ANTERSELVA, ITALY, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Norwegian biathlete Sturla Holm Laegreid apologised to his gold medal-winning teammate Johan-Olav Botn after stealing the spotlight in a stunning post-race interview on Tuesday in which he admitted cheating on his girlfriend.
Laegreid, who took bronze in the men's Olympic 20km individual race, cried as he told Norwegian state broadcaster NRK that he had been unfaithful and his girlfriend had ended the relationship when he told her about it.
Laegreid's confession prompted a volley of criticism from some of the biggest names in Norwegian sport.
"Both the time, place and timing were completely wrong," biathlon great and Laegreid's former teammate Johannes Thingnes Boe, who won four gold medals at the Beijing Games, said in NRK's Olympic broadcast.
Therese Johaug, a four-time Olympic champion in cross-country skiing, agreed.
"I've never seen an interview like this before. It's completely, completely the wrong time and place to do it," she said on the same show.
Botn dedicated his victory to Norwegian biathlete Sivert Guttorm Bakken, who passed away in December.
Former cross-country skier Petter Northug, who was at the centre of several controversies related to alcohol and drugs during and after his glittering career, praised Botn on social media before taking aim at Laegreid.
"Johan-Olav Botn, a training product that has put in endless hours to reach the top. Honours his dead friend Sivert. Strong!" he wrote on X."Teammate chooses to focus on who he has or has not (slept with)."
Laegreid later asked Botn for forgiveness at the post-race media conference but said he stood by his choice.
"I apologise if I ruined your day, but I think you understand," Laegreid said to Botn as the medal winners took questionsfrom the media.
"I don't know. I stand by my choice. It is a choice I have made in life. I understood it very well, and I see it myself in retrospect. As I said, this is Johan's day and it's a shame that this should take the focus."
Botn said he was not concerned about Laegreid stealing the headlines.
"I don't get involved in it. For me, this is first and foremost a personal victory - how much space it gets (in the media) doesn't really matter to me," he said.
(Reporting by Philip O'Connor; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
