Piston comprising a closing element for a cooling channel

The piston (1) for an internal combustion engine has a top section (2) with a ring zone (4) and an encompassing recess (8), and bottom section (3) with cylinder bearing surfaces (9) and piston pin holes (11). The top and bottom sections are interconnected in a joining process and the ensuing joining point and the recess are closed off by a cover element (18) to form a cooling passage. The cover element is constructed in at least two parts and in the form of a spring element which is clamped in the piston to seal off the recess.