Oslo, the season finale for biathletes and the venue for a duel that could remain exciting until the last shooting, perhaps even until the last meter. Franziska Preuß and Lou Jeanmonnot will be fighting for victory in the overall World Cup in the remaining two races of the 2024/2025 season. In the men's race, WTC winner Sturla Holm Laegreid has the triumph in his own hands.
Preuß vs. Jeanmonnot - millimeters can make the difference
Franziska Preuß leads the overall World Cup with 1048 points, but her lead has shrunk to just 20 points after the weekend in Pokljuka (Slovenia). Lou Jeanmonnot is more successful than Preuß with seven victories. However, the German has been more consistent throughout the season. The decision as to who will ultimately win the big crystal globe and thus the first overall World Cup victory of their career will probably only be made in the final mass start on Sunday (March 23). Before that, the pursuit on Saturday (22.3.) is still on the agenda.
But in addition to the big crystal globe, Oslo is also about the discipline rankings in the remaining two races. Franziska Preuß is also among the front runners here. With her third win of the season, Franziska Preuß has won the small crystal globe in the sprint and is getting closer to her goal of winning the overall World Cup. The 31-year-old won the World Cup final at Holmenkollen on Friday (March 21) with a two-tenths of a second lead over her rival Lou Jeanmonnot (France) thanks to flawless shooting and a great run time. With two races to go, her lead over the Frenchwoman in the battle for the big crystal globe has increased from 20 to 35 points.
Laegreid with a lead to Holmenkollen
The men's overall World Cup could already be decided before the final mass start. In the last sprint race of his career, Johannes Thingnes Boe once again impressively showed his class on Friday (March 21). Bö, who will end his career at the weekend, started in the red jersey of the season's best in this discipline - and he left no doubt at all that he will also retire with this jersey.
Although Boe's chances of winning his sixth overall World Cup are slim, he still has a chance to shine. In the sprint, he was his usual strong self, remained clear in the first shooting and was lucky in the second attempt when he fired his shots with gaps of just 1.3 and 1.4 seconds and the targets just tipped over twice.
Boe is currently ahead in the pursuit, but Sturla Holm Laegreid is only 15 points behind his closest rival in this classification. The mass start classification is also close: Laegreid leads with 260 points, followed by the two Frenchmen Eric Perrot (239) and Quentin Fillon Maillet (218). Tarjej Boe (193) still has a mathematical chance of winning the small crystal globe.
For the top athletes, next weekend will be about mobilizing all their strength once again and rewarding themselves for a long season. For the other athletes, it's all about saying goodbye to the season break with a good feeling and good results.
