Highest tension in the men's relay
Biathlon pentathlon: The men's relay at the BMW IBU Biathlon World Cup in Oberhof turned into a real thriller in front of 19,000 enthusiastic spectators in fantastic weather. In a high-class race that remained open until the final stretch, Norway narrowly beat France and Sweden. Germany narrowly missed out on the first relay podium of the season, finishing fifth.
But one thing at a time: the German relay team went into the race without Philipp Horn, who was ill, while Norway had to start without its top stars Johan-Olav Botn and Sturla Holm Lægreid, who did not compete in Oberhof.
First skier Justus Strelow got off to a solid start for the DSV team. With one reload each in the prone and standing shooting, he kept a gap within limits. While Fabien Claude (France) and Isak Leknes Frey (Norway) did not miss any targets, Germany handed over in fifth place. ‘There was a slight breeze, but it was easily manageable. I was a little too hesitant in the standing position – then I made a mistake and had to make up for it,’ Strelow summed up.
In the second group, the race was completely shaken up. Emilien Jacquelin and Johannes Dale-Skjevdal both had to complete two penalty loops, while Lucas Fratzscher shone for Germany with a strong performance. Driven by the atmosphere at Birxsteig, he kept his nerve and brought the DSV team within striking distance with only one reload in total. ‘The fans pushed me up the Birxsteig, accompanied me in the stadium and during the shooting – I wanted to give something back,’ said Fratzscher, who handed over in third place, behind Switzerland and Czechia.
Philipp Nawrath even brought Germany meanwhile into the lead, but then – as in the pursuit – had problems with the standing shooting. He needed all three spare rounds and just managed to avoid the penalty loop. ‘I tried to calm down and focus before the standing shooting – unfortunately, that didn't quite work here,’ said Nawrath self-critically after the race. The Norwegian Martin Uldal and Frenchman Quentin Fillon Maillet managed better, clearing all targets in both shooting rounds. Norway and Germany arrived at the final changeover almost simultaneously. Sweden followed close behind, impressively led by Martin Ponsiluoma to the leading group. France was also lurking just a few seconds behind – the stage was set for a thrilling relay showdown.
Final skier David Zobel showed no nerves against the world-class competition. After the prone shooting, he put Germany back in the lead to loud cheers in the ARENA am Rennsteig. After the final shooting, a biathlon pentathlon of the highest calibre developed. Eric Perrot was the first to enter the final lap, closely followed by Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen, with Zobel, Sebastian Samuelsson and Tommaso Giacomel close behind. It had been a long time since such a scenario: five strong runners fought for victory with a total gap of twelve seconds. Christiansen then made the decisive attack on Perrot shortly before the finish line and secured Norway an emotional victory over France with a 2.6-second lead.
Right behind him, Zobel fought bravely against Samuelsson, but had to let the fast-running Swede take the lead. Oberhof double winner Giacomel also overtook the German on the final metres. ‚It was incredibly exciting on a day like this, with this weather and this atmosphere. One less reload and a little more power in the final lap – then it would have been perfect. But I will remember this day forever,’ said Zobel.
However, fifth place, 5.4 seconds behind Norway, shows that on a good day, the DSV team can cause a surprise at the Olympics and is within striking distance of the world's best. Norway, France and Sweden are currently a force to be reckoned with and, above all, are always able to compensate for penalty loops on the rest of the field with their skiing.