Another incident with weapons occurs at the Biathlon World Cup. Now it’s the Frenchman’s fault.
Batraz Tomaev January 22, 2024, 12:30 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
After finishing the mass start in Antholz, Quentin Fillon Maillet threw his rifle dangerously aside. He will be punished?
“I was very angry”
World biathlon took a break before the 2024 World Championships. The Norwegians, for example, complete the January stages on a positive note, but the men’s part of the French team continues to have problems. The apotheosis was the team’s performance in the mass start, where Quentin Fillon Maillet fought for victory, but in the end he could not even retain third place.
Live streams of World Cup races are available on Okko.
The main loser of the race vomited and vomited after the finish line. First the sticks flew in different directions and then the rifle was hit and thrown into the snow. A moment later, the Frenchman came to his senses and still installed it on the rack, but unsafe handling of the weapon was still recorded.
“I felt very disappointed after the race because I probably lost my first win or at least my first podium of the season. Towards the end of the race I got very angry,” the biathlete justified on television.
Such a seemingly trifle could have gone unnoticed if it were not for a series of scandalous stories with weapons from the Norwegians. And especially the December incident in Lenzerheide. Sturla Holm Lægreid then shot during dry training at the hotel where the Norwegian team was staying. Then the IBU decided to suspend the biathlete from the mass start. And the person responsible for the incident apologized publicly.
Lægreid had a hard time living through that unpleasant story:
Photo
Biathlete Laegreid could not contain her tears when commenting on the shot at the World Cup hotel
“He should not be punished”
Eight-time Olympic champion and Norwegian television pundit Ole Einar Bjoerndalen commented on the Fillon Maillet incident. The legendary athlete believes that the incident with the Frenchman is insignificant and, unlike Laegreid, there is nothing to punish him for.
Quentin Fillon jersey
Photo: Kevin Voigt/GettyImages
“I was terribly angry, Fillon Maillet has an irascible character. He is one of the best athletes in the world and now he is so angry at the team that he doesn’t respect it and throws it away. I understand it. When you have the opportunity to come second and the Norwegians pass you by. It’s a terrible experience.
But at the same time the weapon was unloaded and disassembled. So I think everything is fine. “It shouldn’t be like that, but it shouldn’t be punished either.”
There are no rules in biathlon prohibiting rough handling of an unloaded weapon in the finish area, but in theory Quentin could be charged with violating safety rules. However, it is unlikely that the IBU will find fault with the Frenchman’s behavior and punish him in any way.
Fillon-Mahiet told the Norwegians “thank you for the money”:
The French biathlete made a controversial joke about the Norwegians at the awards ceremony. Not everyone understood
In general, there have been too many problems with weapons in world biathlon recently. What is this? Nerves from too much competition or a feeling of permissiveness from insufficient control?
The main thing is to draw conclusions. Before it is too late.
