Biathlon World Championships: Italy by applause, it is second only to the Norwegian aces in the mixed relay in Oberhof

Silver start for Italy at the Biathlon World Championships. On the snow of Oberhof (Germany), Lisa Vittozzi, Dorothea Wierer, Didier Bionaz and Tommaso Giacomel conquered the place of honor in the medley relay, equaling the best result ever for the national team in major events, surrendering only to Norway (Tandrevold , Roeiseland, Laegreid, J. Boe) for 11”6. Instead, the French battleship (Simon, Chevalier-Bouchet, Jacquelin, Fillon Maillet) was defeated, third at 55″9 from the Scandinavians. Overall, the four Italians used just 6 top-ups, against 9 plus the penalty loop which, however, had to face the Norwegians.

Great start with the women, Vittozzi and Wierer who, leveraging their class and experience, took over from their colleagues in command of the race. The response of the two young teammates born in 2000 was also excellent, never on the world championship podium in their career: Bionaz from the Aosta Valley unleashed a fraction of applause, as did Giacomel from Trentino, capable of battling shoulder to shoulder with the living legend Johannes Boe, who managed to detach it only in the final stretch. This is the eleventh world medal for the Italian queen Wierer and the fifth for Vittozzi, who now dream of further enriching their loot in the coming days in the individual field: Thursday there is already a wonderful opportunity with the sprint.