Quentin Fillon Maillet of France stands at the finish line during the men’s 20 kilometer individual race at the 2022 Winter Olympics Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
PA
ZHANGJAIKOU, China
Quentin Fillon Maillet of France decisively won the 20-kilometre individual biathlon on Tuesday, adding a gold medal to the silver he won in the mixed relay over the weekend.
Fillon Maillet has dominated the world of biathlon lately. He has scored 10 World Cup podiums this season, half of them in victories, which makes him the overall leader. Now he is also an Olympic champion. He missed two of 20 targets and completed the course in 48 minutes, 47.4 seconds.
Anton Smolski of Belarus shot flawlessly – hitting all 20 targets – and came 14.8 seconds behind the Frenchman.
Defending individual Olympic champion Johannes Thingnes Boe of Norway also missed two targets and took the bronze medal, 31.1 seconds behind Fillon Maillet. He beat the Frenchman in the mixed relay on Saturday to secure the gold medal.
Boe and Russian skier Maxim Tsvetkov raced most of the course together, starting with bibs Nos. 1 and 2, but Tsvetkov missed his very last shot and finished 34.9 seconds behind Fillon Maillet.
Competitors ran 20 kilometers in five ski loops, shooting twice while lying down and twice standing up between each lap. In all other biathlon events, they ski a 150 meter loop for each miss, which takes about 20 seconds. But in the individual race, one minute is added for each miss, which makes shooting accuracy particularly important.
The wind remained calm throughout the race, making the shooting results less chaotic and more consistent.
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