A week after his first victory in the World Cup, during the classic sprint in Drammen (Norway), Richard Jouve did it again this Friday in Falun (Sweden), which allows him at the same time to win the small globe of the discipline . An unprecedented performance in the history of French cross-country skiing.
Jouve, bronze medalist in the relay at the Beijing Games with Maurice Manificat, Hugo Lapalus and Clément Parisse, absolutely needed the 100 pts of victory to beat the Norwegian Johannes Klaebo, already winner of the big globe and leader in the sprint with a 95 pt lead before this last round but absent at the end of the season after contracting Covid in the wake of the Games. Note that many Norwegians and Russians were also absent. In the final, this Friday, Richard Jouve beat the Finn Joni Maki (+0”4) while his compatriot Lucas Chanavat completed the podium (+0”5).
Jouve, 27, was scared in the quarter-finals where he almost fell by getting his skis caught in one of the blue studs that bounded the track. His demonstration in the final was exemplary. From the start, Jouve took the lead in the race and never let go, never being threatened in the home straight by his runners-up of the day, the Finn Jona Maki and the Frenchman Lucas Chanavat.
Obviously moved on arrival, with tears in his eyes, Jouve then went up the straight to fall into the arms of his coach Cyril Burdet. “ I’m really very proud of myself, of the team, it’s incrediblewas to declare the French at the microphone of Eurosport. The season has been fantastic for me with these two World Cup victories. »
This little Crystal Globe comes to console Jouve after his disappointment at the Beijing Olympics where he was eliminated in the semi-final of the sprint, a few days before going to win bronze with his teammates in the 4×10 km. A second Olympic medal for the Frenchman who had already won bronze in the team sprint four years earlier in Pyeongchang (South Korea) with Maurice Manificat.
This success for Falun comes a few days after a first World Cup victory obtained in Drammen. Happiness never comes alone, Lucas Chanavat for his part finished third in the final classification of the sprint world cup.
The women’s race went to Sweden’s Jonna Sundling who won alone. The Olympic champion beat the Slovenian Anamarija Lampic and the Swede Maja Dahlqvist who won the small globe of the specialty.