Sharp criticism of biathlon star Martin Ponsiluoma. Because the Swede also presented himself completely out of character at the pre-Christmas World Cup in Annecy, the former French world-class biathlete Delphyne Burlet now took him seriously.
The World Cup weekend in Annecy was something like the sad highlight of the biathlon season so far for Martin Ponsiluoma. The Swede only landed in 58th and 19th place in the sprint and pursuit. In the final mass start, after ten shooting errors (highest for the day), he also brought the red lantern to the finish.
Former French world-class biathlete Delphyne Burlet spoke in her column for Nordic Magazine not only about the 29-year-old’s personal crisis, but also about the “shooting valley” that the entire Swedish team is going through this winter.
Biathlon star made ex-runner “really angry”
“I’m so disappointed that they don’t raise their shooting level a little higher. They have great shooting coaches, but they’re not 100 percent focused and then everything goes out the window. If they shot well, they could beat the other guy hurt a lot,” Burlet complained about the Tre Kronor’s level on the mat.
Annecy Ponsilouma stood out negatively from the weak team. “He really pissed me off with his last standing stage in the mass start. He was completely hunched over, not standing fully on his feet at all and then made four penalties. He needs to work on his shooting in Sweden and focus on the basics again. He has “Everything is lost,” the former team world champion criticizes the Swedish superstar.
“Shitty race” before the short vacation
The 2024/25 World Cup season has actually been catastrophic for the two-time world champion so far. It started in the individual in Kontiolahti, where he finished in 71st place. The Swedish team’s second-best biathlete achieved his best placement to date in the Hochfilzen sprint. But even there, in the end, Ponsiluoma only managed a disappointing twelfth place.
In the overall World Cup, the 29-year-old is only in 27th place at the Christmas break. Before flying on his short vacation, he aptly described his mass start appearance in Annecy as a “shit race”.