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Benedikt Doll after his victory
Photo: Fabrice Coffrini / AFP
Benedikt Doll won the biathletes' sprint at the World Cup premiere in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. He won on Friday after ten kilometers with a lead of 5.4 seconds ahead of Norwegian star Johannes Thingnes Bø and his teammate Philipp Nawrath, who each missed once. It was Nawrath's third podium of the season. In his first win since March 2023, the 33-year-old Doll laid the foundation at the shooting range, where he remained without mistakes.
The outstanding team result of the German Ski Association was rounded off by Philipp Horn (1 penalty/4th), who cracked the World Championship standard, and Johannes Kühn (0/6th). Justus Strelow, who ended up in 18th place after a penalty loop, also made it into the top 20 and created a decent starting position for the pursuit race on Saturday (14.40 hrs, TV: ZDF and Eurosport). Only David Zobel missed two targets and finished in 39th place.
Doll praises his skis
The duel between Germany and Norway outshone the men's opener in Graubünden – with the better end for the DSV athletes. "We all shot very well and I knew from my standing that it was going to be a zero – that was a great feeling. And we had really good skis," said Doll in an interview with ZDF after his fifth World Cup success.
With the strong team result, the German biathletes found their way back on the road to success. First of all, they had an outstanding start to the season in Östersund, including victories by Roman Rees and Nawrath. Even then, the athletes praised their fast skis. This was followed by a disappointing weekend in Hochfilzen. There, only the relay team convinced with third place.
Opening winner Roman Rees was absent in Lenzerheide due to illness, as was World Champion Sebastian Samuelsson from Sweden, who tested positive for Corona. Both will probably also miss the first mass start of the winter on Sunday (14.45 p.m., TV: ZDF and Eurosport).
The Biathlon World Cup is taking place in Lenzerheide for the first time, the facility there has only been around for about ten years. In 2025, the World Cup will be held there.
kjo/dpa