Biathlon : Dorothea Wierer reassured in Finland
It was unclear what level of performance Dorothea Wierer was capable of at the start of the biathlon World Cup season. After spending most of July in Paris for the Olympic Games, which she covered for Eurosport Italia, the Italian had completely changed her preparation.
So there was plenty of speculation surrounding the most influential biathlete on the circuit. And after a reassuring start to the Norwegian opening races in Sjusjøen (Norway) in mid-November, the four-time world champion arrived at the World Cup to confirm her credentials.
The native of Brunico (Italy) appeared to be in the running in the mixed and women’s relays that kicked off the inaugural stage in Kontiolahti (Finland), but missed out on her individual short, which she finished in fifty-first place with a meagre and timid 15/20.
But Dorothea Wierer should never be buried. Back with much better intentions in the sprint, which she finished in eleventh place with just one fault against the targets, the two-time winner of the crystal globe confirmed her renaissance in the mass-start to close the Finnish competitions.
In the hunt for the podium right to the end in the sprint
Sixth at the finish, the Italian even went into the final shot of the day in the lead. “I always tried to stay behind someone, even though I had to let [Justine] Braisaz-Bouchet go on the third lap because her pace was too high for me and I was afraid of getting to the gun and not being able to hold on, she told Fondo Italia. On the fourth lap, I found myself alone. I knew I was going to lose a bit, but it was a good round. On the last shot, I got a bullet out. I still think it was a good race.“
A solid performance that surprised many, even the woman herself. “Honestly, I didn’t expect to be so close to the podium. I’m happy that hard work is paying off. I’m going to try to keep it up, she confides. I don’t know if there’s any room for improvement, because it doesn’t just depend on me but also on the others. I hope I can improve even further.”
“It felt strange to be in the lead because I hadn’t done it for a while”Dorothea Wierer at Fondo Italia
It has to be said that Dorothea Wierer hadn’t been at the front of a race since 12 March 2023, when she won the mass-start at Oslo-Holmenkollen (Norway). In all that time, the Italian had never managed to find her place in the flower ceremony: “For a while, it felt strange to be in the lead because it had been a while since I’d done that. It’s always a beautiful moment. I enjoyed it, even if there’s no podium at the end”,she admits.
Read also
- Kontiolahti: mass start for Elvira Oeberg, Julia Simon reassures herself with a fine second place
- “I can only be happy with the way I feel”: fifteenth on her comeback, Dorothea Wierer got her bearings at Sjusjøen
