Biathlon - World Cup Hochfilzen 2017
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It is to be hoped that these World Championships in Hochfilzen never end, because none of the seven races go on stage has skimped emotions and have no lack of historic results. In this sense, the 20 km men today was probably the absolute apotheosis.
Thursday 16 February 2017 11 minutes reading time
It was understood from the very first lines as the "cannibal" Martin Fourcade could be beaten. The Frenchman, who started with bib number 4, has missed a target at the inaugural shoot where, however, have suffered failed two against-favorites. In fact, both Anton Shipulin Simon Schempp did wrong twice in the opening, coming immediately from the rat race.
With an error transalpine he could prevail without excessive worries, but after a zero standing has accumulated a second penalty on the next roll on the ground, thereby allowing the concrete side by potential adversaries assaults. The Catalan has limited the damage thanks to a new user session clean up, then putting on hold to figure out what could be the value of his performance.
In the light of the competition, Sergey Semenov and Benjamin Weger proved serious candidates for the podium, if not to victory, but calling themselves out of contention missing a target respectively the third and fourth pitch. Much the same for Erik Lesser, but straightened his ongoing test after missing the second session.
With the advance of the race has been understood as Fourcade could still aspire to medal if not to victory. Only three men have been shown to be able to overtake: Ondrej Moravec, Johannes Thingnes Bø and Lowell Bailey. Cited according to the start bib (respectively 51, 96 and 100).
The Czech has seriously advanced his nomination to the success when he became the first athlete to cover all 20 targets. At that moment two things have become clear. The first is that Martin would not have won. The second that Johannes Bø - became the favorite - he could not handle anything on the pitch.
The Norwegian has moreover made a mistake at the third polygon, finding having to chase the Bohemian. The US has instead been perfect again, maintaining a virtual lead of 12 "on the Central European.
Scandinavian, after a fourth round relatively more controlled than the previous three, he has rightly opted to risk it all to the final shot and then launch the assault on the leader in the last 4 km. But the plan failed because, firing at breakneck speed, just missed the last target, abdicating to contention for metals.
A few minutes later the American was sent instead to sign all the bullets, finding itself the shoot-out and leaving the polygon with 6 "4 advantage. A small margin, considering how the native of North Carolina (but grew up in the state of New York and Vermont) and usually suffer exceedingly in the closing laps (as happened in the pursuit on Sunday).
No coincidence that the veteran stars & stripes began to give ground, appearing destined to finish in second position. But in one of those sarcastic intersections of fate that only sport can offer, thirty-five of Siler City has found the most unlikely of allies.
In fact, in the final stretch it was long in the wake of Alexey Volkov, representative of the Russian biathlon suspected of not adequately fighting doping and to which the United States (with Bailey in the head) you are often in the forefront. In all probability the reference point of the now twenty-nine Siberian allowed Lowell to react in the last kilometer and to resist with a margin of 3 "3.
So gold medal for Lowell Bailey, who last spring - next to the thirty-fifth birthday, and with his wife pregnant Erika Little Ophelia - had contemplated the possibility of withdrawing, deciding then only in the summer to continue his racing activities.
Born distance runner, but able to become a top class shooter, he has today won the first win of his career at the tender age of 35 years and 216 days, entering of law in the history of winter sports in toto.
That today is not only the maiden victory of Lowell, but the American movement in its entirety, until now never be able to get on the top step of the podium in the 770 top-level competitions go on stage from 1958 to 2017.
Moreover the Americans are able to graduate world champions in the Nordic disciplines can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Johnny Spillane, Todd Lodwick and Bill Demong in the Nordic Combined, Sarah Hendrickson in women's ski jumping, and - a few minutes - Lowell Bailey in biathlon. There would be for the truth even Kikkan Randall and Jessica Diggins in the end, though impostesi in a team event.
In all this we must not forget how the coaching staff to work stripes stars also an Italian ski man. The frassinorese Federico "Helmut" Fountain.
For Moravec had no choice but to settle for silver, the third podium of the World Championship career after those of 2015 (bronze in this format, and silver in the mass start).
Finally Martin Fourcade has nevertheless put his neck bronze, collecting the sixteenth medal at the World Championships (10-4-2) and the seventeenth World Cup career specialties.
Various Lesser, Semenov and Weger have concluded respectively fourth, fifth and tenth. Shipulin seventh, just ahead of Johannes Bø, eighth. Thirteenth Schempp. Anonymous Svendsen and Bjoerndalen Peiffer, twenty-seventh, thirty-fourth and forty-seventh.
Home Italy Dominik Windisch (1 + 0 + 1 + 1) has confirmed the best, finishing 21st. Lukas Hofer also has marked points (3 + 1 + 0 + 0), 34th. Nothing to do for Thomas Bormolini (1 + 0 + 3 + 0), 59 °, and Joseph Montello (3 + 2 + 0 + 1), 87 °.
In the overall standings of the World Cup, the advantage of Fourcade of Shipulin is 363 points when they are available 480. Translated, purely theoretically, the Frenchman could mathematically win the Crystal Ball already in mass start on Sunday.
Hochfilzen World Cup 2017 - MALE INDIVIDUAL 1. BAILEY Lowell [USA] (0 + 0 + 0 + 0) 48'07 "2. 4 MORAVEC Ondrej [CZE] (0 + 0 + 0 + 0) 3" 3 3. FOURCADE Martin [FRA] (1 + 0 + 1 + 0) 21 "2 4. LESSER Erik [GER] (0 + 0 + 1 + 0) 32" 0 5. SEMENOV Sergey [UKR] (0 + 0 + 1 +0) to 38 "6 6. Michal Krcmar [CZE] (0 + 0 + 0 + 0) 43" 6 7. Anton Shipulin [RUS] (2 + 0 + 0 + 0) 43 "9 8. BØ Johannes Thingnes [NOR] (0 + 0 + 1 + 1) in 1'11 "9 9. BIRKELAND Lars Helge [NOR] (0 + 0 + 1 + 0) in 1'14" 3 10. WEGER Benjamin [oN] (0 + 0 + 0 + 1) in 1'22 "8 Click here for complete results.
MEDALS AFTER 7 RACES 11 4-1-0 (5) - 1-1-3 GERMANY (5) - FRANCE 1-2-1 (4) - CZECH REPUBLIC 0-2-1 (3) - 0- NORWAY 1-0 (1) - BELARUS 0-0-1 (1) - RUSSIA 0-0-1 (1) - ITALY
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M Individual WCH Hochfilzen (AUT)
BAILEY Lowell
MORAVEC Ondrej
FOURCADE Martin
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