The Norwegian mixed relay team snagged the gold in a sunny Rupholding on Thursday and opened their run on the 2012 World Championships with a victory.
The Norwegian mixed relay team consisted of three Madshus racers: Synnoeve Solemdal on the second women’s leg, Ole Einar Bjoerdndalen on the first men’s leg and Emil Hegle Svendsen on the anchor leg for Norway. Tora Berger raced the opening leg for Norway.
In a thriller relay, where the medals were constantly reshuffled, Emil Hegle Svendsen (NOR) clinched the gold after passing Arnt Peiffer (GER) with plenty of time to ski relaxed to the finish. However, confusion was spreading when Bjoerndalen shot a target that looked like a miss, which he was positive that he nailed. This happened more than once, and Bjorendalen ended up using spare bullets and skied a penalty lap he should never have contracted.
Norway filed a protest against the organizers, and by the time Svendsen was headed toward the finish, it was clear that Norway was given a 30 second bonus. Including the bonus, Svendsen already had the gold in the pocket.
“It was nice to win a gold in the first event, but it would have been even nicer if I could have been the first skied across the finish as the first skier,” Svendsen said to Norwegian TV after the race.
Solemdal admits being nervous after Berger sent her out on the second leg with an 18 second lead.
“I was insanely nervous. I managed to relax a little, but then they announced that I was in the lead, and I got really nervous again. But overall, it was a decent relay,” Solemdal said after her race.
For Bjoerndalen, the win was a mixed bag.
“It was not a good experience. I ended up skiing a penalty lap I didn’t have to do,” Bjoerndalen said.
Slovenia, who finished first in the mixed relay, ended up with a silver medal. Germany was third.
Friday is a recovery day, but Saturday the World Championships continue in Rupholding with sprint races for men and women.