The Norwegian was last on the podium last week in Falun, finishing second in the 15km mass start, but has not won an event since January 2019 in Val di Fiemme in Italy where he took gold in the 9km pursuit. 

His fifth World Cup win in Sweden led an all-Norwegian podium that also featured Simen Hegstad Krüger and Finn Hågen Krogh with the latter taking his first podium of the season and his 29th overall. 

Only two seconds separated the top two with Røthe winning in a time of 30min 41.5sec.

Martin Johnsrud Sundby would continue the dominance from the nation in fourth ahead of overall World Cup leader, Russia's Alexander Bolshunov in fifth. 

The only skier not from one of the two dominant countries in the top ten would be Adrien Backscheider of France in seventh, his best performance of the season so far. 

In the distance standings, despite finishing fifth, Bolshunov still sits top of the table ahead of Røthe and Finland's Iivo Niskanen who had a day to forget in 27th.

It was no surprise that in the women's standings, Therese Johaug won her 12th race of the year in another Norwegian lockout on the podium, winning comfortably in 21:49.7.

Her team-mates Heidi Weng and Ingvild Flugstad Østberg were more than 45 seconds behind her with both just holding off Sweden's young prodigy Ebba Andersson.

Johaug is still at the top of the distance standings ahead of Weng and Russia's Natalia Nepryaeva who could only muster 10th.