Paris (AFP)
Sprinter Lucas Chanavat won his first freestyle sprint at the Cross Country Skiing World Cup in Planica (Slovenia) on Sunday, ahead of Italian Federico Pellegrino and Norwegian Erik Valnes.
It is only the 2nd time in the history of the World Cup that a Frenchman climbs on the first step of a sprint event after the success of Baptiste Gros in Quebec in 2016.
In great shape, Chanavat (25) had already finished 2nd in the sprint of Davos (Switzerland) last week bowing with a breath behind the Norwegian master Johannes Klaebo, who skipped the weekend in Slovenia .
"It was terrible conditions, there was even a thunderstorm but I had very good sensations all day, said the winner. I turned a lot around (7 podiums without a win before Saturday) and I was frustrated with my 2nd place last week, so I was very motivated. I worked hard to get this first place! "
"I think I can maintain this level of performance all year round," he added.
Imperial all day in the rain of Planica, Chanavat first dominated the qualifications before crossing all the laps (six skiers compete on a course of less than 2 km, the first two qualify) and win largely in the final, impressive in power.
Chanavat thus took the lead in the general sprint classification ahead of Klaebo, while his teammate Richard Jouve, also qualified in the final, finished 5th, a good omen before the sprint relay scheduled for Sunday (by teams of two).
© 2019 AFP