Gold madness in Antholz: Wierer is world champion!

By Thomas Debelyak from Antholz

Antholz is upside down, the South Tyrol Arena is a cauldron: Dorothea Wierer was crowned world champion in the pursuit on Sunday in front of 20.000 enthusiastic spectators. For the speedster it is the second world title after the mass start coup last season. But the gold medal on Sunday should outshine everything: Becoming world champion in the place where Wierer grew up and where she took her first steps in biathlon – that is a childhood dream. A dream that has now become reality. Thrilling duel with Røiseland Wierer had started the pursuit - true to her sprint result - from 7th position, but showed from the start that she wanted to know it that day. In the two prone shooting stages, she impressed with an extremely fast and error-free performance, which allowed her to work her way to the top of the field.

Marte Olsbu Røiseland, Dorothea Wierer and Denise Herrmann (from left) at the shooting range. © APA/afp / MARCO BERTORELLO

There, a duel soon emerged between her and the sprint world champion Marte Olsbu Røiseland. The two ski hunters came to the first standing shooting event together, but showed nerves of steel and made no mistakes. So the very last shooting – also in the standing position – had to decide. Gold in connoisseur mode Wierer had the better end there: she only missed one target, while Røiseland missed twice. As a result, the racer went into the final lap with a lead of 2 seconds. It was clear: the world championship title belongs to Dorothea Wierer.

Wierer was able to enjoy the fantastic atmosphere in the last few meters and ran to the finish to thunderous cheers to win the gold medal. Another positive side effect: In the overall World Cup standings, the 29-year-old increased her lead at the top and is now 60 points (that's a win) ahead of Tiril Eckhoff.

Silver went to the German Denise Herrmann on Sunday, who overtook Røiseland on the last lap. The Norwegian won bronze. Lisa Vittozzi, who started the pursuit in 6th position, missed a total of 3 times and was relegated to 27th place. Federica Sanfilippo from Ridnaun took 33rd place.

The next women's competition in Antholz is on Tuesday: Then there will be the individual competition over 15 kilometers. World Cup in Antholz, women's pursuit Pos Name Country Time Error 1. Dorothea Wierer ITA/turf 29.22,0 min 1 2. Denise Herrmann GER +9,5 sec 3 3. Marte Olsbu Røiseland NOR +13,8 3 4. Hanna Öberg SWE +22,3 2 5. Vanessa Hinz GER +26,8 1 6. Ivana Fialkova CZE +35,7 2 7. Franziska Preuss GER +40,6 2 8. Lisa Theresa Hauser TUE +51,4 1 9. Baiba Bendika LAT +1.03,02 min 2 10. Aita Gasparin SUI +1.07,4 1 27. Lisa Vittozzi ITA +1.57,4 3 33. Federico Sanfilippo ITA/Ridnaun +2.31,8 2

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Gold madness in Antholz: Wierer is world champion!

Great performance from Dorothea Wierer: The racer was crowned world champion in the pursuit on Sunday in front of an impressive backdrop in the South Tyrol Arena.

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