Disappointed Preuß Loses Advantage

Disappointed Preuß Loses Advantage

The 30-year-old finishes only 15th in the sprint. Lou Jeanmonnot closes the gap in the overall World Cup standings. Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold wins.

Franziska Preuß disappointed in the sprint.

Franziska Preuß missed her eleventh podium placement of the winter by a wide margin, losing significant points in the overall World Cup standings. The 30-year-old placed a disappointing 15th in the Nove Mesto sprint, eleven positions behind her main rival Lou Jeanmonnot.

The Frenchwoman managed to reduce her deficit to Preuß from 92 to 68 points. There are still six individual races remaining in the World Cup schedule. Saturday (5:40 PM) will see the continuation in Nove Mesto with a 10 km pursuit.

"There was a problem today," commented Preuß. "I’m already disappointed. Even with no misses, I wouldn’t have had a chance. There was something wrong today. Just one mistake bothers me. I started to overthink. I didn't feel that bad, yet the results reflect otherwise."

In a surprising victory, Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold triumphed with a perfect performance ahead of sprint world champion Justine Braisaz-Bouchet (+15.1) and Julia Simon (+20.9/both France). Jeanmonnot (1/+27.1) followed in fourth place.

Next up on Saturday (2:55 PM) is the men’s 12.5 km pursuit.

After the setback in the sprint, the outlook for the DSV team in the second race under new national coach Tobias Reiter is modest. Justus Strelow was the best German biathlete, placing 19th with over a minute delay.

The World Cup in Nove Mesto will conclude on Sunday with the relays, followed by the final stations at Pokljuka (March 13-16) and Holmenkollen in Oslo (March 21-23).