The German biathletes impress in the sprint in Oberhof. Franziska Preuß ensures the next podium finish in what has been a strong winter so far.
After the men’s successful start to the biathlon competitions in Oberhof on Friday morning with Benedikt Doll’s victory, the women were able to build on that in the afternoon. Franziska Preuß from Upper Bavaria was the second fastest athlete in the Thuringian Forest to the cheers of the spectators, just 4.4 seconds behind the overall World Cup leader Justine Braisaz-Bouchet. And just two tenths of a second ahead of her French compatriot Sophie Chauveau, who came third.
Unlike Preuß (0 errors), Braisaz-Bouchet missed twice – and then delivered a fantastic running performance. “I had a great time during the Christmas break”said the Frenchwoman in the Sportschau interview. She had previously won three World Cups in a row.
Preuß provides the next exclamation mark in a severe winter
This time Braisaz-Bouchet was ultimately a good minute faster on the cross-country ski trail than the German model athlete. “I got into my rhythm really well on the shooting range, I don’t think there was anything wobbly there.”said Preuss. “I had to fight at the end on the track. But nonetheless, I’m happy with second place now.” After two podium finishes at the start in Östersund, she provided the next exclamation mark from DSV’s point of view in what has been a strong winter so far.
Lars Becker, Sportschau, January 5th, 2024 4:04 p.m
Hettich-Walz and Voigt also made no mistakes
Like Preuß, Janina Hettich-Walz and local hero Vanessa Voigt also reached the finish without any mistakes – at the challenging shooting range on Rennsteig. “I’m really happy that all the windows fell”said Hettich-Walz. “It wasn’t easy to run – and in general it was a tough route, especially with the headwind, but I fought through.”
On the cross-country ski trail the two were a bit slower than Preuß. Hettich-Walz achieved a respectable fifth place (+23.8 seconds), Voigt was 13th (+53.2 seconds). Sophia Schneider came 15th on her comeback after a corona infection (1 error/+ 54.3). Selina Grotian came 21st with two shooting errors, Hanna Kebinger took 33rd place with the same number of black targets.
Podium comeback after corona infection for Preuß
This second place was particularly special for Preuß. Finally, the strongest and most experienced DSV athlete had to sit out this season again due to illness. At the beginning of December she was plagued by a corona infection and lost the yellow jersey she had previously won.
After her comeback in Lenzerheide in December and now the podium comeback in Oberhof, it looks as if she could establish herself at the top of the overall standings again.