Cross-country skier Kim Magnus took his second gold medal at the 2016 Winter Youth Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, after winning the men's 10-kilometer free cross-country skiing on Thursday.

Kim, born to a Norwegian father and a Korean mother and competing under the South Korean flag, finished in 23 minutes, 4.8 seconds to beat Vebjoern Hegdal of Norway by 16 seconds at Birkebeineren Cross-Country Stadium. Russia's Igor Fedotov was third after finishing the course in 23:59.2.

This was Kim's third medal at the Lillehammer Youth Games. The 17-year-old bagged his first gold medal on Feb. 13 in the men's cross-country cross free and added a silver from the 1.3km sprint classic.

He is the first skier to win a gold medal for Korea at the Winter Youth Olympics, which first started in 2012.

"I had thought about winning a medal in this event, but I didn’t expect to collect two gold medals and one silver," Kim said in a phone interview with Yonhap News Agency. "Even if you are talented, I think this is a difficult achievement because you also need some luck."

Kim, who was born in Busan, a port city that is 400km south of Seoul, still holds dual citizenship in both Norway and Korea. But last May the skier announced he will represent his mother's land in major events, including the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. The International Olympic Committee rule says that athletes with dual citizenship can compete for only one country they've represented in the three years prior to the Olympic Games.

Kim, who can also compete in the biathlon, said Norwegians are not disappointed by his decision to ski for South Korea.

They (Norwegians) actually like me representing Korea because people think this is an opportunity to develop the sport," he said. "In Norway, most people welcome the idea of promoting skiing to other countries."

Kim's next destination is the International Ski Federation Nordic Junior World Ski Championships in Rastov, Romania, where he will face tougher opponents than in Lillehammer. In the Youth Olympic Games, athletes who are aged between 16 and 18 compete, but in the Junior Worlds, the maximum age limit is set at 20. The FIS event starts on Sunday.

"I also aim to win a medal in this event," Kim said.

Kim said he will not come back to South Korea at least until end of March because he plans to compete in the remaining Nordic ski events. (Yonhap)