French biathlon is more focused on women than ever. Les Bleues Lou Jeanmonnot, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet, Sophie Chauveau and Julia Simon won the relay (4 × 6 km) from Oberhof (Germany) in the World Cup on Sunday January 7, ahead of the Norwegians and the Swedes, who completed the podium .
First French torchbearer, Lou Jeanmonnot launched her teammates perfectly thanks to a flawless standing shot (a pickaxe in the prone position) which allowed her to pass the baton to Justine Braisaz-Bouchet in second position, just a stone’s throw from the Swedes. The biathlete from Saisies (Savoie) experienced a slight scare during her second visit to the shooting range (three picks while standing).
But the leader in the general classification, who is having a fantastic start to the season, showed her power on the skis to pounce on the Swede Linn Persson, who came out 20 seconds ahead of her, before passing the baton to Sophie Chauveau, third runner-up. among the Blues, with four seconds ahead.
Perfect weekend for Les Bleues in Germany
The biathlete from Grand-Bornand, who is on a World Cup podium for only the second time, also experienced a thrill in the standing shot with three errors, perfectly erased thanks to her three pickaxe balls, which avoided her to go for a walk on the penalty ring.
The last runner, Julia Simon, winner of the pursuit the day before ahead of Justine Braisaz-Bouchet, just had to finish the job. What the best biathlete of last winter set out to do thanks to a flawless prone shot and a standing shot with complete composure, despite also having three picks, which allowed her to tackle the last lap of the track with a dozen seconds ahead of the Norwegian Ingrid Tandrevold.
Thanks to this first relay success of the season, the Tricolores – fifth in Östersund (Sweden) and third in Hochfilzen (Austria) – move up to 3e place in the general ranking of the discipline, behind Norway and Sweden.
This new victory, after those of Justine Braisaz-Bouchet in the sprint on Friday – and the third place of Sophie Chauveau – and of Julia Simon ahead of Braisaz-Bouchet in the pursuit on Saturday, completes a perfect weekend in Germany for the Blues, who won the three races on the program at Oberhof.
Cross-country skiing: Jules Lapierre wins in Val di Fiemme
Frenchman Jules Lapierre won his first victory in the cross-country skiing World Cup on Sunday January 7 by winning at the summit of Alpe Cermis in Italy, where his compatriot Hugo Lapalus took 3e place, his first podium. “It’s an incredible day for the entire French team, with Hugo who is with me on the podium”, reacted the 28-year-old skier from Grenoble to the microphone of the International Ski Federation after this 10-kilometer free mass-start.
French cross-country skiing is experiencing a historic season. At the end of December, Lucas Chanavat and Jules Chappaz achieved a double in the World Cup in Toblach (Italy), a first for the Blues. Four days later, Chanavat doubled the lead by winning the sprint in Davos, Switzerland.