Overall World Cup winner Franziska Preuß won the pursuit title at the end of the German Biathlon Championships. The 31-year-old from Ruhpolding thus prevented the title hat-trick of former World Championship silver medallist Janina Hettich-Walz. In the first races after her maternity leave on the Arber, the 29-year-old Hettich-Walz had previously surprisingly won the sprint and shortened individual races against the national competition.
In the last race of the title fights, Hettich-Walz finished second on roller skis, just over half a minute behind world champion Preuß, who did not miss a shot. Third place went to Selina Kastl.
Three men's title winners
In the men's event, Justus Strelow came out on top ahead of Lucas Fratzscher and Philipp Nawrath. Roman Rees had previously won gold in the sprint and Philipp Horn came out on top in the short singles.
The German championships in summer conditions are part of the biathletes' preparation for the winter. The results also have an influence on who gets one of the coveted starting places in the World Cup. The season begins on November 29 in Östersund, Sweden. The highlight is the Winter Olympics with the biathlon competitions in Antholz.
Copyright 2025, dpa (www.dpa.de). All rights reserved
