Fak, Domracheva win biathlon sprints
OSLO, Norway (AP) — Jakov Fak of Slovenia won his first biathlon World Cup of the season in a 10-kilometer sprint at Holmenkollen Ski Stadium on Thursday while Darya Domracheva of Belarus won the women's sprint to keep that overall race intriguing.
Fak, who had one penalty, clocked 26:05.9, edging Russia's Evgeniy Garanichev by 13.9 seconds. Garanichev shot clean but was overhauled by Fak. Sweden's Bjorn Ferry was less than a second back in third for his fifth consecutive podium finish.
Frenchman Martin Fourcade leads the overall standings with 828 points, followed by Norway's Emil Hegle Svendsen (588), and Johannes Thingnes Boe (583).
Domracheva overcame a single standing penalty to beat Norway's Tora Berger in a 7.5K sprint, racing home in 22:18.8. The retiring Berger shot clean for only the second time this season, but couldn't hold back Domracheva on the track.
Still, defending champion Berger closed the gap on Finnish leader Kaisa Makarainen in the overall to just 21 points with two races to go on her home course.
Makarainen has 799 points, Berger 788, and Domracheva 710.
Susan Dunklee of the United States was third in the sprint after also shooting clean.
