Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP via Getty Images
The women’s cross-country skiing team sprint qualifiers were held at the Olympics on Wednesday, and some of the people who were competing encountered an intruder on the track after a dog showed up near the finish line. It wasn’t clear how it got on the course, but we got some insight courtesy of the owners who shed light on their viral celebrity.
Cross-country skiing is one of the most grueling sports on the planet, as some of the top VO2max scores ever recorded have come courtesy of athletes who specialize in that particular discipline.
The amount of exertion and endurance required to excel in those competitions means skiers obviously want to avoid any unnecessary distractions, but a couple of Olympians who took part in a showdown in Italy on Wednesday found themselves dealing with one as they neared the finish line courtesy of a dog that decided to join them as they made their way down the final stretch.
DOG ON THE COURSE AT OLYMPIC SKIING. 🚨
The late entry closes strong at the cross country finish line! pic.twitter.com/o4mO28tXXW
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) February 18, 2026
It was pretty clear it wasn’t a feral canine based on the tag that could be seen dangling from its neck, and it didn’t take long for its owners to come forward and try to explain how it ended up where it definitely was not supposed to be.
Here’s how a dog managed to crash a cross-country race at the Winter Olympics
The cross-country skiing events at the 2026 Winter Olympics take place on the 19 km of trails that comprise the facility that’s located in the village of Lago di Tesero in northern Italy.
The quaint town boasts a number of lodging options that are within walking distance to the stadium where those races wrap up, and according to NPR, that includes a bed-and-breakfast that’s owned by a couple who have a two-year-old Czechoslovakian wolfdog (also known as a Vlciak) named Nazgul.
Nazgul found himself going viral after joining Croatia’s Tena Hadzic and Argentina’s Nahiara Díaz González as they were making their way to the finish during the team qualifier, and organizers were able to wrangle him after he curiously sniffed the latter after she crossed the line.
An official working at the event was related to his owners, who connected him with the outlet that was told the “stubborn, but very sweet” dog seemingly managed to escape after they left him at home to attend a biathlon race:
“He was crying this morning more than normal because he was seeing us leaving, and I think he just wanted to follow us. He always looks for people.”
Nazgul didn’t end up having an impact on the outcome of the event, and neither of the skiers who shared the track with him was a contender in a final where Sweden’s Jonna Sundling and Maja Dahlqvist got the gold.