Lisa Vittozzi secures Italy’s first Olympic gold medal in biathlon with pursuit win
ANTERSELVA, Italy (AP) — Lisa Vittozzi secured Italy’s first Olympic gold medal in biathlon, hitting all 20 targets in the 10-kilometer pursuit biathlon race at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics on Sunday.
Vittozzi bowed, pumped her arms and collapsed in the snow after crossing the finish line with a time of 30 minutes, 11.8 seconds to the roar of a crowd of 20,000 fans.
Maren Kirkeeide of Norway trailed by 28.8 seconds for silver, and Suvi Minkkinen of Finland came in 34.3 seconds back for bronze. Minkkinen also cleared all 20 targets.
Vittozzi overcame a back injury from last season and periods of inconsistent shooting to become an Olympic champion.
The pursuit was the first race that France did not have a biathlete on the podium.
French biathletes Oceane Michelon and Lou Jeanmonnot started second and third, respectively, but too many misses knocked them out of contention. Jeanmonnot missed three and finished fourth, 49.4 seconds back, while Michelon missed four, which set her 57.1 seconds behind Vittozzi for fifth place.
The pursuit biathlon start list is based on how the racers finished in the sprint race. Biathletes must ski a 150-meter penalty lap for each missed target.
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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics