With the weekend closed out in Oberhof, Germany and the start of the second IBU World Cup trimester underway it’s time for, thank you Seth Meyer, … a closer look.
Norway’s male biathlon ringer, Johannes Thingnes Bø, was on the sideline for the weekend. Prior to the Oberhof stop, he had worn the yellow bib as the IBU World Cup overall leader. Post-Oberhof, it was time for a change. A small change really in the big perspective of challengers. France’s Martin Fourcade leaves Oberhof donning yellow, a color he has been well acquainted with in the past.
Fourcade’s overall lead is the result of a two win weekend. He won the 10 k sprint on Friday and followed that with a win Sunday in the 15 k mass start. In four shooting rounds during the mass start, Fourcade went 0+1+0+1 to win in 41:01.4. No North Americans qualified for the race.
After nine of 24 individual competitions, Fourcade leads the overall with 387 points. Bø sits in second with 374.
Fourcade was also part of the French 4 x 7.5 k relay team that placed second on Saturday. Norway won that race, with neither Bø brother racing. Germany placed third. The U.S. team of Sean Doherty, Leif Nordgren, Paul Schommer, and Jake Brown skied to 12th overall. Canada’s Jules Burnotte, Scott Gow, Aidan Millar, and Christian Gow were 14th out of 26 teams.
Women’s Oberhof Results
Kaisa Makarainen from Finland won the 10 k mass start in 39:58.9 after missing a single target in her first bout of shooting. Otherwise, she shot clean. Norway’s Tiril Eckhoff placed second (+30.2; 0+0+3+1), and Marte Olsbu Roeiseland third (+35.0; 1+0+1+1).
Canada’s Emma Lunder continued her strong skiing with a 15th place (+2:14.8; 0+2+4+1). Susan Dunklee of the U.S. raced to 21st (+2:56.3; 0+3+1+4).
This brings us to the women’s overall standings on the IBU World Cup circuit. Italy’s Dorothea Wierer, with 390 points, wears the leader’s bib. The Italian placed fourth in the mass start, over a minute out, and had five misses total on the range. Eckhoff is second overall with 381 points.
In the women’s 4 x 6 k relay contested on Saturday, Norway won in a total time of 1:14:11.5 hours shooting 0+11. The U.S. team of Susan Dunklee, Clare Egan, Hallie Grossman, and Emily Dreissigacker were 12th (+4:33.8; 1+12). Canada’s Sarah Beaudry, Emily Dickson, Nadia Moser, and Emma Lunder placed 20th, as they were eventually lapped. Twenty-three teams began the race.
