In the men's 10km + 10km skiathlon at the Winter Olympics, Ireland's Thomas Maloney Westgaard finished 35th of the 73 competitors who completed.

Using both the classic and free techniques in the same race, Maloney Westgaard competing at a third Olympics, finished three minutes and 13 second behind gold medallist Johannes Klabeo of Norway.

After the 10km+10Km skiathlon @WestgardThomas finishes 35th of the 73 competitors who completed #TeamIreland #MilanoCortina2026 #rtesport pic.twitter.com/tnUJY0oVHg

France's Mathius ⁠Desloges took the ⁠silver, pending a possible protest, while ⁠Norway's Martin ⁠Nyenget won bronze.

Maloney Westgaard targeted a finish between 30th and 40th, his starting bib was 36, so all told a satisfactory outcome, with the 30-year admitting afterwards that he "put everything out there" in what a challenging race.

"Brutal, that was a tough one, soft conditions, quite icy, and quite tricky," he said afterwards.

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"It was a real challenging course for sure and I was a bit anxious in some of the downhills.

"My plan was to stick in the front for as long as I could but the pace was ridiculous, full-out right from the start. No time for rest, the cramps were coming. It was so tough just like it should be in the Olympics. I put everything out there and I can't really ask for more.

"I struggle a bit with overreaching. So, I had kind of no clue what kind of shape I came here to the Olympics, and I mean, I had had better races for sure, but, I'm really happy.

"I'm proud to represent Ireland here, and I put everything else there, and I can't really ask for more, I gave everything, and I couldn't really do more, and I just look forward to the upcoming races."

Maloney Westgaard has two more events in Italy and will return to action on Friday next for the 10km freestyle event before the 50k classic on Saturday 21 February.

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Images Courtesy of Getty Images.

Thomas Maloney Westgaard in action on the slopes