Germany’s Benedikt Doll cleaned the last standing stage, then skied away from Norway’s Johannes Thingnes Boe in the last loop to win the Antholz men’s 15 km mass start in 37:14.9. Doll had a single penalty in the third win of his career. Boe, with three penalties finished second, 31.3 seconds back. Boe’s Teammate Sturla Holm Laegreid, with three penalties, finished third, 1:28.8 back.

France’s Antonin Guigonnat, with two penalties, finished fourth, 1:34.7 back. Norway’s Sivert Guttorm Bakken, with three penalties, finished fifth, 1:35.2 back. Finland’s Tero Seppala, with three penalties, finished sixth, 1:42.1 back.

Overcast, light snow: twelve men within 18 seconds

Overcast with a little light snow accompanied by a strong wind cutting across the range greeted the men for their last mass start before the Olympic Winter Games next month. Johannes, closely followed by Quentin Fillon Maillet controlled the pace going into the first prone stage. Bakken, Laegreid and the Yellow Bib led the next six men, all of whom cleaned out of the stadium. A dozen men were within 18 seconds as they headed into the second 3 km loop.

Leading Trio

The trio maintained the lead, with JT and Doll joining the group as they came to the second prone stage. The red-haired Norwegian and Doll quickly closed all five targets while their main rivals went to the penalty loop. Guigonnat went out third, but 9.8 seconds back. Doll, Guigonnat and fifth position Krcmar remained as the only clean shooters through the prone stages.

JT stretches his lead

By the 8.7 km split, JT had a five-second lead over Doll and was pulling away, with Guigonnat now 32 seconds back as they neared the first standing stage. The two leaders both picked up a penalty, but JT shot faster, stretching his lead to almost nine seconds. Everyone behind the duo was also missing, except Seppala, Laegreid and Krcmar who cleaned leaving into third, fourth and fifth but 26, 30 and 36 seconds back, respectively. The Czech star remained the only man with three perfect stages.

Up by seven seconds

The three-time World Cup Total Score winner had a 12-second over the German lead into the deciding last standing stage. The leader missed a shot while Doll cleaned, allowing the German to leave up by seven seconds. The wind battered the group behind them with Laegreid and Seppala both adding penalty loops but holding third and fourth with Guigonnat joining them, all 1:27 back.

Smiling Doll cruises to victory

Doll battled hard, adding to his lead. With 1800 meters to go, he had padded his lead to 14.9 seconds over JT. Laegreid left his rivals behind and was solely in third, 1:21 back. The head-bobbing Doll never let up, adding seconds to his lead as his Norwegian rival wilted. Doll looked back as he topped the last uphill into the stadium, smiled and cruised to the finish, smiling all the way to his first-ever mas start victory. JT and Laegreid followed, setting the podium.

Full of Confidence

JT was full of confidence and thought he could win today. “I went for the win today from the start. I really believed I could win the race before the race started. I was quite confident, more than normal. I think that is why it brought me into such a good position. I was in an attacking mode.”

Photos: IBU/Thibaut