Wierer second and Vittozzi leader of the World Cup: the blue biathlon shines

KONTIOLAHTI – The blue biathlon shines in this start of the season. Not just with the leader Dorothea Wiererbut also with Lisa Vittozzi returning from complicated seasons. In the inaugural stage of the World Cup in Kontiolahti, in Finland, Wierer finished second in the pursuit, while Vittozzi finished fourth, excellent on skis but held back by an error at the shooting range which did not prevent her from keeping the yellow bib of leader of the World Cup standings. In fact, before the Sunday race he had achieved two podiums (in individual and sprint) which had confirmed his full recovery after nightmare days: to understand, at the Beijing Olympics his best result was 32nd place in the pursuit, while in the 15 km he even finished 76th. A past that fortunately seems to be behind us, with a Cup leadership that restores confidence in a team closely linked to Dorothea’s results. She is impeccable at shooting in Kontiolahti, she is able to recover from the initial ninth place up to a dozen seconds from victory. A good reaction after the cold that has tormented her in recent days, and which is worth the podium number 45 in her career in individual cup tests.

In Finland the French won in comeback Julia Simon, who scored a 20/20 at the shooting range which allowed her to present herself at the finish line with arms raised. The Swede also got on the podium Elvira Oeberg, who immediately after the final shooting range overtook Vittozzi. “I wasn’t thinking of such a result because I had a really difficult week – Wierer said at the end. “I was very weak, between a sore throat and a cold, and participating in Thursday’s individual turned out to be a mistake, because it didn’t helped improve the condition. Today I felt a tad bit better and I tried to concentrate on the shooting range but I never thought I’d be able to win because I still don’t feel at the top on skis, but it was a little step forward”.

“Despite the failed podium for a few seconds, it was a positive race” commented Vittozzi. “Today I didn’t feel at the top, so I preferred not to overrev and control the pace. Fourth place doesn’t hurt me, in fact it keeps me in the lead. Even if we’re only at the beginning of the season, it’s still a great satisfaction “.