Biathlon : Elvira Oeberg copes perfectly with the pressure of the yellow number
Elvira Oeberg confirmed that she is indeed the boss of the women’s biathlon world cup in Kontiolahti (Finland) on Sunday evening. Winner of the mass-start at the end of this first event of the season, the Swede further consolidated her yellow bib as overall leader.
But things didn’t start so well for the world number one. The Scandinavian missed one shot on her first dismount, and quickly visited the penalty ring on the Finnish night. And even though she fouled out again on her second pass in front of the targets, she still came out less than thirty seconds off the lead.
After two superb standing shots in which she didn ‘t let a single ball escape, the 25-year-old biathlete was back on track, and it was at this precise moment that she played her most beautiful part. Stratospheric on skis since the start of the winter, Elvira Oeberg made her presence felt in the final round.
Setting off in pursuit of France’s Julia Simon, the reigning Olympic champion in the women’s relay quickly engulfed the Beaufortaine before dropping her, despite some solid resistance from the latter, as the slope rose: “I really felt 100% today. I’ve never felt as safe as I did on this event” she told SVT Sport in the mixed zone.
Now ideally launched, Elvira Oeberg will be approaching next weekend’s competitions in Hochfilzen (Austria) with confidence and the yellow jersey of world number one firmly on her back. “I’ve been watching biathlon since I was a little girl, so I was really looking forward to wearing the yellow jersey, she confides. It means I’m where I want to be. I’m the best in the world. I couldn’t have hoped for a better start to the season.”
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