Norwegian Olympic athlete Sturla Holm Lægreid wasn’t celebrating when he won a bronze medal at the ongoing 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. Instead, he broke down on live TV and confessed to cheating on his girlfriend three months before.
On February 10, as first reported by Norwegian Broadcasting Company (NRK), shortly after Sturla won a bronze medal in the men’s 20km biathlon, he was interviewed about his accomplishment. And it was during this interview that Lægreid pivoted to confessing to recently cheating on his girlfriend, losing her, and being miserable.
“There is someone I wanted to share this with who might not be watching today,” said Sturla in a post-event interview. “Six months ago, I met the love of my life, the most beautiful and kindest person in the world. Three months ago, I made the biggest mistake of my life and was unfaithful.” He said he’d admitted a week ago to cheating and added, “This has been the worst week of my life.”
Så ikke helt denne komme. Tidenes mest absurde medaljeintervju. 🫣 pic.twitter.com/fFwJ1B0vCO
— Daniel Vassbund (@Smoothedan) February 10, 2026
“I want to be a good role model, but I just have to admit when I make mistakes. It hurts to admit when you do something you can’t stand for and hurt someone you love so much. But that’s life now.”
So why did Sturla admit to cheating on his girlfriend at the Winter Olympics right after winning a medal? Well, in a follow-up inteview with NRK, the skiier explained it was his attempt at possibly getting her back.
“I have nothing to lose. I had a chance at true love, and I screwed up so badly. It’s not necessarily forgivable. But if this gives me a tiny chance to tell her how much I love her, I’d rather commit social suicide on live TV just to get that little chance,” said Strula.
When the reporter pointed out that he just aired their private situation publicly to the world, he seemed to realize this was probably not the best choice, replying: “Maybe I messed up my chance now to get her back.”