Canmore (dpa) – Former biathlon world champion Franziska Preuss will not compete in the races this winter. As the German Ski Federation announced, the Bavarian player will also miss the World Cup finals, which begin Thursday in Canmore, Canada, due to the consequences of suffering an infection and undergoing minor surgery.
“Unfortunately, my season ended early. If there's one good thing about this, it's that I was able to celebrate my birthday yesterday with family and friends,” Preuss wrote, adding: “Looking forward.” The athlete turned 30 on Monday.
The story of Prius' suffering continues. During the season, COVID-19 and other symptoms of infection forced her to take breaks. It was also recently foiled in Oslo and Soldier Hollow/USA. Preuß made a perfect start to the season and briefly took the yellow jersey to lead the overall World Cup tournament in Östersund, Sweden, in December. But she immediately lost it again due to the forced break. She was also unable to compete in the women's relay at the World Championships in Nove Mesto in February due to illness. Without the final runner already classified, the German quartet still took bronze.
Preuss had to end the previous season early due to ongoing health problems and thus missed the World Cup on home soil in Oberhof, Thuringia. “Now I'm really strong mentally, I'm looking positively to the future and I'm looking forward to focusing on training and preparing for the new season again soon,” Preuss said.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240312-99-309501/2
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