Swedish skiers sweep women's classic sprint at Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics

TESERO, Italy -- Swedish skiers swept the podium in the women's sprint classic at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics on Tuesday at the Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Center.

Linn Svahn of Sweden finished in 4 minutes and 3.05 seconds to take the gold medal. Her teammate Jonna Sundling trailed 1.59 seconds to claim silver, while another Swedish athlete, Maja Dahlqvist, took bronze, crossing the line 4.83 seconds behind.

"There are so many mixed feelings," Svahn said after claiming her first Olympic gold. "One thing I feel is a relief, to finally get to take that medal and take that gold. And it's so nice to be able to share a moment like this with my friends."

"Everyone has been talking about what a strong team we have. To make our mark and do the whole podium sweep is amazing," she added.

China sent four athletes to compete in the event, all of whom were eliminated in the qualification round. Dinigeer Yilamujiang and Chi Chunxue finished in 53rd and 69th place, respectively, while Wang Yundi ranked 78th and He Kaile placed 84th.