The Tyrolean Leitner was 16th with a penalty minute, the Salzburg veteran Eder ended up in 20th place after two missed shots. Frenchman Quentin Fillon Maillet continued his performances in the World Cup and won his first individual Olympic medal with gold.
Fillon Maillet leads the World Cup, in China he has already celebrated his sixth win of the season. The 29-year-old could even afford two missed shots. Surprise man Anton Smolski (BLR) was the only one in the top 20 who didn’t miss a shot and, in second place, came within 14.8 seconds of the favorite. The 2018 Olympic champion Johannes Thingnes Bö (NOR) secured bronze with two missed shots (+31.1).
Leitner was quite far behind in the cross-country ski run. “At the shooting range it was a top race with 95 percent,” said the 25-year-old in an ORF interview. When running, however, many factors came together. “I certainly didn’t have the best day, but I didn’t have the best equipment either. We’ve had problems with ice-cold snow all season.”
The otherwise reliable shooter Eder made a mistake in prone and standing in the second attack. But even a “zero”, like Dominik Landertinger had achieved four years ago on the way to Olympic bronze, would not have been enough this time. The man from Saalfelden lost 3:22 minutes to the winner. “Height is a factor,” explained the 38-year-old. “We are at 1,700 m, on my second and third lap it hurt me a lot.”
David Komatz ended up in 45th place (+5:36.7/3 errors), Harald Lemmerer was 57th (+6:35.3/4).
Fillon Maillet was surprised at the win given the two penalties. “I didn’t think it would be enough for gold. It’s an unbelievable day,” said the winner after the first success in a 20 km competition.
Source: Nachrichten
