Justine Braisaz-Bouchet thrilled her home crowd during the first sprint event of the 2024/2025 Biathlon World Cup at Le Grand-Bornand on Friday, narrowly defeating German World Cup leader Franziska Preuss by just 1.4 seconds. The race unfolded over 7.5 kilometers with Braisaz-Bouchet reeling it in after incurring one penalty lap. This victory marked her first win of the season and her tenth overall win, solidifying her reputation as both an Olympic and triple world champion.
"It is crazy to be here at home with such a crowd, pushing me every time on the shooting range and on the tracks," said Braisaz-Bouchet after her triumphant performance. She remained unaware of Preuss' late surge and acknowledged the nail-biting finish as exhilarating. German team officials reported after the race, though, Preuss wasn't fully fit at the start, which might have hindered her chances.
The competition is far from over at the picturesque Annecy-Le Grand Bornand, which hosts three additional days of biathlon events featuring pursuits and mass start races. The pursuits are set to be exciting, with various elite athletes and national representatives pushing for victory.
On Saturday, biathletes will take on the pursuit races with the men starting first at 12:30 PM, followed by the women's event at 2:45 PM. The French team sees promising athletes like Eric Perrot, Emilien Jacquelin, and Quentin Fillon-Maillet line up with the hope of continuing their strong performance from the preceding sprint races. Perrot will start with bib 7, Jacquelin has bib 8, and Fillon-Maillet has bib 10. Behind them, Fabien Claude, Antonin Guigonnat, and Emilien Claude are on the start list with numbers 24, 27, and 37, respectively. On the women's side, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet opens the pursuit with her narrow lead over Preuss, with strong support from fellow Frenchwomen like Julia Simon and Jeanne Richard.
With high stakes and national pride on the line, the pursuits promise to be packed with drama and high-speed action. The entire weekend's festivities can be traced back to the season kickoff at Hochfilzen, Austria, making Le Grand-Bornand the third leg of this intense competition series.
The program proceeds as follows: Saturday features the men's 12.5km pursuit at 12:30 PM and the women's 10km pursuit at 2:45 PM. Sunday brings about the culmination with mass start events, featuring 15km for men and 12.5km for women set at 12:30 PM and 2:45 PM, respectively.
The intensity of the biathlon continues as the athletes gear up to take on the next leg of the World Cup series after the competitions end at Le Grand-Bornand, heading to Oberhof, Germany, for more exciting races.
