3:19 p.m
Congratulations to Giacomel
The Italian wins confidently, congratulations! Perrot follows behind – but what happens after that? Strelow had to narrowly admit defeat to Christiansen in the final sprint and thus missed his first podium. It’s a shame, but still a strong race from the German!
15:18
Christansen comes
The Norwegians are flying in, it’s going to be really tight! Giacomel is slowly approaching the goal.
15:18
Lead melts
Is that exciting! Strelow is now only nine seconds ahead of the rest…
3:16 p.m
15 seconds lead
Things are looking good for Strelow at the moment, although he still has a long climb ahead of him. The German has about 15 seconds ahead of Botn and the rest.
3:15 p.m
Strelow has to fight
Zobel hits everything, but Justus Strelow now has to give everything on the track and defend third place. First place for Giacomel and second place for Perrot have already been taken.
15:13
What are the others doing?
who is coming from behind? Christiansen and Botn, who are now 20 seconds behind Strelow and the podium. This could be tight! Unfortunately, Nawrath and Horn have to go back into the round.
15:12
Last shooting
All eyes on Giacomel! The Italian doesn’t show any weakness and quickly hits everything – that’s the victory! But Perrot and Strelow also remain without mistakes!
15:11
Giacomel continues to accelerate
Giacomel continues to press the gas, behind him Strelow can no longer keep up with the fast Frenchman Perrot. We are getting closer to the decision!
3:09 p.m
Giacomel with a lead
The Italian is setting an incredible pace and is now over ten seconds ahead of Perrot and Strelow! Botn and Christiansen lurk 15 seconds behind. By the way, Burkhalter also remained flawless in the third shooting, very strong! The Swiss is currently ninth.
3:08 p.m
Strelow in third place
Justus Strelow has been the Germans’ bright spot so far, he continues to fight for victory. However, he has very strong competition with Perrot and Giacomel.
3:07 p.m
Third shooting
Giacomel quickly scores five goals, as do Perrot and Strelow! The Norwegians around Laegreid and Botn come close, Nawrath has to complete an extra lap again – just like Horn. Zobel also has to spin once.
3:05 p.m
Strelow keeps up well
The German keeps up well in the fast leading group, which is certainly also due to the fast skis. Keep it up!
3:03 p.m
Horn on 21
Horn is ranked 21st, just behind Botn. Zobel left the shooting range in 28th place. Nawrath in 13th place is almost 20 seconds behind Perrot, so everything is still possible!
3:01 p.m
Burkhalter continues to do well
Burkhalter was also able to avoid the penalty and, with a little distance, continues to stay close to the leading group led by Perrot.
3:00 p.m
Strelow strong at the shooting range
Samuelsson lays down on lane one, but Strelow starts first again and gets through super quickly without making any mistakes! Samuelsson, Frey and Perrot also made no mistakes, Nawrath and Horn had to spin once. David Zobel now meets everything.
14:58
Sextet with a lead
The sextet has a slight lead over the rest of the field and is still close together. They gradually approach the shooting range again.
2:55 p.m
Samuelsson leads
Perrot and Samuelsson set the pace at the front, followed by Strelow, Wright, Nawrath, Frey and Burkhalter. David Zobel is currently last.
14:53
Burkhalter is at the forefront
Burkhalter was also able to avoid the penalty lap and is now running in a large leading group around Perrot and Strelow. 13 athletes made it through the first shooting without any mistakes.
14:53
First shooting
And off we go to the shooting range, the field stayed relatively close together. Strelow starts quickly and hits everything, Nawrath makes no mistakes – like many athletes. Horn has to spin once, as does Botn – Zobel even hits it twice.
2:50 p.m
Seppälä loses stick
Like Franziska Preuß this afternoon, the Finn Tero Seppälä now also needs a stick – he quickly gets one, but it doesn’t quite fit. At the front, the Swede Samuelsson continues to set the pace.
2:48 p.m
Be careful, risk of falling
In the first lap everyone runs together, so it will be very tight in places and there could be falls. It is therefore important to find a good position in the field and avoid accordion effects. Samuelsson is currently leading the field.
2:45 p.m
It’s starting!
The starting signal has been given, we are looking forward to an exciting race! Will there be another duel between France and Norway for victory?
14:41
Eder and Burkhalter are there
Simon Eder made it into the mass start for the Austrians, and the veteran has to get through the shooting today too. The Swiss are also pinning their hopes on a single athlete – namely Joscha Burkhalter, who has jumped into the top 30 thanks to his good performances in the last races.
2:34 p.m
Good conditions
The conditions today are very good, the German women also had fast skis this afternoon and were able to make up time on the descents. The wind is also fine at the shooting range, so everything is in place for a fair race!
14:28
German quartet
The German men can’t quite catch up with the world leaders yet. In the pursuit, Phillip Nawrath finished tenth as the best German. There were simply too many mistakes made at the shooting range, which from a German perspective should change today. In addition to Nawrath, Philipp Horn, Justus Strelow and David Zobel also qualified for the mass start.
14:21
First mass start of the season
The popular competition is back: for the first time this season, biathletes will compete in the mass start. The 25 best World Cup finishers plus the five best of the week have qualified for the 15 kilometers. With four shooting stages, a lot of excitement is promised. There are many favorites for victory, but especially the strong Norwegians around the whiz kid and the overall World Cup leader Johan-Olav Botn are hot candidates. The home fans can also have their hopes up: three Frenchmen, Eric Perrot, Emilien Jacquelin and Quentin Fillon Maillet, are currently in very good form.
2:15 p.m
Welcome!
Welcome to the men’s sprint! The best 30 biathletes compete in the mass start in Annecy, France. The starting signal is given at 2:45 p.m.