Whistler (AFP) - Russia's Nikita Kriukov held off room-mate and compatriot Alexander Panzhinskiy in a thrilling photo-finish to claim Olympic gold in the men's sprint classic Wednesday. The 24-year-old Kriukov was pushed all the way by Panzhinskiy with the pair crossing the line together, but the photo gave Kruikov the winning time of three minutes 36.33sec, leaving his rival a fraction behind. Norway's Petter Northug Jnr came third. "It was really a difficult race for me, I qualified fourth and I knew Panzhinskiy was my one of the favourites after qualifying first for the final," said Kriukov. "I wasn't nervous at all, it didn't put me at a disadvantage, I knew medals were up for grabs and I fought to the death." Northug, the current overall World Cup leader, made up for the disappointment of finishing 41st on Monday in the men's 15km freestyle, by claiming third at 9.2sec behind on the 1.6 km course at Whistler Olympic Park. Following Monday's disaster, the 24-year-old Northug has finally started showing the type of form which saw him win three gold medals at last year's world championships in Liberec. "It was a very tough race," said the Norwegian. "There was a pretty short break between the semi-final and final. "I tried to close the gap (behind the Russians), but they went really fast and and I didn't have the power on the last hill to catch them." "I didn't see myself as a favourite for gold, I just wanted to reach the final, so I am happy." Currently ranked 18th on ...

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