Johannes Thingnes Bö clinched his first win of the season at the start of the Biathlon World Cup in Hochfilzen. The former world-class athlete Laura Dahlmeier then classified the Norwegian’s victory – and was overall very impressed by the level of the Scandinavians.
Five Norwegians in the first seven places: In the 10-kilometer sprint in Hochfilzen, Austria, the top favorites around Johannes Thingnes Bö dominated on Friday afternoon.
The reigning overall World Cup winner crossed the finish line 4.2 seconds earlier than his compatriot Sturla Holm Laegreid. Endre Strømsheim (4th), Vebjörn Sörum (5th) and World Cup debutant Martin Uldal (7th) also achieved good results. The Norwegian dominance was only broken by the Frenchman Fabien Claude (3rd) and the Swede Sebastian Samuelsson (6th).
Bö had been concerned about safety in the prone shooting position, but in the standing position he then followed up with a quick volley in a familiar manner. He made a mistake.
Bö “challenged” the bug
“He was incredibly fast in standing shooting,” emphasized Olympic champion Laura Dahlmeier in her role as a “ZDF” expert. Gust only takes 21 seconds. “He challenged the mistake. He knew that he could make up for it with a fast time on the track,” analyzed the 31-year-old. On the final lap, Bö “had to give it his all” again.
Bö wasn’t in the best shape at the start of the World Cup in Kontiolahti. The victory in the sprint now underlines his status as favorite. “If I can win a World Cup race, I can’t be out of shape. He may not be as dominant as he was in previous years so that he can play with the competition. Everything has to be right for him in order to be able to do so in the long term to get to the front. But without form you won’t win a race.”
Bö rated the victory in Hochfilzen as a “good start” that will now give new impetus. “We have a really great team and we don’t have to worry so much about the international competition,” said the 31-year-old, who knows that after Hochfilzen the Norwegians will no longer be allowed to field seven ski hunters, but only six.
Dahlmeier impressed by Norway debutant
“The biggest challenge lies in the team, the boys in the IBU Cup have the same level as us. We really have to be careful and fight for our place. Johannes Dale, for example, is not here, these are crazy times,” emphasized Bö: “I I can feel the pressure, even if my results are good. I have to keep qualifying.”
The high level of the Norwegians is best shown by the performance of Martin Uldal, who celebrated his World Cup debut on Friday.
“He’s 21 seconds short of first place and that with two mistakes: That shows how strong he is as a runner and what a high standard this B team has. You can’t even talk about a B team if someone is in the World Cup comes and performs like that,” said Dahlmeier, impressed.