At 29, the Haut-Jurassien won the first Olympic title of his career thanks to the individual, three days after his silver medal in the mixed relay.
Of all the biathlon events, the one that Quentin Fillon Maillet likes the least is the individual. The Frenchman had never won in his career in this race format: twenty kilometers of distance interspersed with four shooting sessions (two lying down, two standing up). The world number 1 in the general classification even had a very sad 20th place during his last exercise in this area, on January 20, in Antholz-Anterselva (Italy).
Maybe “QFM” will revise its opinion. This Tuesday, it was at the end of this same event, open and uncertain until the end, that the Haut-Jurassien offered his first Olympic title. Author of two faults which could have cost him dearly, the Frenchman raced on skis with a very big time. He is fifteen seconds ahead of the Belarusian Anton Smolski (20 out of 20 in shooting) and the Norwegian ogre Johannes Thingnes Boe, also at fault twice (18 out of 20).
“It was great, great Quentin. It was on the track that he went to get this title, reacts hot the coach of the Blues, Vincent Vittoz. He has never been the most gifted but he never gives up and he always believes in himself. It is the victory of the work he has put in place for years.
revenge
You have to look back and compare the results between this start of the 2022 edition and the previous Olympic adventure in South Korea four years earlier, to understand Vittoz’s words. Landed in Pyeongchang in very complicated mental conditions – a few days after the disappearance of his father-in-law, and while his companion was suffering from an illness – he had completely missed out on the Olympic meeting: 29th in the mass start, 44th in the pursuit and 48th in the sprint. He hadn’t even been aligned to the individual at the time.
Until now empty-handed on an individual level in the major championships (Olympics and Worlds), the licensee of the Ski Club du Grandvaux has changed in dimension this year, gleaning five of his eleven career successes in the World Cup. Barring an accident, the big crystal globe (finishing first in the general classification of the World Cup) is promised to him, four years after the last of the seven won by Martin Fourcade.
The same Martin Fourcade who was waiting for him this Tuesday noon stamping his feet near the launch pad to congratulate him even before the end of the race. “I don’t know if I still have the right to believe it”Fillon Maillet hesitates. “There, it’s settled. I just looked at the “analytics” (race stats) I vouch for it”, reassures Fourcade. He knows what he’s talking about: in 2014, he was the one who climbed to the top of the individual.
The gold harvested on Tuesday confirms the exceptional density of the French biathlon team, both for men and women. In three races contested since the start of these Games, France has emerged with three podiums (gold for Fillon Maillet, silver for Anaïs Chevalier-Bouchet and the mixed relay).
We are entitled to expect others with Fillon Maillet, who is full of confidence for the rest, where he is even more expected, especially on the sprint-pursuit diptych (February 12 for the sprint at 5 p.m.) and in pursuit (February 13 for the pursuit at 6:45 p.m.).
Update : at 1:50 p.m., with more background on the race.