Neuner wins thriller
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ByEurosport
Updated 03/12/2011 at 22:45 GMT
Germany’s Magdalena Neuner re-asserted her dominance in women’s biathlon by snatching a thrilling IBU 7.5km sprint World Cup gold in Oestersund.
Magdalena Neuner of Germany wins the 12,5 km women's mass start at the Biathlon World Championships in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, 12 March 2011
Image credit: dpa
The 24-year-old two-time Olympic champion produced a mad dash to the finish to edge out Norway’s Tora Berger by only two tenths of a second, finishing in a time of 22:01.7minutes.
Having been forced to settle for bronze in the opening event of the season, the women’s individual on Thursday, Neuner looked back to her best with a near-perfect display on the shooting range.
The 30-year-old Berger had earlier laid down the gauntlet to her rivals with a powerful skiing performance that was so close to earning her a first World Cup gold of the season.
But Neuner, who became the youngest World Cup champion in history three years ago, had enough in her locker on the final sprint to top the podium.
Finland’s Kaisa Makarainen, the defending overall World Cup champion, was again let down by her shooting as two misses on the range forced her down into third, 15 seconds behind Neuner.
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