Biathlon: Germans seventh in single-mixed - Sweden wins
In the opening race of the new biathlon winter, Hanna Kebinger and Justus Strelow clearly missed out on the first podium place for the German team. The duo finished seventh in the single mixed relay in wintry Östersund.
Kebinger was a little ahead in third place in their final shooting, but then needed two reloads and also had slight loading problems. The competition took advantage of this. On the final lap, the 25-year-old was then unable to add anything.
In the end, Kebinger/Strelow were 1:00.3 minutes behind the victorious Swedes Hanna Öberg and Sebastian Samuelsson, who were loudly celebrated by the enthusiastic home crowd. Second place went to Norway's Sturla Holm Laegreid and Juni Arnekleiv (+13.8 seconds), third place went to Julia Simon and Fabien Claude from France (+42.2 seconds), who even managed to compensate for two penalty laps.
In temperatures of minus ten degrees Celsius, Strelow (26) opened with two clear shooting laps and put the DSV team in the lead at the same time as Austria. Kebinger then needed four reloads in her two rounds and dropped back a little. However, Strelow, who was once again reliable and also put his second ten shots on target, kept the team on course for the podium. But Kebinger, who needed a total of seven extra cartridges, was unable to hold on.
Strelow: "I'm very happy"
"That was a bit shit shooting and at the back I burst hardcore and died. I took a bit of a toll on Justus' perfect performance," said Kebinger on ARD. Her team-mate, on the other hand, was satisfied: "It was almost perfect at the shooting range. I'm very happy with the start to the season."
A few hours before the start of the competition, the German Ski Association (DSV) announced that veteran Benedikt Doll (33) would not be competing in the mixed relay (14:50) due to a minor "infection symptom" as a precautionary measure. According to team doctor Jan Wüstenfeld, however, he will probably start in the 20-kilometer individual race on Sunday (14:30/ARD and Eurosport). He will be replaced by Philipp Nawrath (30), who was originally scheduled for the single-mixed, with Strelow moving into the team with Kebinger for Nawrath.
Julius Strelow, who had a successful shooting session with two clear laps, expressed his satisfaction with the beginning of the season, stating, "I'm very happy with the start to the season." Despite Hanna Kebinger's shooting challenges, which resulted in four reloads and a drop in position, the biathlon World Cup continued to feature exciting winter sports action, with Julius Strelow and Hanna Kebinger participating in the single-mixed relay.
Source: www.dpa.com
