Leonhard Pfund led the German single mixed relay team to victory in only his second World Cup race. In the absence of many top athletes, the 22-year-old caught up with his Finnish competitor Tero Seppälä immediately after the last shooting and crossed the finish line first in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic, after a total of four spare rounds for the German duo. There he was hugged by his beaming teammate Marlene Fichtner.
“I can’t believe it right now, it’s unbelievable,” Fichtner told ARD. She also impressed with a strong shooting performance. Pfund said: “I let myself be carried away by the euphoria, it was a great atmosphere, I just didn’t feel anything anymore.”
Finland and France complete the podium
Seppälä and Suvi Minkkinen finished in second place, 6.5 seconds behind (8 spares). Behind them, the two Frenchmen Jeanne Richard and Émilien Claude (6) completed the podium.
Fichtner, also 22, had achieved her best career result with 16th place in the shortened individual race the day before. Pfund also impressed with 13th place in his World Cup debut on Thursday. This enabled the two to qualify for the mass start on Sunday.