His compatriot Denis Spitsov surpassed Finnish athlete Livo Niskanen in the second half to take his third Olympic silver medal in 1:17:20.8. Niskanen finished third in 1:18:10.0. This is Bolshunov's first Olympic gold medal after the Russian won three silver medals (50km mass start, team sprint, 4x10km relay) and one bronze (sprint) at Pyeongchang 2018.