Can Laegreid seize control from Johannes in Antholz?

With the tour still recovering after the huge announcement of JT Boe’s retirement we now move to Antholz-Anterselva, which serves as the perfect high-altitude testing ground before the IBU World Championships in Lenzerheide, Switzerland (12–23 February). Sturla Holm Laegreid has a golden opportunity to claim the Total Score lead, while Franziska Preuss could solidify her position at the top. For Niklas Hartweg and Amy Baserga, Antholz offers a chance to boost their confidence ahead of their much-anticipated home Championships.

Is Laegreid ready to dethrone the retiring Boe?

What a week Ruhpolding was! JT Boe, one of the greatest winter athletes of all time, finished 85th in the Individual, his worst ever-finish by a mile compared even to his previous all-time low - 68th place in the Sprint of Khanty-Mansiysk in the 2014/2015 season.

He then took the anchor leg in the Relay, hoping to prevent France from making history with their first-ever triple, just to be denied again, with Norway’s streak of 17 consecutive men’s relay podiums, which started in January 2022, ending with a fourth-place finish in Ruhpolding. The record thus still belongs to East Germany, whose athletes reached the podium in 29 straight relays across World Cups, World Championships, and Olympic Games between 1976 and 1984. France celebrated in style, as they clearly have the Norwegians’ number and will look forward to Antholz-Anterselva where they can try to win a fourth Relay in a row.

At noon, a day before the Mass Start, Johannes shocked the world when he announced his retirement at the end of the season, surprising even his mum, who asked whether he planned to continue . . . past noon? With his heart lighter and soul free, Johannes went all-in in the Mass Start, finishing third—behind Laegreid and the jubilant Italian Tommaso Giacomel. Giacomel became the 10th Italian to win a World Cup race and only the third to do so in the 21st century, following Lukas Hofer and Dominik Windisch. An avid tennis fan, Tommaso has been watching his fellow South Tyrollean Jannik Sinner’s efforts to win his third Grand Slam tournament in Melbourne, Australia and is now planning his races in Antholz-Anterselva where he would like to better his venue-best sixth place in last winter’s Pursuit.

Before the Ruhpolding events, only athletes from four men’s teams—Norway, France, Sweden and Germany—had reached individual podiums this season. This list now includes Latvia and Italy thanks to Andrejs Rastorgujevs’ third-place finish in the Individual and Giacomel’s Mass Start victory. Fun fact: it was only those six nations who made up the podium places across the 2023/2024 season. Can a seventh nation join them this year?

Although the long goodbye tour for Johannes Thingnes Boe will continue in Antholz-Anterselva he has a Total Score title to fight for, with Laegreid only 38 points behind in the Total Score standings. Johannes will like his chances in Antholz: he has 10 wins to Laegreid’s four podiums (no wins). But, Laegreid has finished 2nd four times in the Total Score standings - three times to Johannes, once to Quentin Fillon Maillet. And with Johannes’ emotions on a rollercoaster - could 2024/2025 finally be Laegreid’s year?

Jeanmonnot hoping to use high altitude in Antholz

After a week of poor form in Oberhof, Franziska Preuss, carrying the expectations of the large nation, reacted phenomenally well in Ruhpolding. She finished second in the Individual and Mass Start for her seventh and eighth podium of 2024/2025. Preuss also anchored the German women’s relay to back-to-back victories for the first time since the 2016/17 season, when they - powered by Laura Dahlmeier - won every race.

Ahead of the Sprint and Pursuit in Antholz-Anterselva, Preuss has a 142-point advantage over Lou Jeanmonnot and 178 over Elvira Oeberg. As for their venue-bests, Preuss was fourth in the Pursuit in the 2013/2014 season and the Mass Start in the 2020/2021 season, Oeberg was third in the Sprint and Pursuit two winters ago, and Jeanmonnot was second in last season’s Mass Start. The leading trio’s accomplishments are dwarfed by Dorothea Wierer’s incredible record of five victories and four additional podiums in Antholz-Anterselva. On top of that, the Campionessa secured fourth place in the Mass Start in Ruhpolding and knows the ins and outs of Antholz like no other.

Our expert for the week, Marte Olsbu Roeiseland, sees high altitude in Antholz as an opportunity for Jeanmonnot to edge back closer to Preuss as the French usually thrive high in the Alps.

Switzerland's form is on the rise

With the IBU World Championships in Lenzerheide just three weeks away, the Swiss team increasingly will like their medal chances. Behind the blockbuster Boe and Preuss stories in Ruhpolding, Amy Baserga finished third in the Individual, becoming the third Swiss women biathlete to claim a World Cup podium, following Selina Gasparin (4 times) and Lena Haecki-Gross (6 times). Fully recovered from a mountain bike-related shoulder injury in June, Niklas Hartweg has finished 10th or higher in four individual competitions in 2025. A deeper dive into the competition data tells us he has been one closed target away from the podium - or even a win - on three occasions.

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