Antonin Guigonnat and Paula Botet, both of France, won the Pursuit competitions in Ridnaun-Val Ridanna, making the second week of the IBU Cup an all-French affair. Botet swept all three competitions in Ridnaun.

Guigonnat started today’s Pursuit from third place, 21.9 seconds behind, but a windless, sunny day allowed him a perfect performance on the shooting range and delivered victory in 31:25.0. Guigonnat was one of only three athletes to shoot 20/20. Valentin Lejeune defended his second place from the Sprint, shooting 18/20 and finishing 23.0 seconds behind Guigonnat. Sprint winner Damien Levet missed three shots and completed the all-French podium, 31.8 seconds back.

Botet completed her triple triumph in Ridnaun with another commanding performance, missing just two shots and winning in 28:47.7. She shot 46/50 in Ridnaun for a world-class 92% accuracy, which surely earned her a well-deserved return to the World Cup team. Celia Henaff, with 17/20, climbed one place from the Sprint to finish second, 51.3 seconds behind Botet. Voldiya Galmace-Paulin, with 15/20, claimed her third podium in Ridnaun with a third-place finish, 1:08.3 behind Botet.

Botet and Lejeune extended their leads in the Total Score standings, keeping the green bibs firmly in their possession.

Photo: Davide Barbieri: IBU Photo Pool