Franziska Preuß won the overall biathlon World Cup for the first time in her career. As the sixth German, the 31-year-old crowned himself the best of all biathletes and thus completed an impressive season.
At the World Cup final at the Osloer Holmenkollen in Norway, she demonstrated nerve strength in the role of chaser and caught her rival Lou JeanMonnot, who fell unhappily on the final round, with a win. The French woman had taken the yellow jersey with a victory in the persecution the day before and had gone to the last race of this winter with a lead of five points. In the final round, both rivals were dangerously close to each other, JeanMonnot fell, Prussia had free rail.
“Franzi was not to blame”
The French took protest against the rating after the race, but pulled it back a little later. “It was kind of stupid to win it that way, I would have preferred to hold it on the home stretch,” said Preuss in the ARD. “It was an unfortunate situation, but it was a competition situation, Franzi was not to blame,” said sports director Felix Bitterling.
In the last competition weekend of this long season, Preuss had gone on JeanMonnot with a lead of only 20 points. After their victory in sprint and fifth place in the persecution, Preuss, who was supported by part of her family, was supported.
The overall World Cup victory is even above its first World Cup single gold only won in February, because it distinguishes the consistency throughout the season. “This is really one of the greatest achievements that can be achieved,” said the persecution world champion, who had won three more medals in Lenzerheide.
Before Preuss, Martina Glagow (2002/03), Kati Wilhelm (2005/06), Andrea Henkel (2006/07), Magdalena Neuner (2007/08, 2009/10 and 2011/12) and Laura Dahlmeier (2016/17) won the overall World Cup. Prussia made it through its impressive shooting quota and the consistency of a total of 13 podium places in the 21 season races. JeanMonnot won significantly more often, but also showed more fluctuations.
Preuss' next big goal will be the Winter Olympics in Antholz in the coming year, and there she also wants to fulfill her last sporting dream with gold. After that could be over. Then the Bavarian wants to start a family with her partner Simon Schempp, even world champion and Olympic medalist and fill her house in Ruhpolding with life.
For Prussia, this prestigious triumph is the icing on the cake of its turbulent career. In the past, she thought of a career end, but kept fighting back. For years, infections and illnesses threw them back again and again, they had to do without world championships and end it earlier.
Only an operation of the sinuses last year after the end of the season brought the hoped -for improvement and was the door opener for the happy ending of an outstanding season.
