The Swedish biathlon men had a sense of something big in the World Championship's very last competition. Both Martin Ponsiluoma and Jesper Nelin were part of the six-man group going into the final, decisive shooting in the men's mass start.
Then both Swedish men shot two misses each and the medal chances disappeared.
I come in on the last stand and feel calm and secure, but when I feel the others taking off, I lose a bit of focus and miss, but I'm still satisfied today, says Nelin.
Norwegian Endre Strømsheim handled the pressure best, shot the five decisive shots and took the gold.
Behind him, his compatriot Sturla Holm Lægreid took the silver, and the bronze also went to Norway through Johannes Thingnes Bø.
Ponsiluoma finished fifth, with a total of four misses in the protocol, after strong cross-country skiing, and Nelin finished tenth after his two misses.
It was an incredibly exciting and really fun race today. I wanted a lot in the last series and it's really sour that you can't get them down. I was ready to go out and fight for it on a sprint lap, says Ponsiluoma afterwards.
Despite everything, he was satisfied with the competition.
It's the best race this season and to be able to do it on the last day of the World Championship shows that you're incredibly strong. I've had to fight a lot but kept it together all the way, says he.
Sebastian Samuelsson was the third Swedish starter, he finished twelfth.
