Cross-country skiing: “They’ll make great Instagram photos,” laughs Andrew Musgrave
In the Italian Alps, swept by an almost spring-like mildness, Andrew Musgrave offered one of the most striking images of the individual skateboarding at the Milan-Cortina Games: the Briton ran bare-chested, simply wearing his number 42 bib. A silhouette that quickly went viral.
With almost seven degrees at the start and the sun shining brightly, the cross-country skier opted for lightness to avoid overheating. He had learned his lesson from the skiathlon. “I didn’t manage my diet and hydration very well. I was very thirsty at the start and I got hot straight away. I felt that I wasn’t really in good shape,” he confides in a TV2 video.
So before this 10 km, he took precautions. A few minutes before the start, he slipped away to hydrate. “I was thirsty and had to drink. I didn’t want to go through the same thing again, so I went to get some water. Does this cast any doubt on his timing ? I was in complete control of the situation. My number was in place, everything was ready. There were five minutes left, so I knew I was wide open.
Bold in form, solid in substance: Andrew Musgrave took a remarkable 6th place, the best British result in cross-country skiing at the Games. He improves on his seventh place in the skiathlon at Pyeongchang in 2018.
He held the lead for around thirty seconds before the eventual winner, Johannes Hoesflot Klæbo – now a triple gold medallist at these Games – crossed the line to take the lead.
In a statement from his federation, he said: ” I think I pushed a little too hard on the last lap and in the last two bumps I was completely out of it. Klæbo could almost have climbed the last climb backwards faster than me.
WHAT A MOMENT FOR MUZZY 🥳
He finishes sixth in the men’s 10km interval start free – that’s GB’s best-ever cross-country ski finish at a Winter Olympics. ⛷️#TeamGB | #MilanoCortina2026 pic.twitter.com/hptJ8tGvjS– Team GB (@TeamGB) February 13, 2026
Amused by the commotion caused by his outfit, he told the daily Bild: “It’ll make for some great Instagram photos. Without going as far as the shorts seen the day before on Finland’s Krista Pärmäkoski : “It’s uncomfortable, the snow splatters so much that you end up with ice in your shoes”.
Andrew Musgrave still has the 50km to go, and the Scot says he’s ready to get back into the fight in Tesero. “I’m not going out to celebrate or break out the champagne tonight, I’ll probably go home and get some rest.
Joe Davies said he was disappointed with his 12th place, 1 min 04 seconds behind the winner, while James Clugnet had a frustrating race: in great form, he saw his hopes dashed after a crash.
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