Biathlon: a diametrically opposed race for Elvira and Hanna Oeberg
Elvira and Hanna Oeberg experienced great emotions on the mass start of the Biathlon World Championships in Lenzerheide (Switzerland) on Sunday. However, the two Swedes did not experience them for the same reason. One crossed the line first, while the other came last.
It has to be said that things couldn’t have got off to a worse start for Hanna Oeberg. On the very first lap of the day, the Scandinavian crashed hard on one of the downhill sections of the Swiss course. The 29-year-old biathlete’s misadventure was not without consequences, as she damaged her rifle in the process.
Faced with the targets, the woman who won gold in this format in Oberhof (Germany) in 2023 had to endure a real ordeal. However, she held her nerve to reach the finish line, despite making nine mistakes and finishing a distant and anecdotal thirtieth.
On the other hand, her little sister Elvira (18/20) undoubtedly had one of the best days of her young career. Always on the back foot, the 25-year-old biathlete pulled out all the stops on the last shot of the day to post an excellent 5/5 at the best of times.
“I didn’t think it was possible today”.Elvira Oeberg at SVT Sport
The native of Kiruna (Sweden), who came in sick at the start of this fortnight’s world championships, worked hard in the final lap of the race to hold on to her first-ever individual title at this global event. Very emotional in the finish area, she waited a long time for her elder sister.
Embracing once they were together, Elvira and Hanna also made history in their discipline, as they are now both mass-start world champions: “I really wanted to wait for her and share this with her. It’s absolutely incredible. I didn’t think it was possible today”, the winner admitted to SVT Sport.
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