Still going strong
Soviet Union's old team wins women's relay for Russia
Posted: Thursday February 25, 1999 02:30 PM
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From left, Nina Gavriliuk, Anfisa Reztsova, Larissa Lazutina and Olga Danilova continued their dominance of the event. AP |
RAMSAU, Austria (AP) -- The first time Anfisa Reztsova and Nina Gavriliuk won a title with a relay team was in 1987 and their country was the Soviet Union.
The Soviet Union is gone, but Reztsova and Gavriliuk are still there and winning titles.
They teamed with Olga Danilova and Larissa Lazutina, both multiple Olympic champions, to win the women's 4x5-kilometer cross-country relay gold medal for Russia at the Nordic Ski World Championship on Thursday.
Danilova, Lazutina and Gavriliuk were on the Russian teams that won the Olympic gold medal last year in Nagano and the world title in 1997 in Trondheim, Norway.
Lazutina, 33, won her 11th relay gold medal of the Olympics or world championships.
Reztsova, a former biathlete, and Gavriliuk were on the gold medal Soviet teams already at the 1987 worlds and the 1988 Olympics in Calgary.
For Gavriliuk, 33, it was the eighth Olympic or world championship relay gold: for Danilova, 28, the fourth.
The Russians haven't lost a relay at the worlds since 1989.
They cruised home unchallenged in 53 minutes, 5.9 seconds.
"It was all four of us who put on an excellent performance, it wasn't just a one-woman race," Reztsova said after giving Russia its first gold medal of the championship.
Italy, anchored by double gold medallist Stefania Belmondo, took the silver medal, 1:24.5 behind, with Germany surprisingly beating Norway for the bronze, 2:07.8 behind.
Belmondo, winner of the 15K and 10K, took Italy from fifth to second place with a strong final leg. The Italian team also included Sabina Valbusa, Antonella Confortola and Gabriella Paruzzi, who was with Belmondo on the foursome that took the Olympic bronze in Nagano.
Viola Bauer, Ramona Roth, Evi Sachebacher and Sigrid Wille gave Germany its first relay medal in 14 years, but in 1985, it was East Germany that won the bronze.
Wille held off Norway's 5K champion Bente Martinsen, who started the final leg in ninth place.
Finland won its first Nordic combined team gold medal, easing home in the 4x5K cross-country relay after taking a comfortable lead in the ski jumping competition.
Jari Mantila, Tapio Nurmala, Samppa Lajunen and Hannu Manninen, the same Finnish foursome that finished behind Norway both in Trondheim and Nagano, got their revenge by winning the Nordic combined team event.
The Finns were never threatened after taking a one minute, eight-second lead into the relay. They finished in 49 minutes, 34.2 seconds.
"Everything went perfectly in the ski jumping," Manninen said. "It was quite easy race after that and no one could catch us."
Norway, led by individual gold medallist and Olympic champion Bjarte Engen Vik, improved from seventh to take the silver, 1:14.7 behind. But it was Vik's fall after landing a hill-record 101 meters in the ski jumping that spoiled Norway's chances.
"We didn't have a chance even if I had not fallen," said Vik, who had won the individual title. "We've seen all winter that Finland is a stronger team and we are very satisfied with the silver."
Russia's Dmitry Sinitzyn edged Frederic Baud of France by the tip of a ski in a thrilling finish for the bronze. Russia, which was 1:53.2 behind Finland, beat France by .01 seconds.
Norway and Finland have three golds and two silver medals apiece. But Norway also has two bronze medals.
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