Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics – Cross-Country Skiing – Women’s Team Sprint Qualification – Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium, Lago, Italy – February 18, 2026. An Omega photofinish camera captures a dog crossing the finish line after it ran onto the course during the competition. Omega/Handout via REUTERS
18 Feb 2026 07:26PM (Updated: 18 Feb 2026 07:39PM)
TESERO, Italy, Feb 18 : A husky with lots of enthusiasm but no credentials gatecrashed a women’s team sprint cross-country race on Wednesday, giving an impromptu performance that had spectators howling with delight.
The dog wandered onto the stadium course in Tesero during the qualifying event, spotted a couple of athletes on the finishing straight and decided to join the action.
The canine sniffed around for a bit before racing across the line ahead of the skiers to wild cheers from a crowd clearly entertained by the unexpected addition to the field.
Officials eventually got hold of the tail-wagging interloper but not before timekeepers preparing for a photo-finish in the race captured an image of the dog crossing the line.
(Tommy Lund and Liz Hampton in Tesero; Editing by Ken Ferris)
