PHOTO: Bildbyrån
No one could challenge the superior Johannes Thingnes Bö who won again.
The best Swede was Martin Ponsilouma in the distance race in Antholz.
The 28-year-old impressed with a fine fifth place and just missed the podium.
Sebastian Samuelsson usually does not feel comfortable in Antholz as the competition is decided at high altitude. Something that, to say the least, was noticeable during Thursday afternoon.
The 26-year-old shot away immediately and was far from the top positions. Samuelsson landed on a whopping seven bars in total and was almost six minutes behind the winner Johannes Thingnes Bö in goal.
Ponsiluoma fifth
It went better for another Swede, Martin Ponsiluoma. He was in the fight for a podium place for a long time when the short distance over 15 kilometers was decided.
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But Ponsiluoma, who last season took double podiums in Antholz, missed a shot in the last shooting which cost him his first podium of the season. The 28-year-old finished fifth, with three misses in total.
Thursday’s competition had a different layout. Instead of one minute of additional time per boom, 45 seconds of additional time applied. The reason for running 15 kilometers instead of 20 – as in normal distance races – is that it is so close to the WC and that it is at high altitude.
Norway’s Tarjei Bö came second and the German Johannes Kühn third.
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READ MORE: Björn Ferry’s brutally honest words about Stina Nilsson – now say what all Swedes think about the biathlete: “What’s wrong?”
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