Vetle Christiansen celebrated the second World Cup victory of his career in the 12.5 km pursuit in Östersund. Powerful on the ski and only one shooting mistake he determined the race and could exuberantly celebrate his victory at the finish. On the final lap he was even able to extend his lead over his competitors. After his victory with the Norwegian men's relay team it was another sign for Christiansen that his hard work from the summer is paying off, he now travels as World Cup runner-up to the next stop next week in Hochfilzen.
A hard fight for the places on the podium took place between Sebastian Samuelsson from Sweden and Emilien Jacquelin from France, which the Swede could decide in his favor despite four penalty laps. For Samuelsson the races here in his home country were the absolute triumph and so he goes to Hochfilzen as World Cup leader in yellow.
Emilien Jacquelin shows that he is slowly getting back on track after his serious injury in summer and will be good for some surprises. As the only athlete who crossed the finish line without any mistakes, Simon Eder from Austria managed a passable sixth place in the TOP-10. Johannes Thingnes Boe was absolutely not satisfied with his eighth place and complained after the race. The usual favorites had little to do with the outcome of the race.
Quentin Fillon Mailett finished 16th, Tarjei Boe was 28th one place behind Simon Desthieux.
The DSV men all delivered a decent performance, but none of them was to be found in the TOP-10. Best was Roman Rees on rank 13, ahead of Johannes Kühn on rank fourteen.
Results 12,5 Km Pursuit Men Östersund:
1. Vetle Christiansen, NOR 30.14, 8 Min.
2. Sebastian Samuelsson, SWE + 9,8 Sek.
3.Emilien Jacquelin, FRA + 11,0 Sek.
8. JTB, NOR + 1.00,1 Min.
Statement Vetle Christiansen:" Our relay victory yesterday was enough motivation for me for today's race. Nobody could predict that it would end with the victory. But this is the first success of my hard work from the summer. Hopefully it will continue like this, because I feel strong enough to achieve further good results. Hopefully I will be spared from injuries. Now it's time to rest a bit."
Pictures: K. Voigt Fotografie