Sweden managed to salvage WC bronze in the premiere.
But Sebastian Samuelsson had a really tough time.
And now he hits back at his own coach after the criticism.
The Swedish national biathlon team got off to a very good start at this year’s WC in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic. Already in the premiere race, it was WC bronze in the mixed relay after a real drama on the last stretch.
Sebbe’s problem
But it didn’t start well at all Sebastian Samuelsson on the starting line. He had to fight hard on the shooting range and had a total of five misses after a lot of trouble with the extra shots.
– Nah, but it’s weak of him. It is not approved, even if he avoids the penalty round, says the SVT expert Bjorn Ferry in the broadcast.
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Samuelsson then admits that he was unexpectedly nervous before the WC premiere.
– It’s been a long time since I was so nervous before a race and it was heavy mentally. It is clear that I am not satisfied, but I did well in the tracks, says Samuelsson about his performance.
Samuelsson’s miss
In the replays after the relay, you can clearly see how hard “Sebbe” has to get the extra shots in and how much extra time it takes.
– It took a very long time for Sebastian and he doesn’t get the shot in correctly. It is difficult and there is certainly nervousness and adrenaline, says the SVT expert Helena Ekholm.
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Samuelsson also receives clear criticism from his own coach for his shooting in the mixed relay.
– He makes a miss here that he shoots the third shot and misses and then shoots the fourth in the same place and misses again. I will tell him that, so that he will actually move on, says the national team coach Jean-Marc Chabloz to Radiosporten.
READ MORE: Mona Brorsson’s strong confession before the Biathlon World Cup – reveals the big shock: “I think many people think so…”
But Sebastian Samuelsson does not agree with that and fights back.
– I don’t know if I like it. You can do it both ways, because when I see the dot, I think I should shoot it, says Sebbe to the radio channel.
Fortunately, Martin Ponsiluoma, Hanna Öberg and Elvira Öberg managed to deliver fully and take Sweden to a well-deserved WC bronze in the relay.
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