Jolanda Neff doesn't hold off the competition for long and pulls out a lead on the first of six laps. It is the Norwegian Gunn-Rita Dahle-Flesjaa who sets off in pursuit. The 41-year-old comes within 15 seconds, but the 2004 Olympic champion has to "be careful" on this day because she still has some throat problems after an infection.

So Neff increases her lead to over 40 seconds and it is only on the last lap that the gap melts again. For once, Neff made a small mistake in a technical passage and then no longer risked everything.

After the protocol has been completed, she is unable to comment for the time being. She is deeply moved by the accidental death of Annefleur Kalvenhaar, with whom she shared a room for a week at a training camp in the winter. Neff breaks down sobbing, all too understandable after this great tension.

Esther Süss finishes the race in 16th place, one week after winning the Swiss Marathon Championship. The World Championship bronze medallist thus records her best result of the season in the World Cup. Süss also rides like a long-distance runner, always at a moderate pace, which ultimately brings her up from 19th place to 16th.

Katrin Leumann only finished 21st, puzzling over her condition. "I have no idea what's going on. I wanted to make up places in the last technical section, but then I made so many mistakes that I had to let Julie Bresset and Tanja Zakelj pass me. It wasn't quite what I had in mind," admitted Leumann.

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