FILE PHOTO: Biathlon - Biathlon World Cup - Holmenkollen, Norway - March 22, 2025 Germany's Franziska Preuss in action during the women's pursuit start 10 km biathlon Thomas Andersen/NTB via REUTERS/File Photo
OSLO (Reuters) -Germany's Franziska Preuss won her first World Cup overall title in a dramatic season finale in Holmenkollen, Norway, on Sunday after France's Lou Jeanmonnot fell close to the finish line in the women's 12.5km mass-start race.
Jeanmonnot had taken a five-point lead in the overall standings after winning Saturday's 10km pursuit, which earned her the pursuit globe after she had already claimed the individual globe, but she was ultimately denied the overall win by 20 points.
Preuss, who lost the overall lead on Saturday, battled neck and neck with Jeanmonnot until the Frenchwoman fell at the final corner coming into the stadium and the German went on to win the race ahead of Sweden's Elvira Oeberg, with Jeanmonnot coming in third.
"Right now, it is really emotional. I am really done mentally. It is a strange feeling right now," Preuss said.
"It was not the ending we wanted. But it was a really exciting race. We were both together in the last loop; it was crazy. It is hard to explain."
Preuss, who won gold in the 10km pursuit at the World Championships last month, also won the sprint and mass start globes, having previously won one single globe, back in 2015.
Jeanmonnot also fell just short last year, finishing runner-up to Italian Lisa Vittozzi, though she did win the final race of the season, while this time she was consoled at the finish line by Preuss after breaking down in tears.
BOE FAREWELL
In the men's season finale a couple of hours later, Sweden's Sebastian Samuelsson won the 15km mass start, crossing the line ahead of Eric Perrot of France while Norway's Endre Stromsheim took third place.
Sturla Holm Laegreid, who won the overall World Cup on Saturday, finished fourth but at the iconic Holmenkollen arena all eyes were on his Norwegian team mates, Tarjei and Johannes Thingnes Boe
For the Boe brothers, the final stretch of the men's race was charged with emotion. Both had announced earlier in the season that this would be their last event.
Johannes, 31, won four of six possible gold medals at the Beijing Winter Olympics and took one gold from the 2018 edition in Pyeongchang, while his older brother Tarjei, 36, has three Olympic golds to his name.
Tarjei carried a Norwegian flag proudly as he approached the finish. Metres from the end, he paused, turned to the roaring crowd and bowed in gratitude before crossing the line in 23rd place.
Waiting for him was Johannes, who finished seventh despite four misses. He greeted Tarjei with a hug, both visibly emotional.
Moments later, the two were seen sharing what appeared to be a bottle of champagne, in celebration of careers that had come to a close.
"We will gain weight; people won’t recognise us in six months," Tarjei said when asked about future plans.
"In a month, the others will start focusing on the Olympics, while we’ll still be lying on the sofa," Johannes said, before adding: "We’ve had a journey together as a family and as brothers. It’s been fantastic. I’m so happy to have done it with you, Tarjei."
(Reporting by Trevor Stynes and Tommy Lund; editing by Clare Fallon)
