It looked for a long time like it would be an afternoon without a Swedish podium spot on the men's side. After the last shot, Martin Ponsiluoma was the best Swedish athlete, 13 seconds behind Italian Tommaso Giacomel in third place.
But if there's one thing you've learned, it's never to count out the 29-year-old Swede on the final lap.
Despite the poor start, which only got worse as the competition progressed, Ponsiluoma flew forward on the track and quickly made up for the lost distance. When the Swede crossed the finish line, he did so seven seconds ahead of Giacomel, and despite his two misses, he was able to collect the season's first individual podium spot.
"Close many times"
The last time the 29-year-old was on the podium in an individual World Cup event was on March 4, 2023.
It's fantastically nice. It's been tough to get here, and it's felt like I've been close many times now. It's been a long time since I got to step up on the podium. I've worked hard for this, so it means a lot, he says to SVT.
Thanked Dad
Afterwards, there was one person he wanted to thank a little extra, for being able to go so fast despite the poor start.
I probably have to thank my dad a lot for those genes. A lot of one-legged skiing in my upbringing, it's been good and it's what I needed today. I felt like I could ski five kilometers more at the same pace, so my body was incredibly good.
But despite the long-awaited podium spot, the Swede was not the day's biggest sensation. Instead, the home crowd got to cheer for Jakov Fak, the 37-year-old Slovenian who sensationally took home the distance race and thereby took his first win in almost exactly ten years.
Second place went to Sturla Holm Lægreid, Norway.
