Karlsson claims historic first 50km gold: 'Something I will never forget'

Mar 09, 2025·Cross-Country

Frida Karlsson (SWE) wrote herself into the history books as she won the first Women's 50km Mass Start at a FIS Nordic Ski World Championships, turning a 'tough season' into glory in Trondheim, Norway, on Sunday.

The Swedish 25-year-old controlled the inaugural Freestyle race in the distance replacing the Women's 30km Mass Start and managed to keep home favourite Therese Johaug (NOR) behind her as she claimed her maiden individual World title, having finished on the podium nine times before.

Johaug, who came back from retirement with the main aim to add the first 50km gold medal to her 14 World titles, had to settle for a bronze in the last race of Trondheim 2025 after teammate Heidi Weng (NOR) went past her in the final stretch.

The 2022-2023 Tour de Ski champion Karlsson, with five individual World Championships silver medals to her name, got the perfect ending to her Trondheim campaign at a season where she has struggled with an injury in her left foot, not knowing whether she would be able to compete at the World Championships.

"I'm super, super happy. I'm out of words," she said.

The journey here… It's been a tough season with my injury and I've been wanting to race this race for a long time but it hasn't been obvious for me to do it so I'm super proud that we could do it.– Frida Karlsson (SWE)

Honored teammate Svahn

It was the fourth consecutive World Championships where Karlsson made it onto the podium in the last and longest event. The previous three times, however, she had won bronze in the 30km race.

"Today it was a battle against oneself I think, and it was a mentally tough race so I'm super happy that I could win this race," said Karlsson.

One of the her first phone calls after the victory went to her friend and teammate Linn Svahn (SWE), who missed the World Championships after suffering a concussion while training in Trondheim. Karlsson, who broke down in tears as she spoke to her friend after the milestone victory, said she had been skating on Svahn's skis to make sure that her friend played a part in the victory – and that the Sprint star's skis had been "like spears".

In challenging conditions, where slushy snow made the long championships grand finale even tougher to plow through, it took just about 10km for a top quartet of Karlsson, Johaug, Weng and Ebba Andersson (SWE) to break away from the rest of the pack.

The remaining four fifths of the race became a game of tactics and endurance as two Norwegians and two Swedes battled it out for the three podium positions.

Karlsson, Andersson, Johaug and Weng stayed together for the last 40km of the race, much of the time in this order @NordicFocus

Johaug made several attempts to break away, but the rest of the front group refused to let her set off by herself as she had done so many times in her successful career. The thick layer of slushy snow made it hard for this season's Tour de Ski winner to increase her speed.

"It was a difficult race today. I have never gone on these conditions before," Johaug said.

I couldn't use my capacity and this was the best I had. I found out that 'you just have to try to finish' because it was difficult to attack in the hills and there was so much snow. It was hard.– Therese Johaug (NOR)

Frida Karlsson leading the 50km race, with Andersson, Weng and Johaug behind her @NordicFocus

Instead, Karlsson took charge and spent most of the last 40km in the first place, often with Andersson right behind her.

With less than one kilometer remaining of the race, Johaug tested Karlsson one last time but the Swede was ready for it and responded with a push that got her a couple of seconds that made it possible for her to comfortably cruise to the victory. Karlsson finished the first Women's 50km in two hours, 24 minutes and 55.3 seconds, beating Weng by 2.1 seconds in front of a packed Granaasen stadium.

It's so cool, it's something that you will never forget.– Frida Karlsson (SWE)

Five-time World Championships silver medallist Karlsson finally got to taste a gold medal @NordicFocus

Johaug crossed the finish line 2.9 seconds behind the winner to add a bronze to her three silver medals from Trondheim 2025.

"My dream was to fight for the gold medal here and I know that I have the level," she said.

"But these championships have not been mine, but I can't do anything about that, it's over now and I'm happy that I'm here with my shape, but it is also sad that the conditions were like this."

Heidi Weng (left), Frida Karlsson (middle) and Therese Johaug (right) on the podium @NordicFocus

Clean sweep for Sweden

As the World Championships in Trondheim came to an end, Sweden had won six out of six Women's events in front of the Norwegian fans, who could find comfort in Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo's (NOR) winning everything in the Men's competition. But it was not all joy in the Swedish camp as the championships ended in tears for one of the main names behind the blue and yellow medal haul.

Skiathlon, 10km Classic and Relay gold medallist Andersson had looked ready to sprint it out for a fourth Trondheim title but got tangled into Karlsson's ski and fell in the last minute of the race, ending an otherwise successful championships in tears of disappointment.

"Right now I am totally empty, in my body and, especially, emotionally. This is not the way I wanted this race to end," Andersson said.

"I'm no 100% sure of what happened but we were all eager to get some speed up in that hill and it was hard conditions and somehow I managed to get down in the snow. It's sad but true.

I fell away from the chance to take a medal or the gold. But that's the way it is in sports; sometimes you have it in your way and sometimes you get hurt like this.

Weng made up for Skiathlon fall

Sprint ace Jonna Sundling (SWE), who had claimed three gold medals and shown versatility in Trondheim's distance events, suffered an early fall but came back strongly to finish fifth, 4:11.8 behind Karlsson.

Sundling had crashed into Weng in the end of last Sunday's Skiathlon, ruling both of them out of the battle for the gold medal, that Andersson won just before Johaug as Sundling took the bronze ahead of a frustrated Weng. To end the home World Championships with a silver medal made things much better for Weng, who had slipped in a climb around the 26km mark.

"I am really happy with a medal today and I was very angry in the first competition, in the Skiathlon, where I fell," Weng said.

"Today I fell in the uphill but it was a perfect time (to fall in) so I got back again. I was a little bit stiff but I was trying to say to myself that 'everyone is tired, you're strong', so I am very happy today.

I felt like I would attack in the last hill but I hadn't got any power left and the snow was so soft that it was hard to feel good.– Heidi Weng (NOR)

Sanness sixth

Norway’s Nora Sanness crossed the finish line seven minutes after Karlsson to make it three Norwegians and three Swedes among the six best skiers. Krista Parmakoski (FIN) finished in seventh place as Nadja Kaelin (SUI), with another strong performance in Trondheim, beat Flora Dolci (FRA) by two seconds to take spot No.8. Home skier Astrid Oeyre Slind (NOR) had been in fifth place after 20km but fallen further back in the field to claim the last top-10 spot, nine minutes and 35 seconds behind the winner.

Overall World Cup leader Jessie Diggins (USA), who has been struggling with a foot injury but still managed to win a Team Sprint silver medal with Julia Kern (USA) in Trondheim, had one of her tougher days and finished in 22nd place, more than 17 minutes after Karlsson.

After 11 days of action in Trondheim, the Cross-Country party in Norway is not over just yet as the World Cup continues in Oslo (NOR) on 15 and 16 March.

Click here for full results from the Women’s 50km Mass Start Free and here for all results from Trondheim 2025.