After two silver medals in the individual and mixed relay, Kasper Kalkenberg from Norway made it to the top of the podium in his third race in Otepaa. He won the sprint over 7.5 kilometers with a perfect race. Elsa Tanglander from Sweden won the women's race, achieving her personal best.

You could see his relief after the race. Kasper Kalkenberg went into the 7.5 kilometer Youth Sprint race in Otepaa as the defending champion. And he withstood the pressure. With two flawless shoots and the fastest time, he was the best on the day. Just like in 2023 at the sprint in Shchuchinsk. The sprint seems to be a special race for Kasper Kalkenberg. At the finish he has a lead of 30 seconds.

Matija Legovic also back on the podium

Matija Legovic from Croatia also achieved the same result as at the World Championships a year ago. He finished in second place and took home the silver medal. With one shooting error, he missed the chance to win at the shooting range. Third place went to Jimi Klemettinen from Finland. After his fourth place in the individual, he now won his first medal in the sprint with one mistake in the standing position. For Jakub Potoniec from Poland, fourth place is his best result of the season. He missed out on the medal by just three seconds. His teammate Grzegorz Galica also impressed with sixth place at the finish. And the hosts were also celebrating. Jakob Kulbin from Estonia finished in fifth place.

Elsa Tanglander: from the very bottom to the very top

Elsa Tanglander was more than disappointed with 41st place in the individual. With ten misses at the shooting range, she had no chance of attacking at the front. All the stronger was the will in her to show a better performance in the sprint. And she did so brilliantly. With only one missed target, she regained her strength at the shooting range and was also one of the fastest on the track. The gold medal is also her personal career best.

Voldiya Galmace Paulin collects medals

France's Voldiya Galmace Paulin has already won a full set of medals after three races. After winning gold in the mixed relay and bronze in the individual, she won the silver medal in the sprint. She was the fastest on the track that day, but had to run two penalty laps. Third place went to Melina Gaupp from Germany. The fifteen-year-old was only running her second international race and impressed straight away. With only one penalty lap, she finished 20 seconds behind. Her teammate Alma Siegismund completed the good German team result with fifth place, one place behind Italy's Carlotta Gautero.

Photos: IBU I Osula