KHANTY-MANSIYSK, Russia (AP) — Arnd Peiffer of Germany claimed his first career biathlon World Cup victory Thursday by winning a men's 10-kilometer sprint, and Ole Einar Bjorndalen finished second to secure the overall sprint title.
The 22-year-old Peiffer, who had never placed better than seventh in a World Cup race, shot clean and finished in 25 minutes, 51.1 seconds.
Bjorndalen, a five-time Olympic champion, was just 2.9 seconds behind Peiffer at the 5.0-kilometer mark, but missed one target at the second shooting range and had to run a penalty loop. The Norwegian finished 23.1 seconds back, while Austria's Christoph Sumann was another 4.2 seconds behind for third.
Bjorndalen won two sprint races and was second three times this season to secure the sprint title with 372 points from 10 races. Tomasz Sikora of Poland was second with 337, followed by Emil Hegle Svendsen of Norway with 318.
Bjorndalen, who has won seven races and had five more podium finishes this season, is close to winning his sixth overall World Cup title. With only two races left, he leads the standings with 978 points. Sikora is second at 854, followed by Svendsen and Russia's Maxim Tchoudov, who are tied for third at 758 points.
The World Cup event continues Friday with the women's 7.5-kilometer sprint race. Pursuit races are scheduled for Saturday, and mass start races will wrap up the season on Sunday.
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