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The finalists in the women’s Olympic cross-country sprint race in Tesero on Wednesday included not just humans, but also a dog.
As the last athletes finished their race, a dog wandered onto the course and sprinted across the finish line with them, to the delight of the crowd. The dog first saw the scene as he entered the course and only took off towards the finish line once he noticed the runners.
The dog’s name is Nazgul and its owners are related to an official at the event, according to NPR. Nazgul is a 2-year-old Czechoslovakian wolfdog.
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A dog wanders on the ski slope during the women’s cross-country team sprint freestyle qualifying event of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics at the Tesero Cross-Country Stadium in Lago di Tesero, Val di Fiemme, Italy. February 18, 2026. (Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP via Getty Images)
“He was crying this morning more than usual because he saw us leaving — and I think he just wanted to follow us,” the owners, who were granted anonymity, told NPR. “He’s always looking for people.”
Nazgul’s surprise appearance did not appear to have had a major effect on the race as the top medal contenders had already crossed the finish line. The timekeepers even took a photo of the dog crossing the finish line.
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In this image taken from video provided by Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS), a dog runs on the track near the finish during the women’s cross-country ski team’s sprint freestyle heats at the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Tesero, Italy. February 18, 2026. (Olympic Broadcast Services via AP)
If Nazgul’s appearance on the track did not have a major impact on the race, it did have an impact on the mental state of the runners.
“I thought, ‘Am I hallucinating?'” Croatian skier Tena Hadzic said, according to NPR. “I don’t know what I should do, because maybe he might attack me, bite me.”
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A dog wanders on the ski slope during the women’s cross-country team sprint freestyle qualifying event of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics at the Tesero Cross-Country Stadium in Lago di Tesero, Val di Fiemme, Italy. February 18, 2026. (Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP via Getty Images)
Hadzic said she probably lost a few seconds because she was so unsettled, but said it wasn’t that bad because she wasn’t in contention for a medal.
