After a new silver medal, the sixth, won on Saturday February 12 by Quentin Fillon Maillet, France is, with Austria, the richest nation in silver charms. With many events that could smile on the French, Sunday February 13, the tricolor clan hopes to adorn themselves with gold to go back to the Top 10 of the medal ranking.
A mission that Alexis Pinturault and Mathieu Faivre in giant slalom, as well as the French biathletes, engaged in the men’s and women’s pursuits, intend to fulfill. Cross-country skiers engaged in relays could also shine.
• Faivre and Favrot placed before the second run in giant slalom. At the end of the first heat, Mathieu Faivre, 3rd, and Thibaut Fabrot, 5th, are placed and still within reach of the Swiss Marco Odermatt. Alexis Pinturault is further (11th). The second round has been rescheduled at 8 a.m., with the hope to double the bet for the Alpine after silver conquered by Johan Clarey downhill.
• Pursuits in biathlon, bearers of hope. With the women’s race at 10 a.m. and the men’s at 11:45 a.m., the French will have their eyes glued to the Zhangjiakou track at the end of the morning. Julia Simon will start quite far from the lead in 29th position, while Justine Braisaz-Bouchet, 48th after the sprint, will not start. It will therefore be necessary to hope for a real feat to see them medalist. Anaïs Bescond, thirty seconds from the podium, can believe in the medal. Among the men, Quentin Fillon Maillet, second in the sprint on Saturday, will be very well placed to try to find a new charm. Winner of the last four pursuits this season, the hope of a fourth medal in as many races is real. Emilien Jacquelin, ninth in the sprint, can also perform well.
• The cross-country ski relay still in bronze? Third in Sochi in 2014 and in Pyeongchang in 2018, the French torchbearers will try to get on the podium again. Richard Jouve, a little surprise in the composition, will start at 8 am. After ten kilometers in classic, he will give way to Hugo Lapalus. Clément Parisse and Maurice Manificat will complete this freestyle relay. Norwegians and Russians should fight for gold.
• Sébastien Lepape, last hope in short-track. The only survivor in the men’s 500m, Sébastien Lepape is entered for the quarter-finals, which start at noon. In the same series as Shaolin Sandor Liu, who had crossed the 1000m line in first position before being downgraded, and who will inevitably be vengeful, the Le Havre will have a lot to do to finish in the first two and see the semi-finals. The French have never won a single medal in short-track.