HOLMENKOLLEN (Dagbladet): Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen got revenge and beat Sweden’s Sebastian Samuelsson in a sprint as he surely went in for victory for Norway.
He went together with Juni Arnekleiv (25) in the pairs relay in Holmenkollen.
– It was delicious. I’ve run this race in training, so I knew how this could go. But it was on the hair, says Sjåstad Christiansen to NRK after the finish line.
CLOSE DUEL: Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen and Swedish Sebastian Samuelsson ended up in a close duel. Photo: Javad Parsa / NTB Show more
A nervous Arnekleiv stood and jumped in the goal area when Sjåstad Christiansen sprinted in for victory.
– I held my breath
– It was absolutely terrible. I think I held my breath. I was quite sure that it was a bit too far forward when he started the race, but then I saw that he was suddenly only three meters behind, says an impressed Arnekleiv about his partner.
– Not seen since Mühlegg
Arnekleiv skated flawlessly on the first lying down, but had to use an extra shot on standing. Christiansen used two extra shots on the first layup. He got his revenge with a flawless standing and sent Arnekleiv into the lead on her last lap.
Hunted the Swede
Arnekleiv used an extra shot lying down. Despite three extra shots, she had to go to a penalty round after her last standing shooting.
Christiansen thus had to chase Finnish Otto Invenius and Swedish Sebastian Samuelsson, who had a lead of a few seconds before the last stage.
– Sad development
The biathlete from Geilo ensured a flawless horizontal shooting and quickly regained the lead, but was joined by the Swede until the last shooting. Christiansen knocked down the first four flashes, but missed his fifth shot and had to use an extra shot.
Target photo
Samuelsson was a little faster with his series, which also ended with one extra shot and he finished 4 seconds ahead of the Norwegian.
IN TET: Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen sent Juni Arnekleiv into the lead after the first series. Photo: Javad Parsa / NTB Show more
– This will be extremely exciting, said NRK’s commentator Jann Post after the latest shooting.
– Vetle should manage this, said NRK’s expert commentator Ola Lunde.
Christiansen made up for much of what was lost on the Northug plain in Holmenkollen and decided with a sucking sprint on the run. Thus, Christiansen got his little revenge on the Swede from the WC relay when the Norwegian collapsed at the last standing in a clear lead.
After the finish, a finish photo was needed to decide the winner. It was a nerve-wracking few seconds for the Norwegian team.
By a few millimeters, in the end, they could finally cheer for victory.