The disappointment is great. Therese Johaug made a comeback after a two-year absence to win the World Championship 50km in Trondheim, but it ended up being a bronze behind Sweden's Frida Karlsson and her fellow countrywoman Heidi Weng.
I'm disappointed about today's race and for not achieving my dream, says Johaug, who landed on three silvers and a bronze in Trondheim.
But the perspective is different since two years ago, when her daughter Kristin was born. Nowadays, elite sports and gold medals are not the most important things.
The biggest and most important gold in life I already have beside the track, in Kristin and (husband) Nils Jakob Hoff. Life is more than cross-country skiing.
One must also say that she was agonizingly close to a new World Championship gold.
In the skiathlon, she lost to Ebba Andersson on the finish line photo. On the 10km classical, Andersson won with 1.3 seconds. In the relay, Norway lost a sprint finish for the gold, and on Sunday's final 50km, 2.9 seconds were missing to reach Frida Karlsson.
I'm four seconds away from four World Championship golds here at Granåsen. It's just that the margins haven't been on my side. The performance is actually good enough.
