After persecution in France
“That’s unsportsmanlike”: Biathlon stars criticize fans
12/22/2024 – 7:09 a.mReading time: 2 min.
On Saturday Franziska Preuß won the pursuit. And that despite the fact that the French fans tried everything to unsettle them.
Franziska Preuß only made one mistake during the pursuit at the shooting range. The German biathlete was once again in top form in Le Grand-Bornand (France) (you can read more about her strong performance here). Second place in the sprint was followed by victory in the pursuit. In doing so, she also extended her lead in the overall World Cup.
The French fans tried everything to unsettle Preuß. As they fired, they shouted “Allez les Bleus,” a battle cry in favor of their French opponents. But Preuss stayed calm – and scored. “I took it as a challenge and tried to concentrate on myself and hit the mark. That sharpened my senses a bit and worked well,” she told Norwegian broadcaster NRK afterwards.
The French opponents were actually far more critical. Lou Jeanmonnot, for example. The 26-year-old was even sure that the battle cries had spurred Preuss on. “It makes her a better runner,” she said, noting: “I’m not proud of it and I don’t like it when something like that happens. But that’s just how French patriots are. We really like to cheer on our own people. ” Jeanmonnot added: “That’s unsportsmanlike.”
Justine Braisaz-Bouchet struck a similar note. “I’m not a fan of it. We should always keep fair play in mind,” said the sprint winner on Friday at the NRK microphone.
The Swede Elvira Öberg was not surprised by the French chants. “That’s how it always works in France. It’s boring, but that’s how it is with the audience here,” she said, but also emphasized: “When you’re standing at the shooting range, you’re completely with yourself anyway, so you don’t think about it much .” Franziska Preuß also demonstrated this.