Ondřej Moravec at the shooting range, where he was incredibly successful today.
Petr Slavík / Czech Biathlon
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The first two places in the results list belonged to the Norwegians, while the favored Johannes Thingnes Boe was surprisingly defeated by the significantly younger, only 23-year-old Sturla Holm Laegreid. Like Moravec, he did not make a mistake at the shooting range once, while the king of previous seasons, Boe, made a mistake on the first item lying down.
Moravc managed to concentrate wonderfully on the race, where every shot outside the target means a penalty minute. However, the Czech biathlete, one of the oldest in the entire starting field of 101 men, acted flawlessly in all four items. “Great race, I’m very happy,” he rejoiced on Czech Television. “It wasn’t a top run, but at my age I don’t put so much pressure on myself. I take all ten in the top five,” Moravec said.
This is Sturla Holm Lægreid’s 5th competition at World Cup level. So far he’s hit 79 out of 80 targets. ????
He’s on his way to a potential 1st World Cup victory in the # KON20 Individual.You can watch the entire competition on https://t.co/Gd69bLJbNg pic.twitter.com/Ahe5ZLWdn2
– IBU World Cup (@IBU_WC) November 28, 2020
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He did lose on skis at the top, but he helped himself with precise work with a small-bore rifle. “I believed in shooting, especially at the stands, so there was no reason to mess with it. It was nice to hear on the track that I was going for the podium, I really enjoyed it, “said Moravec immediately after the race.
The first competition of the winter concludes in a surprise. Laegreid will start in ???? tomorrow # KON20
TurSturla Holm Lægreid @NSSF_Biathlon
????????????Johannes Thingnes Boe @NSSF_Biathlon
????????????Erik Lesser @skiverband
Rewatch the Men’s Individual on https://t.co/bk5aBBso9Q pic.twitter.com/7CHnLnIMEI– IBU World Cup (@IBU_WC) November 28, 2020
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When he passed the finish line, he remained only a second behind the Frenchman Fillon-Maillet in the third place. He only lost it when the sensational winner Laegreid arrived. Thanks to an excellent finish, the German Erik Lesser also got ahead of Moravec by another three seconds.
Michal Krčmář, who took a solid portion of points for 11th place, didn’t have to be sad either: “I’m quite satisfied with myself, even though the mistake freezes a bit right next to the second shot of the opening item. But I feel good at the shooting range all week in Kontiolahti, so it didn’t bother me, it brought such calm. Although I didn’t have the right engine on the track yet, it will only start to reach the highest speeds, “Krčmář told ČT. Adam Václavík was separated from the elite thirty by one exact shot.
| Biathlon World Cup in Kontiolahti – 20 km men |
| 1. Laegreid (Norsko) 48:57,0 (0) |
| 2. J. Boe (Norway) +19.6 (1) |
| 3. Lesser (Germany) +1: 03.6 (1) |
| 4. Fillon-Maillet (Francie) +1: 05.9 (1) |
| 5. Moravec (CZE) +1: 06.9 (0) |
| 6. Samuelsson (Sweden) +1: 31.8 (2) |
| … |
| 11. Krčmář (CZE) +2: 26.3 (1) |
| 45. Václavík (CZE) +4: 51.9 (3) |
| 76. Krupcik (CZE) +8: 08.8 (5) |
| 78. Štvrtecký (CZE) +8: 13.7 (6) |
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