Latest news with #InternationalBiathlonUnionWorldChampionships
Reuters
23-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Norway dominate as Stroemsheim strikes gold in Boe's farewell
LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Norway celebrated a clean sweep of the podium in the men's 15km mass start at the International Biathlon Union World Championships on Sunday with Endre Stroemsheim securing gold with a tremendous burst on the final lap to cruise to victory. Sturla Holm Laegreid took silver, beating out Johannes Thingnes Boe, who was taking part in the last world championship race of his glittering career, by three-tenths of a second in a thrilling battle to decide the podium places. While Stroemsheim and Lagreid both rattled through their final series of five shots and left the range neck-and=neck, Stroemsheim accelerated away from his compatriot to win by 12.4 seconds. "I had a very easy race. My shooting was good, and I was able to save a lot of energy. I knew I had a strong push for the final lap. I didn't dare to wait when Johannes was closing in behind me, so I went a bit earlier than planned," Stroemsheim said. Stroemsheim's breakaway on the final lap left Laegreid in a dogfight to keep the chasing Thingnes Boe at bay, but the 31-year-old five-time Olympic champion seemed to run out of energy on the final straight, allowing Laegreid to hold him off and take silver. Thingnes Boe registered misses on each of his first three visits to the range, but he hit all five shots at the final standing shoot to put himself in with a chance before coming up just short of the silver medal. "It was a messy race in many ways, but I shot clean when it mattered and came away with a medal, so it wasn't too bad," Thingnes Boe told Norwegian broadcaster NRK. Earlier on Sunday, Sweden's Elvira Oeberg delivered a sensational final shooting, hitting all five targets to snatch gold in a thrilling 12.5km mass start finale, finishing ahead of France's Oceane Michelon and Norway's Maren Kirkeeide.
Reuters
19-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
France's Perrot powers to victory in men's 20km individual race
LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland, Feb 19 (Reuters) - France's Eric Perrot overcame a single early miss on the shooting range with a powerful display of skiing to cruise to gold in the men's 20km individual race at the International Biathlon Union World Championships on Wednesday. The 23-year-old completed the course in 47 minutes and 58.1 seconds, 52.4 seconds ahead of Tommaso Giacomel of Italy, who took silver, with Quentin Fillon Maillet securing the bronze for France, just under two minutes behind the winner. The brilliant run of form that had Norwegian Johannes Thingnes Boe win the first two individual gold medals at the championships came to an abrupt halt after three misses at the first shoot, causing him to finish well outside the top 10. Warm weather and bright sunshine in Lenzerheide, Switzerland greeted the 97 participants as they set off on the course at 30-second intervals, but with each missed shot adding a minute to their time, the athletes had to be wary of the tricky gusts of wind that caused them problems on the shooting range. Local favourites Niklas Hartweg and Sebastian Stalder at one point were first and second after crossing the line, but with the stronger contenders all starting in the middle of the field, the two Swiss racers were eventually edged off the podium. Perrot, whose sole miss came on the second shoot, found his groove in the middle of the race, speeding around the course and hitting his final 10 shots to heap the pressure on his rivals. Italy's Giacomel responded best as he battled to keep pace with the Frenchman's skiing, but a miss on the 19th of his 20 shots in the competition and the ensuing one-minute penalty dashed his hopes of a gold medal.
Reuters
18-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
France's Simon storms to gold in women's 15km individual race
LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Julia Simon of France brushed off what could have been a costly miss on the final shoot to power to victory in the women's 15km individual race at the International Biathlon Union World Championships on Tuesday in a time of 41 minutes, 27.7 seconds. Simon finished a whopping 37.8 seconds ahead of Ella Halvarsson, who secured a sensational silver medal for Sweden, with Simon's compatriot Lou Jeanmonnot picking up the bronze, 1.4 seconds behind the Swede. With each miss on the shooting range instantly adding a minute to the racer's time, accuracy was at a premium in the bright sunshine, with many athletes opting for short sleeves in the warm spring conditions. Starting 46th in the 93-athlete field, Simon hit her first 10 shots and skied brilliantly to take control in the middle of the race, building up a lead of 19.4 seconds over Germany's Franziska Preuss after the third shoot. Like Simon, Preuss arrived at the final shoot with her fate firmly in her own hands, but a pair of misses in her final series of five shots put paid to any hope she might have of making the podium. Simon's powerful skiing throughout meant that she could afford a miss at the last shoot, leaving the range with a lead of 15.8 seconds over Halvarsson, and she blazed through the final lap to increase her margin to more than half a minute as she crossed the finish line. Halvarsson, whose only previous World Cup podium came in the short individual race in Kontiolahti in Finland in December, was a perfect 20 for 20 on the range, but she struggled over the final stretch and faced a nervous wait to see whether her efforts would be enough for a medal. The biggest threat came from Jeanmonnot but despite a huge effort over the final 200 metres, the Frenchwoman finished narrowly behind the Swede and had to be content with bronze.
The Guardian
15-02-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
American Campbell Wright wins shock silver at world biathlon championships
Johannes Thingnes Boe outclassed the field to win gold for Norway in the men's 10km sprint at the International Biathlon Union World Championships on Saturday, with Campbell Wright clinching a shock silver for the United States. The New Zealand-born American finished 27.7 seconds behind Thingnes Boe, who won in 21 minutes, 56.8 seconds, with France's Quentin Fillon Maillet taking the bronze. 'This is what everyone dreams of, and to do it already this early in my career, I don't know man, don't expect me to do that tomorrow is all I'm saying,' Wright told Swiss broadcaster SRF. 'Just be happy with today.' However, the day belonged to the 31-year-old Thingnes Boe, who has said he will retire after a glittering career at the end of the season. Thingnes Boe was imperious on the course as he claimed his 21st World Championship gold, rattling off a quick-fire 10 hits from his 10 shots amid a lightning-fast performance on the skis to obliterate the competition. Friday's swirling snow during the women's event gave way to bright sunshine and perfect shooting conditions for the 99 starters in the men's race, with each miss on the range costing them an energy-sapping lap of the 150m penalty loop. With the athletes starting at 30-second intervals, local favourite Sebastian Stalder had the fans on their feet as he battled for the early lead with Sweden's Jesper Nelin, but with some of the strongest racers starting in the middle of the field, it wasn't to last. A miss on the second shoot by 2024 champion Sturla Holm Laegreid cost him a place on the podium on a day when most of the Norwegian team under-performed, but Thingnes Boe spared their blushes with his brilliant performance. Having made the switch from New Zealand to the US two years ago, the 22-year-old Wright put on a blistering show to claim his first medal at the world championships. Beijing Olympic sprint silver medallist Fillon Maillet was left to rue a miss on the first shoot that likely cost him second place.
Reuters
15-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Norway's Thingnes Boe crushes field to grab sprint gold
LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Johannes Thingnes Boe outclassed the field to win gold for Norway in the men's 10km sprint at the International Biathlon Union World Championships on Saturday, with Campbell Wright clinching a shock silver for the United States. The New Zealand-born American finished 27.7 seconds behind Thingnes Boe, who won in 21 minutes, 56.8 seconds, with France's Quentin Fillon Maillet taking the bronze. However, the day belonged to the 31-year-old Thingnes Boe, who has said he will retire after a glittering career at the end of the season. Thingnes Boe was imperious on the course as he claimed his 21st World Championship gold, rattling off a quick-fire 10 hits from his 10 shots amid a lightning-fast performance on the skis to obliterate the competition. Friday's swirling snow during the women's event gave way to bright sunshine and perfect shooting conditions for the 99 starters in the men's race, with each miss on the range costing them an energy-sapping lap of the 150-metre penalty loop. With the athletes starting at 30-second intervals, local favourite Sebastian Stalder had the fans on their feet as he battled for the early lead with Sweden's Jesper Nelin, but with some of the strongest racers starting in the middle of the field, it wasn't to last. A miss on the second shoot by 2024 champion Sturla Holm Laegreid cost him a place on the podium on a day when most of the Norwegian team under-performed, but Thingnes Boe spared their blushes with his brilliant performance. Having made the switch from New Zealand to the U.S. two years ago, the 22-year-old Wright put on a blistering show to claim his first medal at the World Championships. Beijing Olympic sprint silver medallist Fillon Maillet was left to rue a miss on the first shoot that likely cost him second place.
