Disappointment instead of home victory: Franziska Preuß clearly missed the podium in the Oberhof sprint in extreme weather conditions. The leader in the overall World Cup had to be content with a sobering 28th place in the 7.5 km race on the Rennsteig. So far, fifth place had been her worst result of the season; Preuß had already been on the podium six times this winter, taking two victories.
In Paula Botet’s surprise victory, the 30-year-old was 2:00.2 minutes behind after three shooting errors in partly pouring rain and gusty winds. After all, Julia Tannheimer once again hinted at her potential in front of 10,000 fans. The 19-year-old finished in a good ninth place with one mistake (+56.4 seconds) and was the best DSV athlete. Selina Grotian (1/+59.0), who recently won the Grand Bornand mass start, took 10th place. Vanessa Voigt (2/+3:38.2), who was recently injured, crossed the finish line far behind.
The Frenchwoman Botet triumphed with a flawless shooting performance ahead of the Norwegian Maren Kirkeeide (1/+31.1) and the Bulgarian Milena Todorova (1/35.0). Botet’s best World Cup result so far was 21st place.
Almost three weeks after a heart operation, Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold was back at the start for the first time. The Norwegian made two shooting errors in her comeback and still came in 15th. Shortly before Christmas, the 28-year-old had a thin catheter inserted during a minimally invasive procedure after cardiac arrhythmia.
The men’s 10 km sprint continues on Friday (2.20 p.m./ZDF and Eurosport). The pursuits take place on Saturday (12.30 p.m. and 2.45 p.m.) before the weekend in Oberhof ends on Sunday with the single mixed (12.20 p.m.) and mixed relay (2.30 p.m./all ZDF and Eurosport). Afterwards we continue directly to Ruhpolding, where part two of the German weeks awaits from January 15th.
Source: www.sport.de
