Johan-Olav Smørdal Botn entered third place as the third last starting number – with ten hits out of ten.
– Damn it, I had to work for it. It was the toughest race ever. I think I had the worst feeling of the year in the warm-up, Botn told TV 2 after the finish.
He had starting number 98.
– I warmed up around the time Thingnes Bø finished. I opened calmly and went with a bang halfway through, but it held. I’m going to get emotional today and rather look at the result. It was great, says the 24-year-old with a smile.
After the finish, Botn noticed that it cost a lot:
– Must get together
Before the sprint in Soldier Hollow, most people talked about Johannes Thingnes Bø and Tarjei Bø.
But the youngest brother opened the sprint with two misses.
– No no no. You have to decide now. It is tough. He was a bit unsure, there was more wind, but he didn’t screw up, said TV 2’s biathlon expert Ole Einar Bjørndalen.
SLET: There were six misses in total for the Bø brothers. Photo: Daniel Sannum Lauten / TV 2
However, Tarjei Bø had a full house lying around. But both brothers missed two shots standing.
That prompted Bjørndalen to come up with a clear message to the Bø brothers.
– They have to get together. When you get a miss there, and then you thunder on on the last shot … it’s not allowed, because it’s so easy to make the same mistake again, exclaimed the expert.
– It was awful
Thingnes Bø put into words the disappointment after the failure in the sprint.
– It was awful. I don’t know what’s going on lying down. I’m not sure about the wind. I was simply poorly focused, says Thingnes Bø to TV 2 after the race.
– I have to take the race tomorrow for what it is, so I simply have to do something towards next weekend, says the Norwegian star who has struggled with the results recently.
Norwegian-French jubilation
None of the other Norwegians managed to do anything with the Frenchmen Jacquelin and Perrot.
And it was Norwegian-French Éric Perrot who was the strongest and took the victory.
– Said how happy he is! shouted an engaged Bjørndalen when Perrot stepped into management.
– It is big. It is a dream come true. This was my goal before this season, says the winner to TV 2.
Tarjei Bø finished in seventh place, while his little brother finished in 17th place.
Thingnes Bø makes no secret of the fact that it is tough to fight against his brother for the overall World Cup.
Photo: Daniel Sannum Lauten / TV 2
– That is the worst. It would rather have been anyone but him, he admits to TV 2.
In the case below, you will get a full overview of the winter sports program on TV 2.