Biathlon: Les Bleus take gold in Östersund
During the men’s relay at the World Youth Biathlon Championships in Östersund (Sweden), the French put on a real demonstration. Camille Grataloup-Manissolle, Antonin Guy and Léo Carlier passed each of the race’s many intermediates in the lead. With a total of six picks, Les Bleus won a fine collective gold medal.
In the evening, having recovered from their emotions, the new U19 relay world champions spoke to Nordic Magazine about their performance.
Camille Grataloup-Manissolle, first relay team member
“I’m really happy with my race! I felt good on the skis and my downhill shot went really well, then I was a bit stressed when I stood up, but that passed. For me, the wait after my run wasn’t as long as all that. I went to change and had a chat with Antonin [Guy] and Claire [Breton]. Overall, I had confidence in my team-mates, so I wasn’t too worried!”
“All three of us having a title is really great! For me, it’s my first and to share it with everyone is really cool. It’s really good to bring this title back to France after 13 years of waiting. What’s more, we came out on top in all the intermediate stages! We were favourites at the start and we held our own. I’ve come away from these World Championships with three medals, including one individual, and two flower ceremonies, which is great, even if my shooting got a bit worse as the races went on.é
Antonin Guy, second relay
“I took the relay with a 20-second lead, which allowed me to run my race and stay in my own bubble without being too confrontational with the other athletes. I managed to come out with a nice downhill run, without any picks, which enabled me to keep my lead. I could feel that the German behind me [Lukas Tannheimer, editor’s note] was very fast and was gaining time on me with every loop. I really fought hard to get a good standing shot to keep my lead and do my utmost to stay in front. In the end, I managed to get a good shot, which I put in fighting! I was starting to shake so it was time for her to go…”.
“In the last lap, it was complicated on the skis because of the accumulated fatigue, but I was able to give the relay to Léo [Carlier] with a lead of around 18 seconds. He then did a great job on the downhill and then finished the job on the standing! We led the race from start to finish and never scared each other.”
“Winning this title together is truly magnificent. We knew we could be world champions and, when the starting list came out, we were the overwhelming favourites on paper. We had to show up and keep up the pressure! Flavio [Guy] deserved to be in this relay a thousand times over, we all have a medal to win at these Worlds. Léo [Carlier] has two titles, me too, Camille [Grataloup-Manissolle] has a title and two bronze medals, Flavio [Guy] is vice-world champion… A four-man relay would have been an absolute dream!”
Léo Carlier, third relay
“I watched the races of Camille [Grataloup-Manissolle] and Antonin [Guy] during my warm-up. I could see that Camille was going into the lead every time and was getting further and further ahead, which was really great. Then I saw that Antonin was doing 5/5 on the prone shot and then was solid on the standing shot. I knew we had the team to win and that the Germans were also super strong. So I took the relay about fifteen seconds ahead of the German [Korbi Kuebler]. I knew I was faster than him on the skis, but he was shooting really fast and well.”
“I tried not to go off too fast so as not to pay the price and undo all the good work done by my colleagues at the start of the race. The German took a bit of time off me and I tried to apply myself to the shooting. I managed to get out in front on the diagonal after a 5/5, but he took back a lot of time from me and came back to 7 seconds! I put some time back on him on the track and set myself up alone on the standing. It wasn’t easy, I had to fight for every ball. I missed two and got both my picks in on the first try.”
“He didn’t come out very far from me, but I made an effort at the start of the lap and he passed me by 30 seconds at the intermediate stage. That’s when I knew I’d won the race! I savoured it right up to the end because winning a title with my mates is crazy and just incredible. I don’t know if we made history, but we wanted to win, we knew we could and it was an incredible end to the World Championships!”
- The full programme for the World Youth and Junior Championships in Östersund
- With Voldiya Galmace-Paulin, Amandine Mengin, Gaëtan Paturel and Anaëlle Bondoux: the French team selection for the 2025 World Youth and Junior Championships in Östersund.
- Östersund: despite a ruptured ulnar collateral ligament in her left thumb, Anaëlle Bondoux will be lining up at the start of the World Junior Championships
- After a difficult start to the season, Antonin Guy has bounced back to secure his place at the World Youth Championships: “It’s like a reward for all the work we’ve put in since mid-January”.
- “We had to fight right to the end to get this ticket”: how Alice Dusserre qualified for the World Youth Championships in Östersund by the skin of her teeth.
- “I’m going there with the desire to take responsibility for my biathlon”: at the Junior Worlds in Östersund, Corentin Jacob returns to international competition two years after his last selection
- Östersund: Ilona Plechacova individual world youth champion, Lola Bugeaud sixth
- Östersund World Youth Championships: Antonin Guy in individual gold for the second year running, Léo Carlier in bronze
- “A real achievement”, “It feels great”: Antonin Guy and Léo Carlier, gold and bronze medallists in the individual event at the World Youth Championships in Östersund, talk about their race.
- Östersund: Célia Henaff becomes world junior individual champion, silver for Amandine Mengin
- Junior Cup: Bresse’s Amandine Mengin, second in Östersund, wins the individual globe
- Célia Henaff, new world junior individual champion: “A first victory, a first medal, a first 20/20”.
- “I’m really shocked”: Amandine Mengin, silver medallist in the individual event at the Junior Worlds and winner of the small globe, wasn’t expecting this…
- Östersund: Sivert Gerhardsen individual world junior champion, Edgar Geny eighth
- Östersund Youth World Championships: Louise Roguet, Lola Bugeaud, Camille Grataloup-Manissolle and Léo Carlier bronze medallists in the mixed relay won by Norway
- Östersund: despite four penalty laps and a fall, Voldiya Galmace-Paulin, Amandine Mengin, Gaëtan Paturel and Edgar Geny are runners-up in the junior mixed relay.
- “Even with four laps to go, we’re capable of going for a medal”: the words of Voldiya Galmace-Paulin, Amandine Mengin, Gaëtan Paturel and Edgar Geny, silver medallists in the mixed relay at the World Junior Championships…
- Östersund Youth World Championships: Louise Roguet takes silver in the sprint, Norway’s Martine Skog takes gold
- “I tried to be more relaxed in the downhill, doing the opposite of the mixed relay where I was so stressed…”. How Louise Roguet picked up the gauntlet to become runner-up in the world junior sprint championship.
- Östersund: Léo Carlier wins silver in the sprint at the Youth World Championships, Germany’s Lukas Tannheimer takes the title
- “I never thought I’d start the World Championships this way”: three medals in three races in Östersund for Léo Carlier, silver in the sprint
- Östersund Junior World Championships: Amandine Mengin takes bronze in the sprint, the title goes to Austria’s Anna Andexer
- “I didn’t even know there were globes”: three-time medallist at the Junior World Championships in Östersund, Amandine Mengin will be competing for the Junior Cup’s big globe in the Mass-Start 60.
- Östersund: Norway’s Haavard Tosterud world junior sprint champion, Axel Garnier ninth
- Östersund: Louise Roguet world youth champion in the Mass-Start 60
- “When I cross the line, there’s a lot of joy”: Louise Roguet tells Nordic Magazine how she became World Youth Champion in the Mass-Start 60 in Östersund.
- Östersund Youth Worlds: Léo Carlier crowned world champion in the mass-start 60 ahead of Flavio Guy and Camille Grataloup-Manissolle
- “We couldn’t have imagined it”: Léo Carlier, Flavio Guy and Camille Grataloup-Manissolle talk about their fabulous triple in the mass-start 60 at the Östersund World Youth Championships
- In the wind of Östersund, Anaëlle Bondoux is runner-up in the Junior 60 mass-start, Sara Andersson takes gold on home soil
- Junior Cup: second in Östersund, Anaëlle Bondoux wins the small mass-start globe
- “It was a complete ordeal, it even crossed my mind to stop racing…”: Anaëlle Bondoux tells Nordic Magazine about her Mass-Start 60 in Östersund, which ended with a silver medal and the small globe.
- Östersund Junior Worlds: Kasper Kalkenberg golden in the Mass-Start 60, Gaëtan Paturel sixth
- Östersund: Germany’s young relay world champions, Alice Dusserre, Coralie Perrin and Louise Roguet ninth
- Östersund: Camille Grataloup-Manissolle, Antonin Guy and Léo Carlier crowned world youth relay champions
