Lowell Bailey (USA) © U.S. Biathlon/NordicFocus

March 14, 2016 (Oslo, Norway) – The USA’s Lowell Bailey had a near-perfect day in the men’s 15km mass start finishing a solid 10th as the IBU World Championships came to a close on Sunday in Oslo. Johannes Thingnes Boe (NOR), the 2015 World Sprint Champion, delivered the huge upset the home crowd was hoping for in the race for gold, as he  bested the seemingly unbeatable Martin Fourcade (FRA), who had dominated the individual competitions at the IBU Worlds with four wins. The only cracks in Fourcade’s armour appeared the previous day in the Men’s 4×7.5km relay as France uncharacteristically came up short, placing a paltry ninth, while Norway stormed to victory.

(l-r) Martin Fourcade (FRA), Johannes Thingnes Boe (NOR), Ole Einar Bjoerndalen (NOR) © Nordic Focus

For Bailey it was bitter-sweet as he was racing with the leaders, and even took over the lead as the field approached the final shooting stage. However, it was a miss on his last target that ultimately cost Bailey any shot at a podium finish despite his fine shooting performance.

Bailey was pleased with his top-10 performance. “I’m happy with the race, and obviously, I would’ve liked to hit that last shot, but it was a solid performance and I’m happy with the way I raced today,” said Bailey. “I stayed in control of my own race and was able to stay in it until the very end, and that is the sport of biathlon. You can always say, ‘Man, if I just had one more hit, then I would have been here’… but that’s why it’s such a great sport. That’s why the fans love it. That’s why we, the athletes, love it!”

Tim Burke (USA) also kept up with the lead pack through the midway point of the race after cleaning both prone stages, but a miss at each of the standing stages relegated him to a strong 12th place at race’s end. His time was 37:58.5.

Martin Fourcade (FRA), Johannes Thingnes Boe (NOR) heading to the finish. © Nordic Focus

“Today was a very unique mass start because the shooting was so good for most of the field,” Burke said. “I feel like the race did not really get going until after the first standing shooting. Up until that point, the lead pack was so big that it basically took skiing out of the equation. I typically prefer a higher pace in the mass starts but today I just had to be really patient and save up for the last two loops. Once again the crowd was amazing. It was impossible to hear what the coaches were saying on the course with so many people. I am still feeling fit and am really looking forward to the last week of racing in Russia. Khanty has always been one of my favorite venues so I look forward to a strong finish there.”

Both Boe and Fourcade had a single penalty but the young Norwegian finished in 37:05.1, 2.8 seconds ahead of Fourcade. Ole Einar Bjoerndalen, who shot clean, grabbed the bronze medal, his fourth of the world championships. Full men’s mass start results are available here.

The final World Cup event of the season, BMW IBU World Cup 9, takes place next weekend in Khanty Mansiysk, Russia, starting with the women’s 7.5km sprint on Thursday.

Results
1. Johannes Thingnes Boe (NOR) 37:05.1
2. Martin Fourcade (FRA) 37:07.9
3. Ole Einar Bjoerndalen (NOR) 37:11.8

10. Lowell Bailey (USA) 37:46.8
12. Tim Burke (USA) 37:58.5
DNF Leif Nordgren (USA)

Full results HERE.