France takes gold and silver in the women’s biathlon mass start race
ANTERSELVA, Italy (AP) — In the final biathlon event of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, France’s Oceane Michelon overcame a missed target in the final shooting stage in the 12.5-kilometer mass start race to take gold.
In heavy snow and low visibility, Michelon left the range in fourth place but moved ahead on the ski trails to complete the five laps in 37 minutes, 18.1 seconds.
Michelon’s teammate, Julia Simon, also moved up in the final 2.5 kilometers, crossing the finish line 6.6 seconds back and securing the silver medal. Czech biathlete Tereza Vobornikova had been leading after the final shooting but had to settle for bronze after being overtaken by the French powerhouse team, finishing 7.4 seconds behind Michelon.
Anna Magnusson of Sweden, the only biathlete to hit all 20 of her targets, finished fourth, 26.6 seconds back.
Italy’s Dorothea Wierer, favored by the fans who roared with excitement each time she hit a target, missed two, and at one point was sitting in 16th place, but she cleaned her last standing shooting and crossed the line 30 seconds back in fifth place.
Wierer, who turns 36 in April, had announced her plans to retire after these Olympics, along with Germany’s Franziska Preuss, who finished 28th with seven misses. Wierer and Preuss held small flags and skied a short loop together in front of the packed stands, and then celebrated their final race with champagne.
Olympic mass start defending champion Justine Braisaz-Bouchet of France finished a disappointing 27th place, 3:12.2 back, after missing six targets.
Only the top 30 biathletes compete in the mass start race — based on World Cup rankings and Olympic performance. They ski five, 2.5-kilometer loops, shooting twice in the prone position and twice standing.
Anne Buenemann de Besche was the first Danish female biathlete to qualify for an Olympic mass start. She finished in 29th place.
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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics