Philipp Nawrath achieved a personal career highlight at the World Cup sprint in Östersund. After his perfect race, the 30-year-old also looked back on the difficult years in biathlon.
For the first time in his biathlon career, Philipp Nawrath was on top of the podium in an individual World Cup competition. “This result means a lot to me, it means everything,” said the Füssen native happily in an interview with “Fondo Italia” after his victory on Saturday in Sweden.
Particularly noteworthy: Nawrath goes into pursuit on Sunday (4:00 p.m.) as the overall World Cup leader.
“Certainly what everyone is striving for is to catch up with the Norwegians, who have dominated the World Cup races in the last three or four years,” said the DSV athlete, who crossed the finish line around 18 seconds ahead of Tarjei Bø and 19 seconds ahead of Vebjørn Sørum came. Last season’s World Cup dominator Johannes Thingnes Bø only ended up in 18th place.
In a “very tactical race”, Nawrath tried to keep calm and not push the limit too much – the cornerstone for error-free shooting performance. “I was hoping to be on the podium and finally not only the podium came but also the win. It’s unbelievable!”
Teammate Rees provided an extra boost of motivation
In the moment of success, the biathlon veteran also thought about his recent difficult years in the sport. “I struggled and had to take a step back a few times in the IBU Cup and it was hard to keep up with the rest of the team and keep going, keep my motivation high and today it worked in the end,” Nawrath highlighted .
After tearing a ligament and breaking his metatarsal in the spring, Nawrath had to fight his way back in the summer. However, he already underlined his good form at the German Championships when he won the individual race on roller skis.
Meanwhile, teammate Roman Rees, who had previously won the individual competition ahead of Justus Strelow, provided an additional boost of motivation.
“Roman Rees’ victory motivated me a lot, it was a great success for him. He was really tough and if you watch the race again you can see his great performance, and the same goes for Justus Strelow,” Nawrath was happy for his DSV colleagues: “I knew that I was very close to the two of them, because even though my shooting in the individual wasn’t perfect, I had delivered a good race and I knew that I could count on this today level, and in the sprint I pushed hard and gave it my all.”
After the first competitions, the trio now leads the World Cup rankings: Philipp Nawrath is at the top with 102 points, one more than Justus Strelow, while Roman Rees is third with 90 points.