12.5 kilometres Pursuit, Men

Sven Fischer had won the sprint race and started first in the pursuit. He started eight seconds ahead of Halvard Hanevold, and 20 seconds ahead of Frode Andresen, with their teammate, Norwegian biathlon superstar Ole Einar Bjørndalen, always dangerous, but well back, starting 1:14 behind Fischer. Fischer would struggle with his rifle, missing four targets, but he would hold on to win the bronze medal. Hanevold and Andresen were never really factors late in the race, although Hanevold had an early lead, eventually finishing fifth and sixth, respectively. The lead was taken midway through by French biathlete Vincent Defrasne but as they neared the finish, he was being chased by Bjørndalen, despite the fact that he missed three targets during the pursuit. A kilometer from the finish, Bjørndalen took the lead and held it until 60 meters from the line, when Defrasne, who had a pole mix-up as they entered the stadium, sprinted ahead to win an unexpected gold medal. He had never won an individual medal at the World Championships, but would take bronze in this event at the 2007 Worlds.