Biathlon: Anna Gandler sixth in the individual event in Ruhpolding
On Wednesday, Austrian biathlete Anna Gandler was living vicariously throughan intense moment of happiness when her partner Emilien Claude came second in the individual biathlon World Cup race in Ruhpolding (Germany). Emotional after her performance, she also saw her phone heat up.
“I got lots of messages congratulating Emilien [Claude], but then they all said it would be so cool if I did what he did, that it would be a great story, she confirms to Nordic Magazine. What’s more, we’ve got a duel between us, so I knew I’d have to be really strong to succeed. So all that gave me motivation, but also a little bit of pressure.”
After a bad night, Anna Gandler was not in the best of spirits when she woke up. “I couldn’t have imagined this at all! I didn’t feel ready at all, I was nervous. The set-up wasn’t like the training sessions. I was tense and I didn’t think I’d get this result at all,” confided the Austrian.
Helped by Justine Braisaz-Bouchet and Anamarija Lampic on the track
Despite everything, she was able to count on good form on her cross-country skis in this 15km individual race. “I was lucky enough to always have athletes with me who were fast on the track. On the first lap, it was [Suvi] Minkkinen and, from the second, I skied with Justine [Braisaz-Bouchet] and also [Anamarija] Lampic on two loops. It was really cool! I got behind her skis and it was a great experience for me,” she says.
Although she said she didn’t feel comfortable shooting, having to “fight for every ball”, Anna Gandler still managed to score 19/20, missing just one target “by a millimetre” on her second recurve. “But I have no regrets about that because I think I was too nervous to get to 15/15 on the last shot,” she says.
At the finish, it was sixth place for Anna Gandler, author of her first flower ceremony of the winter. “I’m just too happy”, she says with satisfaction, despite the fact that she’s had a (very) difficult start to the season.
“The problem was mainly in the summer. I started not sleeping well from July onwards and my body wasn’t resting, not even at night. On the first races of the winter, I felt that my legs were cooked and that my body wasn’t resting, she rewinds. At Christmas, I took it easy with the training and I slept well again. That was the most important thing. Even though it was frustrating, I think I made the right choice!”
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- Emilien Claude on his first World Cup podium in Ruhpolding: “I don’t feel that my life is changing, but that hard work is paying off after four complicated years”.
- “I cried”: how Anna Gandler, his partner in the Austrian biathlon team, felt about Emilien Claude’s first World Cup podium finish.
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