Roman Rees Outduels Teammate Justus Strelow

Germans Take One-Two in Opening Individual Race

Johannes Thingnes Boe Defeated

WEB Germanys Roman Rees outdueled teammate Justus Strelow in the latter stages of this afternoons IBU World Cup 20K Individual race in Kontiolahti, Finland, to claim his first career World Cup victory. Rees, who is currently ranked 33rd in the world, started the race in 10th position and quickly moved into the top five with clean shooting on the first two stages.

He continued to shoot cleanly on the third stage, moving into second place behind Norway's Johannes Thingnes Boe, the reigning World Cup champion. Boe had also shot cleanly through the first three stages, but he missed two targets on the final stage, giving Rees the opportunity to take the lead.

Rees held on to his lead over the final 2.5 kilometers, crossing the finish line in 50 minutes and 10.8 seconds. Strelow finished second, 17.1 seconds behind Rees, while Boe finished third, 25.1 seconds behind Rees.

This is the first time that two Germans have finished one-two in a World Cup race since 2012. It is also the first time that Rees has finished on the podium in a World Cup race.