Biathlon: Lou Jeanmonnot, an almost perfect sprint, but…
It’s the story of a huge frustration. On Friday afternoon, Lou Jeanmonnot gave it her all in the sprint of the biathlon world cup finals in Oslo-Holmenkollen (Norway). Competing against Germany’s Franziska Preuss for the big crystal globe at the end of the week, the Doubiste native did everything right, with a 10/10 shot and great speed on the cross-country track.
However, she was just 2 tenths of a second behind her rival, who won the race and now has a 35-length lead overall.
“15 points for 2 tenths is extremely expensive, the Franc-Comtoise told RMC in the mixed zone. That’s not where I lost the biggest points of the season, but it annoys me to have an almost perfect race and to stall out by 2 tenths from those 15 points that could have been in my favour. It pisses me off (sic), to put it plainly. It was a great race and I can be proud of it. To be able to fight with a Franziska [Preuss] at this level at this stage of the season is really lucky. It can only help me for the future.”
The battle continues this Saturday in the pursuit
To find out where those pesky 2 tenths of a second are, we can turn to the shooting, where Lou Jeanmonnot was slower than her German opponent. “I lost my balance in the final straight, but I also left time on the right and left on the shooting range”, she confirmed to La Chaîne L’Equipe.
Despite everything, the Doubiste rider is showing her fighting spirit and is ready to get back to work on Saturday for the chase. “It’s not over yet and I’m happy to be able to put up a fight in the final straight. We’re both going to start at the same time in the pursuit”, concluded Lou Jeanmonnot, who consoled herself by lifting the individual globe she won last week in Slovenia.
Live data from sprints
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