The domination of the French women's biathlon team is insolent and continues to stretch.
This Saturday, Lou Jeanmonnot, Sophie Chauveau, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet and Julia Simon won the women's relay title, a first in history for France.
Despite a failed second stint from Sophie Chauveau, Julia Simon started in last position and had no difficulty finishing the job.
This new victory perfectly illustrates the domination of the Blue since the start of these World Championships in Nove Mesto in the Czech Republic and, more generally, since the start of the season.
A supremacy symbolized by the quadruplet during the World Championships sprint on February 9 and embodied by these few figures.
1
This world title is historic.
Since 1984 and the first women's relay at the World Championships, then organized in Chamonix, France has never won the title.
Lou Jeanmonnot, Sophie Chauveau, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet and Julia Simon therefore enter the history of French biathlon by achieving what their elders failed to do before them.
After the race, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet also wanted to pay tribute to them.
“As soon as I woke up, I thought very hard about those who retired a long time ago, or not so long ago like Marie Dorin-Habert, Anaïs Bescond, Anaïs Chevalier-Bouchet… I don’t list them all but we think really strong for them.
We are the first relay world champions and I am very proud of our group.
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3
This victory is the third in a row this winter for the women's relay.
In Oberhof, on January 7 in the World Cup, the four world champions had already won, while Jeanne Richard replaced Justine Braisaz-Bouchet in Ruhpolding three days later for another success.
4
Julia Simon is the big star of these World Championships.
After a complicated start to the season, which followed an eventful summer, marked by two complaints for bank card fraud, including one filed by Justine Braisaz-Bouchet, the Frenchwoman arrived in Nove Mesto at the best of her form.
In five races, she won five medals, including four titles: in sprint, pursuit, mixed relay and, therefore, in women's relay.
Also read “I knew how to get back up”: after business and doubt, Julia Simon dreams of medals at the Biathlon Worlds
10
Before the mass starts, scheduled for this Sunday, France sits at the top of the medal table with ten podiums.
Because even if Norway won an additional medal, the Blues won five titles, which places them at the top of the rankings.
In Nove Mesto, France has already collected five golds (women's relay, mixed relay, single mixed relay, women's sprint for Simon, women's pursuit for Simon), silver from Braisaz-Bouchet in the pursuit, and four bronzes (Jeanmonnot in the sprint, Braisaz-Bouchet in the pursuit, Simon in the individual and the men's relay).
13
With a fourth medal in these World Championships, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet increases her total of podiums to 13 since the start of the season.
The Frenchwoman, who scored four victories between December 14 and January 5, was even leading the World Cup for several weeks.
In Nove Mesto, she won silver in the sprint, bronze in the pursuit, gold in the mixed relay and the women's relay.
17
Proof of the extreme domination of the French women's team this season, the Blues have been on the podium in 17 of the 22 races already contested (including the 3 individual events of the Worlds).
The individual and the relay in Östersund, the pursuit in Hochfilzen and the sprint and the pursuit in Ruhpolding are the only events where the French women failed to win a medal.
Also read “They walked on water”: the story of the monumental exploit of Les Bleues at the Biathlon Worlds
32
The women's relay has been waiting for a victory in a major competition for 32 years.
At the Albertville Olympic Games in 1992, Corinne Niogret, Véronique Claudel and Anne Briand were gold medalists, a feat which has never been equaled, despite several podiums, in 2018, in 2010, in 2006 and in 1994 .
45.5
This Saturday, however, victory was far from being achieved for the French who, at mid-race, were 45.5 seconds behind Estonia.
In difficulty on the shooting range, with eight errors and two penalty laps to complete, Sophie Chauveau passed the baton to Justine Braisaz-Bouchet in eighth place.
Thanks to a perfect race, the biathlete made up for all her team's delays to finally hand over the lead to Julia Simon, who only had to finish the job.