Show event at Schalke
Home win missed: DSV biathletes still on the podium
12/28/2024 – 9:06 p.mReading time: 2 min.
This time the Norwegians cannot be beaten in the biathlon at Schalke. But two German teams make it into the top three.
The German biathletes narrowly missed out on a home win at the World Team Challenge in Schalke. At the 21st edition of the show event, which is not part of the World Cup, Karoline Offigstad Knotten and Sturla Holm Laegreid from Norway won with a clear lead over both German teams. Most recently, Julia Simon and Fabien Claude from France won twice in a row.
Justus Strelow and Anna Weidel, who stood in for the sick Vanessa Voigt, finished in second place, 30.4 seconds behind. Philipp Nawrath and the overall World Cup leader Franziska Preuß crossed the finish line directly behind them.
“This competition is incredibly fun, the atmosphere was on a different level,” Strelow told ZDF. “At the shooting range you notice that it’s an extremely hectic race. Even a small mistake puts you behind and then puts yourself under extreme pressure.”
The German Ski Association has been waiting for a victory in front of their home crowd for eight years now. Simon Schempp and Vanessa Hinz last won in 2016 at the stadium of Bundesliga club FC Schalke 04.
The Preuß/Nawrath duo put themselves in trouble in the first race with a 30-second time penalty. The Bavarian had reloaded illegally at the shooting range instead of going into the penalty loop.
“Somehow I was still in the Christmas blues, I think,” said Preuss. “Stupid, of course. Something like that shouldn’t happen and I felt sorry for Philipp too.” Things went better for the two of them in the pursuit race, but they had no chance against the accurate winners from Norway.