Krasnaya Polyana, Russia (SportsNetwork.com) - Sweden secured its second straight Olympic gold in the men's 4x10-kilometer cross-country relay on Sunday at the Sochi Olympics.
The defending Olympic champions found themselves tied with Finland after two legs, but Johan Olsson skied a strong third leg to create a 14.3-second spread over second place heading into the final leg.
Swedish anchor Marcus Hellner, a silver medalist in the skiathlon at Sochi, then cruised to victory in the fourth leg. He picked up a Swedish flag from a coach along the way and held it high above his head down the home stretch before crossing the finish line and embracing his teammates.
Sweden finished with a total time of 1 hour, 28 minutes and 42 seconds, giving the nation a sweep in the cross-country relay after the women won Sweden's first gold of the Sochi Games in the 4x5-kilometer relay on Saturday.
Russia crossed the finish line 27.3 seconds after the Swedes to secure silver, with France finishing 4.6 seconds after Russia to grab bronze.
Norway, which won silver at this event in Vancouver, finished 1 minute, 9.7 seconds after Sweden to place fourth, while the United States and Canada finished 11th and 12th, respectively.