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From the FasterSkier archive — posts syndicated from athletes’ and coaches’ own blogs between 2004 and 2012, kept online as published. Current coverage is at fasterskier.com.

Tag: Lexie Madigan

U.S. Biathlon Names 2018/2019 National Team, Development and Junior Teams

Emily Dreissigacker tags off to Joanne Reid in the women’s World Cup biathlon relay in Ruhpolding, Germany. Both women are on the roster for the U.S. for the next year of international biathlon. (Photo: USBA/NordicFocus)

The United States Biathlon Association has named a 10-member senior national team for the 2018-2019 season.

For the first time in years, the roster features more women than men. Following the retirements of Lowell Bailey, Russell Currier, and Tim Burke, Alex Howe (Craftsbury Green Racing Project) netted his first senior national team nomination, and joins 2018 Olympians Sean Doherty and Leif Nordgren, as well as Paul Schommer (Moose Nordic).

On the women’s team, all five members of the 2018 Olympic team have been renamed: Susan Dunklee, Clare Egan, and Emily Dreissigacker (all Craftsbury Green Racing Project), Joanne Reid (Colorado Biathlon), and Maddie Phaneuf (Polar Bear Ski Club). Dunklee and Egan recently said that they were not certain yet about retirement, but appear on the roster. The newest addition to the women’s senior team is Chloe Levins, who finished all three individual races at 2018 World Junior Championships in the top seven.

The “A” team athletes will be primarily based in Lake Placid, New York, while designated “B” team athletes (Phaneuf, Schommer, and Howe) will be based at regional training centers or with clubs, according to national team selection documents.

The federation has also named a development squad of Deedra Irwin (Wisconsin Biathlon), Travis Cooper and Jake Ellingson (National Guard Biathlon), Jake Brown (Loppet Nordic Racing), and Max Durtschi. All saw international race starts last season.

inhalers online

In addition, an 11-member Junior Development Group has been named, many of whom we interviewed this winter – see the links below to read about their experiences at World Youth and Junior Championships.

High Performance Team – Women

Susan Dunklee (Barton, Vt./Craftsbury Green Racing Project), A1 Team
Clare Egan (Cape Elizabeth, Maine/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), A2 Team
Chloe Levins (Rutland, Vt.), A3 Team
Joanne Reid (Boulder, Colo./Colorado Biathlon), A3 Team
Emily Dreissigacker (Morrisville, Vt./Craftsbury Green Racing Project), A3 Team
Maddie Phaneuf (Old Forge, N.Y./Polar Bear Ski Club), B Team

High Performance Team – Men

Sean Doherty (Center Conway, N.H.), A1 Team
Leif Nordgren (Marine, Minn.), A3 Team
Paul Schommer (Appleton, Wisc./Moose Nordic), B Team
Alex Howe (Gilford, N.H./Craftsbury Green Racing Project), B Team

Development Team – Senior Women

Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, Wisc./Wisconsin Biathlon)

Development Team – Senior Men

Travis Cooper (Kenai, Alaska/National Guard Biathlon)
Max Durtschi (Sun Valley, Idaho)
Jake Brown (Houghton, Mich./Loppet Nordic Racing)
Jakob Ellingson (Minnetonka, Minn./National Guard Biathlon)

Youth and Junior Development Group – Women

Helen Wilson (Eagle River, Alaska/Alaska Biathlon Club) – 20-for-20 interview
Lexie Madigan (Truckee, Calif./Auburn Ski Club) – 20-for-20 interview
Emma Stertz (Grand Rapids, Minn./Mt. Itasca Biathlon) – 20-for-20 interview
Grace Gilliland (Eagle River, Alaska/Alaska Biathlon Club) – 2017 20-for-20 interview
Sarah Beaulieu (Fort Fairfield, Maine/Outdoor Sports Institute)
Arianna Woods (Bozeman, Mont./Bridger Biathlon Club)

Youth and Junior Development Group – Men

Vasek Cervenka (Grand Rapids, Minn./Mt. Itasca Biathlon) – 2017 20-for-20 interview
Garrett Beckrich (Grand Rapids, Minn./Mt. Itasca Biathlon) – 20-for-20 interview
Tim Cunningham (Springfield, N.H./Saint Lawrence University) – 20-for-20 interview
Eli Nielsen (Stehekin, Wash./Methow Valley) – 20-for-20 interview
Marcus Gore (Vail, Colo./Casper Mountain Biathlon Club)

April 24, 2018
US Biathlon Nationals Rundown: Season Ends at SoHo (Updated)

In the last race of their careers, Tim Burke leads Lowell Bailey up a climb in the men’s mass start on Saturday, March 31, at USBA Nationals at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. The two finished together. (Photo: Terry Wickland)

2018 USBA Junior/Senior Nationals

American biathletes officially wrapped up their race seasons at the 2018 US Biathlon Association (USBA) nationals last Thursday through Saturday at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah.

The event kicked off with Lowell Bailey edging his teammate and longtime training partner Tim Burke by 5 seconds in the men’s 10-kilometer sprint on Thursday, March 29. Bailey started 15th out of 17 men and skied a single penalty lap after his prone shooting then cleaned standing (1+0). He crossed the finish line in 22:48 minutes, bumping Burke, who started 11th and had two standing penalties (0+2), out of first place. A third national-team member Sean Doherty completed the podium in third place, 20 seconds out of first with one standing miss (0+1).

In the women’s 7.5 k sprint on Thursday, Susan Dunklee raced to the win in 22:45, 11 seconds ahead of Clare Egan in second place. Dunklee and Egan started sixth and eighth, respectively, out of 10 women, and had two standing penalties apiece (0+2). Joanne Reid, also of the national team, placed third, 1 minute back from Dunklee with one standing miss (0+1).

Tim Burke leads Lowell Bailey in the men’s mass start on Saturday, March 31, at USBA Nationals at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. (Photo: Terry Wickland)

On Friday, Bailey and Dunklee returned to the top step of the podium with victories in the men’s and women’s pursuits, after starting first in each race based on their sprint results.

Dunklee started 11 seconds ahead of Egan and won the women’s 10 k pursuit by 1:20.6 minutes with two penalties (1+0+1+0). Egan repeated in second place with three penalties (1+0+1+1), and Emily Dreissigacker improved on her fourth-place sprint result by finishing third (+3:46.9) with two misses (1+0+0+1).

Bailey started 5 seconds ahead of Burke and 20 seconds ahead of Doherty, then finished first, 1:31.7 clear of Doherty in second place. Bailey shot three penalties (1+0+1+1) and Doherty overcame six misses (3+1+1+1), while Burke finished 7.1 seconds behind Doherty for third place (+1:38.8) with nine penalties (1+1+2+5) after crossfiring on the final stage.

In Saturday’s mass starts, Bailey and Burke tied for first place in the men’s 15 k to celebrate the last race of their careers (check out this Instagram video). Bailey shot 19-for-20, with his lone miss coming in the last standing stage (0+0+0+1), while Burke had two one-minute penalties (0+1+1+0). They entered the finishing straight together and crossed the line in unison in 36:23.3. Doherty once again reached the podium in third (+36.1) after shooting three penalties (0+1+2+0).

Like Bailey, Dunklee swept nationals as well with a win in the women’s 12.5 k mass start. She finished with the fastest time of 39:51.6 despite five penalties (1+2+1+1), while Egan was runner-up for the third-straight day, 1:25.4 back with seven penalties (2+1+2+2). Dreissigacker shot clean to repeat in third place (+1:32.5).

Marcus Gore (33) of Casper Mountain Biathlon and Ski & Snowboard Club Vail leads Nick Burkhart (32) of Auburn Ski Club and Bjorn Westervelt (31) of Craftsbury in the youth men’s pursuit at 2018 USBA Nationals in Midway, Utah. Burkhart went on to edge Westervelt for the win. (Photo: Terry Wickland)

In the youth races, Bjorn Westervelt of Craftsbury and Lexie Madigan of the Auburn Ski Club (ASC) won the youth men’s and women’s sprints, respectively. On Day 2, Madigan raced to her second-straight win in the youth women’s 7.5 k pursuit while Nikolas Burkhart, also of ASC, won the youth men’s 10 k pursuit by 10 seconds over Westervelt in second place.

On Saturday, Burkhart won the youth men’s 10 k mass start in 35:23.8, while Helen Wilson of the Anchorage Biathlon Club topped the youth women’s 7.5 k podium with a win in 26:37.3.

Results:

Sprint | Pursuit | Mass start

Complete results (with youth, boys/girls, and masters results)

April 2, 2018
20-for-20 with Lexie Madigan

American Lexie Madigan getting some air during summer training. (Courtesy photo)

In an effort to showcase the North Americans competing at this past week’s International Biathlon Union (IBU) 2018 Youth and Junior World Championships in Otepää, Estonia, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 16-year-old Lexie Madigan, who represented the United States at her first Youth World Championships.

Over the last week, Madigan placed 70th in the youth women’s 6 k sprint, 83rd in the 10 k individual and 18th with the 3 x 6 k relay.

***

My full name is Margaret Lexie Madigan but you can call me Margie.

I was born and raised in Nevada City, California, and I learned to ski at the Auburn Ski Club.

Lexie Madigan racing (Courtesy photo)I spent the time between World Youth/Junior trials and Worlds training at home in California and competing on the Junior IBU Cup circuit.

The funnest workout I did in the last training year to prepare for this was when I played speedball at the beach with the Sugar Bowl Nordic Ski Team.

One thing I’m working on this season to improve my biathlon is learning to shoot in the cold weather.

This is my first time in Estonia and seventh time racing internationally, and so far it’s been the greatest experience!

One difference I’ve noticed between Estonia and the United States is that it is a lot colder (at least colder than California).

One of the things I’m most excited about for World Youth/Junior Championships in Otepää is all of the fast skiers and hard competition!

One race I’m especially targeting there is the sprint.

Watching the Olympics in the leadup to my own races was inspiring. One of my favorite moments of the Games was when Jessie and Kikkan won the Cross Country Team Sprint. I want to be like Jessie Diggins, because she showed that the race isn’t over until you cross the finish line and never gives up.

At Worlds, I really hope I can chat/make friends with someone from France and ask them if they know Martin Fourcade’s secrets.

My favorite thing at the breakfast where we are staying is Magic Mushroom Chocolate Bar.

Before this trip, if you said “Estonia”, the first thing I’d think of would have been, Where is that?

Now that I’m here, I’m pretty sure something I’ll always remember will be how impressive and large the venue is.

If I had a totally free day here and didn’t have to worry about race fitness or training, I’d spend it going to visit all of the castles in Tallinn.

The best way to follow me on social media is on Instagram @lexiemadigan or Snapchat @lexie.xc.”

March 4, 2018
Friday Rundown: Paradis Leads Canada in 15th in IBU Youth Worlds Sprint

The youth men’s 7.5 k sprint podium at IBU Youth World Championships in Otepää, Estonia, with Russia’s Mikhail Pervushin (c) continuing his undefeated streak at the championships in first, Italy’s Tommaso Giacomel (l) in second, and the Czech Republic’s Vítězslav Hornig (r) in third. (Photo: IBU/Biathlonworld)

IBU Youth World Championships (Otepää, Estonia): Youth women’s and men’s sprints

Sweden’s Karin Elvira Öberg raced to her third-straight win of the week at the International Biathlon Union (IBU) Youth World Championships in Otepää, and Pascale Paradis led Canada in 15th in the youth women’s 6-kilometer sprint on Friday.

Paradis started 36th out of 92 women and shot 18-for-20, missing one on each stage (1+1), on a day when the top-two finishers had misses as well. With the ninth-fastest overall course time, Paradis, 15, finished 1:04.3 minutes off of Öberg’s winning time of 19:46.7.

Sweden’s Karin Elvira Öberg after winning her third-straight race at 2018 IBU Youth World Championships in Otepää, Estonia, with a win in the youth women’s 6 k sprint on Friday. (Photo: IBU/Biathlonworld)

Meanwhile, the 19-year-old Öberg started 65th and claimed the win with one penalty (0+1), continuing her undefeated streak at Youth Worlds after winning the 10 k individual and relay as well. She was joined on the podium by her teammate Amanda Lundström, who also raced to gold in the 3 x 6 k relay on Wednesday, and shot clean on Friday to finish 16.7 seconds back in third.

Between them, Finland’s Heidi Nikkinen placed second (+13.1), with one penalty (1+0).

In the first race of her first Youth World Championships, Paradis placed sixth to earn recognition at the post-race flower ceremony.

“After being shocked with the result I got for the individual it got me pretty excited,” Paradis recalled in an email on Friday. “But I knew that if I put too much pressure on myself I would get too nervous. But it really boosted my confidence to know that I had a chance to do well here!

“So I went into this race not expecting too much,” she continued. “This season I’ve been doing well in individuals so I was hoping for a good result but in sprints I haven’t been shooting great so I was super happy to see myself knock 8 targets down and I skied as fast as I possibly could, so overall I am super happy about my race!”

Pascale Paradis racing the first leg of Canada’s youth women’s 3 x 6 k relay team on Wednesday at IBU Youth World Championships in Otepää, Estonia. Her team finished 10th. (Photo: Bill Gilliland)

Paradis described the conditions as “perfect”, not too cold and with relatively calm winds.

“I was happy about my shooting just because it’s the best I’ve shot in a sprint race this year,” she wrote. “Skiing I felt really tired but my coach Andrew was on the hill cheering super loud and I dug deep and pushed myself to the max in this race and was extremely happy too see that I had skied one of my fastest races ever!”

In Sunday’s 7.5 k pursuit, the last day of the championships, she’ll start about 1 minute and 4 seconds back in 15th, just 2 or 3 seconds out of 12th place.

“I’m excited to be started really close to a few other girls right out of the gates for the pursuit,” Paradis wrote. “We don’t do many pursuits back home so this will be my second one ever and I’m super excited to see what it’s like on the international level. I really like doing pursuits even though they get me the most nervous, it’s just super fun to know where you are in the race the whole time and to just make up as many spots as you can during the course of the race.”

Two other Canadian women finished in the top 60 of the sprint to qualify for the pursuit, with Jenna Sherrington placing 46th (+2:25.3) with two penalties (1+1), and Benita Peiffer placing 51st (+2:40.4) with three misses (1+2). Shilo Rousseau missed the cutoff in 66th (+3:04.8) with four penalties (1+3).

Two American women qualified, with Emma Stertz in 52nd (+2:44.2) with two misses (1+1), and Grace Gilliland in 55th (+2:50.1) with one miss (0+1). Lexie Madigan finished 70th (+3:28.1) with four penalties (4+0) and Helen Wilson followed in 72nd (+3:28.9) with three misses (1+2).

In the youth men’s 7.5 k sprint on Friday afternoon, Russia’s Mikhail Pervushin won his third-straight race of the championships, shooting clean and finishing in 20:17.3. Italy’s Tommaso Giacomel also shot a perfect 10-for-10 to finish second (+21.9) for his first Youth Worlds medal. The Czech Republic’s Vítězslav Hornig rounded out the podium in third (+38.6) with one miss (0+1).

American Vasek Cervenka improved on his 27th place in the 12.5 k individual by finishing 24th on Friday (+1:59.2) with three penalties (1+2). He and two teammates qualified for Sunday’s 10 k pursuit, with Eli Nielsen placing 42nd (+2:51.2) with one miss (0+1), and Garrett Beckrich following in 46th (+3:01.3) with four penalties (1+3). Maxime Germain missed the top 60 in 74th (+4:33.9) with three misses (1+2).

Leo Grandbois led Canada in 33rd (+2:33.4) with three penalties (1+2). All four Canadian men qualified for the pursuit with Thomas Hulsman shooting clean for 35th (+2:35.3), Rory Gilliland finishing 52nd (+3:19.8) with one miss (0+1), and Ryan Elden placing 59th (+3:30.0) with one miss as well (1+0).

The junior women’s and men’s sprints are scheduled for Saturday, followed by the youth and junior pursuits on Sunday.

Results: Youth women’s 6 k sprint | Youth men’s 7.5 k sprint

March 2, 2018
Cervenka Sweeps Youth/Junior Biathlon Trials; 15 Named to U.S. Team

The youth men’s sprint podium on Dec. 28 in Jericho was (l to r) Jake Pearson, Vasek Cervenka and Eli Nielsen. Cervenka topped every race at Youth and Junior Biathlon Trials. (Photo: USBA)

The United States Biathlon Association (USBA) held three days of youth and junior biathlon trials racing in Jericho, Vermont, January 28-30. At the end of the series, USBA named this year’s team to Youth and Junior World Championships.

The competitions are slated for February. But the location is pending. The Championships were scheduled to be held in Ostrov, Russia, but the event was stripped from Russia due to allegations of state-sponsored doping and manipulation of anti-doping samples at other competitions previously held in the country.

Vasek Cervenka of Mount Itasca was the most successful athlete of the week. Cervenka, a youth competitor (under 19), nevertheless topped all men — including the junior racers (under 21). Cameron Christiansen of Nisswa NW finished 20 seconds back, besting the junior men’s field.

Cervenka then extended his lead in the next day’s pursuit. Cody Johnson of the Outdoor Sports Institute passed Christiansen to finish 31.1 seconds behind Johnson and take the junior win.

On day three it was back to sprint racing with Cervenka taking another vicotry, this time a 10.9-second win over Travis Cooper of National Guard Biathlon.

In the opening women’s sprint, Amanda Kautzer of Loppet Nordic Racing took the win. Like Cervenka, Kautzer is a youth but also topped the junior field. Hannah Streinz of the Outdoor Sports Institute placed second (+42.2) and the top junior.

But in the pursuit fellow youth Chloe Levins of Mountain Top Nordic raced to the front with only two penalties, besting Lexie Madigan of the Auburn Ski Club – who also had just two penalties – by 1:35.4. Nina Armstrong of Harvard College, the top junior, finished +4:54.2 with 11 penalties.

Then in the last day’s sprint, Madigan topped Levins by 15.5 seconds, with Armstrong again the top junior, +1:24.9.

USBA also named the athletes for the IBU Junior Cup (January 26-29 in Pokljuka, Slovenia) and the IBU Junior European Championships (February 1-5 in Nove Mesto Na Morave, Czech Republic). The women’s team will be Ellingson, Levins, and Kautzer, and Cervenka, Christiansen, Cooper, and Johnson will comprise the men’s team.

Youth and Junior World Championships team nominations

(from USBA press release)

Youth Women
Chloe Levins (Rutland, Vt./Mountain Top Nordic Ski Club)
Amanda Kautzer (Plymouth, Minn./Loppet Nordic Racing/Michigan)
Lexie Madigan* (Truckee, Calif./Auburn Ski Club)
Grace Gilliland (Eagle River, Alaska/Alaska Biathlon)
Helen Wilson** (Eagle River, Alaska/Anchorage Biathlon Club)
*Lexie Madigan is below the age described in the IBU Rules and is awaiting confirmation for her participation.
**Helen Wilson is named as First Alternate to the team in the event that any member is not able to participate.

Youth Men
Vasek Cervenka (Grand Rapids, Minn./Mt. Itasca)
Jake Pearson (Casper, Wyo./Casper Mountain Biathlon Club)
Alex Kilby (Anchorage, Alaska/Alaska Winter Stars)
Eli Nielsen (Stehekin, Wash./Methow Valley Biathlon)

Junior Women
Siena Ellingson (Minnetonka, Minn./Loppet Nordic Racing)
Hannah Streinz (Hersey, Maine/Outdoor Sports Institute)
Nina Armstrong (Lake Placid, N.Y./Harvard College)

Junior Men
Cameron Christiansen (Pequot Lake, Minn./NNW)
Travis Cooper (Kenai, Alaska/National Guard Biathlon)
Cody Johnson (Fort Kent, Maine/Outdoor Sports Institute)
Peter Carroll (Truckee, Calif./Auburn Ski Club Biathlon Team)

Trials Results

December 28 – December 29 – December 30

December 31, 2016