Biathlon: never before has an Estonian relay finished so close to the podium
It had been 23 years since an Estonian men’s relay had done so well. On 11 January 2003, it finished 5th in the World Cup in Oberhof (Germany). It was a time when neither Jakob Kulbin nor Mark-Markos Kehva had been born. However, these two biathletes, accompanied by Rene Zahkna and Kristo Siimer, equalled that performance during the stage in Ruhopolding (Germany) on Thursday 15 January.
Taking advantage of a relatively unselective circuit anda great accuracy in front of the targets (only 4 picks in 44 shots), they were in the fight for victory right up to the last standing, before giving in on the track. Finishing 38 seconds behind the French winners, the quartet were even the Estonian relay team to finish closest to the lead.
“We’re better than ever
This top 5 finish is by no means anecdotal in a country that has just two World Cup, World Championship or Olympic podium finishes in biathlon. Roland Lessing came second in the Pokljuka pursuit in December 2009, and Regina Ermits and Rene Zakhna did the same in the mixed singles relay at the Slovenian leg in January 2020.
“It’s the fruit of a lot of hard work. We’re better than ever,” team coach Haavard Gutuboe Bogetveit told Ohtuleht.
The last runner-up, Jakob Kulbin, shared his joy with broadcaster ETV: “I didn’t know we could do better than our two eighth places [in Hochfilzen in Austria and Oberhof]. Today, everyone felt good before the start, and our skis were performing well. My team-mates were wondering what was wrong. In the race, I scored the first 10/10 of my season [he had managed a 20/20 in the individual in Östersund, Sweden, editor’s note] and I was able to savour the last lap, because I knew there was a big gap behind.
9th in the Nations Cup, compared with 16th in the previous three seasons
On the trackside, his team-mates waited a long time, imagining that this ideal scenario would come to an end. Rene Zakhna explains: “I was afraid that this dream would collapse. The lead was too big to be true. We’re doing better with each stint [11th in the opening race in Östersund, editor’s note]. Our strength lies in the fact that the third and fourth relay runners never give up. Every member of the team is a pillar.
The quartet had the luxury of dominating the line over the Czech Republic (6th), Switzerland (7th), the United States (8th) and Italy (9th). Halfway through the season, their country is now 9th in the Nations Cup. Much better than 16th place in the previous three seasons.
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