LENZERHEIDE, Switzerland : France’s Julia Simon and Quentin Fillon Maillet won the gold medal in the single mixed relay at the International Biathlon Union World Championships on Thursday.
The pair were steady in the shooting and finished 5.7 seconds ahead of the Norwegian duo of Johannes Thingnes Boe and Ragnhild Femsteinevik. Germany’s Franziska Preuss and Justus Strelow clinched bronze, 8.3 seconds behind France.
The championships in the Swiss Alps have been dominated by France, who have won five golds and been on the podium in every race.
“These are crazy World Championships for France, it’s great. We are super dynamic,” Simon told L’Equipe TV.
“We completed each other very well. I made a very good race start and Quentin made a great finish.”
Gold slipped away from Norway despite being the fastest on the course, with 15 missed shots proving costly. However, Thingnes Boe was fast in the final lap, catching up with Germany – who were 17.5 seconds ahead after the shooting — to secure second place after a sprint finish.
“I was in a mode where I could just attack. The good skis were back,” Thingnes Boe told Norwegian broadcaster NRK.
