, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde has won medals at the Olympics, the World Cup and World Championships. A grave crash in January 2024 had him wondering whether he’d ever ski professionally again. Luckily, he has since worked his way back to the slopes and will be competing in four categories.

Adrian Smiseth Sejerstad competes in Super G and downhill and has gotten on the podium at the world championship for Super G—super giant slalom—in which racers travel at speeds up to 80 to 100 mph!

Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold. Photo Credit: Pavel Hrdlička, Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Biathlon
With five World Cup victories, 24 podiums and a rising career, Ingrid Landmark Tandevold is poised for an Olympic medal. She is a likely podium candidate in several individual and relay categories.

With last year’s retirement of legendary biathlete Joannes Thingnes Bøe, the fate of the men’s relay team was left in question. But teammate Sturla Holm Lægreid, a six-time individual world champion from Bærum is ready to take up the proverbial baton and bring home a medal for his country. 

Let’s Cheer on Team Norway: Heia Norge! 

Sources:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/timgenske/2025/11/19/the-milano-cortina-2026-winter-olympics-team-norway-hopefuls/ 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingrid_Landmark_Tandrevold