ANTERSELVA, Italy, Feb 22 (Reuters) - With gold and silver in the final biathlon race of the Milano Cortina Games, the women's mass start on Saturday, the French biathlon team came agonisingly close to matching a Norwegian Olympic milestone as their rivalry in the sport gathered pace.
Friends outside the track and shooting range, the two countries' athletes compete fiercely on it.
In the Olympic competitions in Anterselva it was the French who came out on top, though they fell one medal short of the Norwegians' mark of 14 at a single Games, set in 2022.
"It was an amazing Olympics here for the men's team, and for the women as well. But for the men's team, we got a medal in each race. And it's kind of a strange feeling," French coach Simon Fourcade told Reuters.
"I said before the Olympics, a good Olympics for us would be two medals in the relay and three in individual races, and we are here today with two golds in relays and four medals in individual (men's) races, so it's quite amazing.
"I didn't hope for so much, and living this adventure with this team is something amazing. And yeah, we will enjoy it and go back to work to fight for the rest (of the medals)."
NORWAY'S RECORD LOOMS
With Julia Simon and Oceane Michelon leading the charge for the women and Quentin Fillon Maillet, Eric Perrot and Emilien Jacquelin all stellar on the men's side, it has been an electrifying Games for France.
But their rivals pushed them all the way.
Norway managed to get two men on the podium in several men's races and France did the same on the women's side, resulting in a total of 11 medals for the Norwegians, five of them won by Sturla Holm Laegreid, and 13 for the French.
The fierce competition will now continue into the next Olympic cycle.
"The record of the number of medals is 14 for Norway at the last Olympics (in 2022)," the ever-competitive Fourcade enthused when asked what his team's future goals might look like.
"If we can equal this record, it would be so great."
(Reporting by Philip O'Connor; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
