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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: World Cup biathlon

Schempp and Hofer Win Antholz Sprint in Rare Tie, Green Skis to Best-Ever Eighth

Simon Schempp of Germany leads Lowell Bailey (USBA) in the 2013 World Championships pursuit. Schempp won Friday’s 10 k sprint in Antholz, Italy in a tie with Lukas Hofer. (Photo: NordicFocus/USBA)

Simon Schempp and Lukas Hofer looked pretty chummy after the finish men’s 10 k sprint at the World Cup in Antholz, Italy this Friday. Maybe their laughter was a product of their relief of finishing a challengingly slow course, or maybe it was that both of them were on the podium for the first time this season. More likely, however, it was the fact they both sat atop that podium in a rare tie for first place having skied the 10 k in 22:44.9.

Schemmp a member of the German national team had originally been declared the winner of the race, edging out Hofer by 0.3 seconds. However, upon review of the finish line back-up system, the German and the Italian were declared to have a tie.

With a steady fall of snow and slow conditions, the race looked much different than the women’s 7.5 k sprint held Thursday.

Despite having to slug through the slow snow, the first starter, Simon Fourcade of France, was able to ski a fast first lap and shoot clean to keep him in first place for much of the beginning of the race. But as the snow got faster and the skiers got stronger, Fourcade saw his position decline in the standings.

One skier that contributed to Fourcade’s drop was Arnd Peiffer of Germany, who eventually finished in third. Starting in 27^th position, Peiffer skied the fourth fastest first lap and shot clean in both prone and standing. His next two laps were slower, but they were enough to keep him in third.

The podium was the first of the season for Peiffer, and he was pretty happy about it. ”This is a good feeling and it fills a hole in my resume,” said the German in a press release. “I have never finished third before!”

Italian Lukas Hofer skiing in the 2012 World Championships. Hofer tied Schempp for the win in Friday’s 10 k sprint in Antholz, Italy.

Hofer came soon after Peiffer and was determined to leave everything on the course. An Italian hadn’t won a World Cup race in Italy since 1988, and while it often seemed there were more German and Norwegians in the stands than anyone else, a win in Antholz would not only be a personal triumph, but also a national one.

A strong skier, Hofer clocked the fastest time on the course in the first lap. He shot clean in prone, and skied a fast second lap. Unfortunately for the 24-year-old his luck didn’t hold through the standing and he accrued one penalty.

The setback didn’t stop Hofer as he skied his last lap. He skied agressively and crossed the line, 4.3 seconds ahead of Peiffer, then collapsed face-first into the blanket of newly fallen snow in the finish area.

“What more can I expect as an athlete?” the Italian said of his result. “I had a really good race and am really happy.”

Schempp who started 61^st, raced with efficiency and purpose. The German skied the second fastest first lap, and the second and third laps were just as strong. His skiing, mixed with clean shooting, made for a lethal combination that earned him his first World Cup podium of the season and first career victory.

The overall result could have been different, however. Coming into the finish, Schempp chose to take the same lane as a Czech skier in front of him, which caused him to slow considerably just before he crossed the finish line.

Regardless, the German was very happy to have his first World Cup victory. “I am very satisfied with my race. It was an incredible day. Only first place was missing in my resume, so this is a good feeling; a perfect race,” he said in a press release.

Canada’s Brendan Green racing in 10 k sprint at the IBU World Cup in Hochfilzen, Austria, earlier this month. Green finished eighth in Friday’s sprint in Antholz, Italy.

Canadian racer, Brendan Green, who just last week was racing in the IBU Cup, had a breakthrough result in Friday’s sprint, finishing in eighth place, a career best.

Green, who sat out last season due to an injury that required double-back surgery, has made a significant comeback this year and nabbed the last spot on the Canadian Olympic team earlier this year.

Before the Friday’s race Green was worried about the snowy and slow conditions because he was the 10^th starter, meaning it was likely he would have a slower course.

American Lowell Bailey skiing in Friday’s 10 k sprint in Antholz, Italy. He placed 19th. (Photo: USBA/Nordic Focus)

“Conditions were definitely tough to race in but I just tried to focus on the process of putting together the best race I could at that time,” Green wrote in an email. “Antholz can be a tricky and weird range for shooting, so again I just tried to be solid with each shot and not get too ahead of myself.”

His mentality worked, as he was able to make it through the rounds of prone and standing shooting without missing a shot.

On top of that, Green was feeling better and better as he skied along the course.

“My skiing picked up with each lap throughout the race. It’s hard to say how much of that was due to the track speeding up, or maybe just me getting more and more into my groove. Maybe a little bit of both. “

At the end of the day, Green attributed his career best result to staying in the present and not thinking ahead. “Just getting the work done, one step at a time, one shot at a time.”

Looking forward, Green feels confident going into Saturday’s pursuit and next month’s Olympics.

“I’m definitely really happy with this result and the time frame that it has come in. Hopefully it’s a sign that my shape is progressing in the right direction and that I can still improve in some areas before we head over to Sochi.”

American Tim Burke skiing in Friday’s 10 k sprint in Antholz, Italy. He placed 50th. (Photo: USBA/Nordic Focus)

Green will be joined by teammate Nathan Smith and Americans Lowell Bailey and Tim Burke in Saturday’s pursuit.

Bailey finished 19^th in Friday’s sprint. He was followed by Smith in 22^nd and Burke in 50^th.

Burke, who has said that the course in Antholz is one of his favorites, had an uncharacteristic tough day.

“I am pretty disappointed with my race today on all levels. My shooting was off with three penalties and I simply felt tired on the skis,” Burke wrote in an email.

He now plans to solely focus on the Sochi games in order achieve his best-possible Olympic results, even if that means making some sacrifices in the meantime. “I will put my entire focus now on the Olympics so I will only start tomorrow if I feel 100% recovered. I have been a little flat in all of my races lately so I won’t push too much now with only a few weeks left before the Olympics.”

Racing continues tomorrow in Antholz, with the women’s 12.5 k and the men’s 15 k pursuits.

Results

January 17, 2014
Dunklee Becomes First U.S. Female Biathlete to Place Fourth in World Cup Since 1994; Bescond Gets First Win in Antholz

Susan Dunklee of the US Biathlon skied her way to a career best fourth place in Thursday’s 7.5 k sprint in Antholz, Italy. (Photo: US Biathlon/Nordic focus)

It was a day of firsts in the women’s 7.5-kilometer sprint on the trails of Antholz, Italy.

For Anais Bescond of France, it was not only her first International Biathlon Union (IBU) World Cup victory of her career, but also her first podium.

For second place finisher Andrea Henkel of Germany, it was her first podium of the season.

For American Susan Dunklee who finished fourth, it was her career-best finish.

With near-perfect conditions in the Italian Dolomite mountains, the women skied three times around the 2.5 k loop, shooting prone at 2.5 k and standing at 5 k.

Norway’s 2013 World Champion and 2010 Olympic medalist, Tora Berger was an early front-runner. She started out conservatively, skiing the 22^nd fastest time in the first lap, but after shooting clean in the prone and obtaining one penalty in the standing, Berger catapulted herself into the lead by skiing the fastest time in the third lap.

Anais Bescond of France (l) leads a train of competitors in a 2012 World Cup in Ruhpolding, Germany.

While she crossed the finish line in first, there were still 91 women left in the field of 105, and all of them were hungry for a spot on the podium.

Despite the strong field, Berger was able to hold her fist place position for a short time, as Franziska Preuss of Germany and Teja Gregorin of Slovenia were unable to topple the Norwegian biathlon queen.

Unfortunately for Berger, who eventually finished in sixth, American Susan Dunklee was on course. Coming off an less-than-satisfying week in Ruhpolding, Germany, Dunklee skied a strong first loop and cleaned prone, boosting her into second position. From there she continued improve her standing, shooting clean in the standing and garnering the fastest time in the race so far.

The 27-year-old and Vermont native crossed the finish line in first place to the cheers of the crowd, giving an exhausted, yet exuberant “yeah!” before collapsing to her knees. Topping Berger by 1.8 seconds, it was looking like an excellent day for Dunklee.

The crowd loved the American’s effort and cheered especially loud as she blew past them.

“At the finish, the crowd was cheering like crazy,” she wrote in an email. “I remember this from my 5th place at Ruhpolding a couple years ago too. They seem to get electrified when an underdog does well.”

Another crowd favorite, Bescond, was not far behind.

The Frenchwoman, whose previous best World Cup finish had been fourth in Oslo last year, held nothing back. She ripped out of the gate, clocking the fastest time for the first loop and cleaned prone.

She wasn’t quite as sharp in standing, obtaining one penalty.

Susan Dunklee (US Biathlon) is all smiles after her fourth place finish in Antholz, Italy. (Photo: US Biathlon/Nordic Focus)

“With one miss I thought it was not possible for the podium, but I gave my best,” Bescond said in an IBU press release.

It became apparent that her best was enough to top the rest of the field, and she crossed the line in first, 10.7 seconds ahead of Dunklee.

Looking at the leaderboard in disbelief, Bescond thought that the results were incorrect.

“I thought it was a mistake, but I was happy to see my name up there,” she said.

Starting just behind Bescond, was second place finisher Henkel. She skied a strong and efficient race as she pursued Bescond. With fast skis and a clean shooting record, Henkel was able to leave behind a lackluster season to finish second, 6.7 seconds behind Bescond.

A large part of Henkel’s success in the sprint was her ability to shoot cleanly.

“I know that it is important for me to hit all of the targets to be on the podium,” Henkel said in a press release. “Today it worked out and then all I was just fighting in the last loop.”

After Henkel there weren’t few were able to challenge for a position on the podium until Darya Domracheva of Belarus took the course.

Domracheva skied an incredibly fast race that was only hindered by the standing shooting, in which she received two penalties.

“I was very disappointed in my standing shooting; I think it was maybe too fast. But I am still happy to make the podium,” she told IBU.

Thursday’s results demonstrate that Dunklee is a force to contend with going into next month’s Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Her previous best World Cup finish was fifth, which she notched in an individual 15 k at the 2012 World Championships in Ruhpolding, Germany. While she had been unable to match the result earlier this season, her best-ever finish shows what she’s capable of and where she’s planning on going.

“At the finish, the crowd was cheering like crazy. … They seem to get electrified when an underdog does well.” — Susan Dunklee, fourth in Antholz World Cup sprint

Not only today was a personal best for Dunklee, it was also the best World Cup result for a U.S. female biathlete since 1994. According to US Biathlon, in March 1994, Joan Smith finished fourth a World Cup sprint in Canmore, Alberta, Anna Sonnerup was second in a World Cup in the early ’90s, and Kari Swenson placed in the top four in the ’80s.

“I went into today feeling very relaxed and very confident,” Dunklee wrote. “Shooting had been fantastic the last couple days in practice and the ski times were coming down in the last few races. I was ready for a good result without wanting it too much.”

Despite achieving her career best finish, Dunklee was slightly disappointed to not be standing on the podium. However, she plans on using the result to help her in the future, writing, “Nothing could be more motivating than being half a second off.”

Looking forward to the remaining World Cup races in Antholz, Dunklee is excited to for Saturday’s pursuit. “[It] is going to be a blast,” she wrote. “I will be in a tight pack off the start with Andrea and Darya.”

Canadian Megan Heinicke wrote in an email that she was “super happy” to see Dunklee on the podium. “I know all of us fellow North Americans were cheering and are stoked for her!” she wrote.

Susan Dunklee of the US Biathlon skied her way to a career-best fourth in Thursday’s 7.5 k sprint in Antholz, Italy. (Photo: US Biathlon/Nordic Focus)

The Canadian finished 46^th in the sprint, qualifying for Saturday’s pursuit. She did her best to ski a clean focused race, but had trouble tapping into her explosive power.

“Overall I am still disappointed with the ski time,” Heinicke wrote. “I had expected to feel better today than I did, but there are some good things to take out of it.”

She cleaned her prone, then had two standing penalties.

“My main goal is to focus on the separate things that need to come together and to mentally ‘stay in the moment,’ ” the 25-year-old wrote about the next World Cup races and the upcoming Olympics. “I believe I have trained well and think being relaxed, confident and focused is the key to bringing everything together.”

American Sarah Studebaker was happy with placing 57^th with two total penalties, one in each stage, coming off last weekend’s IBU Cup in Val Ridanna, Italy, which doubled as Olympic trials. She was officially named to her second Olympic team last Sunday.

“Not worrying about qualifying I was able to just race, which was nice,” Studebaker wrote. “I did not feel 100% today after trials, but it was exciting to make the pursuit and especially to ski better than before Christmas.”

“I truly believe we are the strongest and most professionally mannered biathlon team in US history. I am honored to be part of this group heading into Sochi.” — Susan Dunklee

The rest of the North American squad finished out of qualifying in the top 60, with Canadian Rosanna Crawford placing 68^th, American Annelies Cook in 70^th, and Canadians Megan Imrie and Zina Kocher finishing 73^rd and 83^rd, respectively.

The World Cup races in Antholz mark the last before the start of the Sochi Olympics. The fourth-place finish will give Dunklee confidence on the Russian course she finished seventh on last season.

“I truly believe we are the strongest and most professionally mannered biathlon team in US history,” Dunklee wrote. “I am honored to be part of this group heading into Sochi.”

Studebaker expressed similar sentiments about the American team.

“I am so excited to be a part of the Olympic team,” Studebaker wrote. “It’s great to be heading back to the Olympics and especially with such a great group of women. These races are really training for us and getting one more chance on Saturday is great. We definitely have work to do before Sochi, but things are going really well for our team and we’re all looking forward to seeing what we can do at the Olympics!”

Results

January 16, 2014
Winter’s in the Air

Soon it begins. On Tuesday I will be traveling to Sweden to start another winter of World Cup biathlon racing. It means four months living out of a duffel bag and braving airports almost every week… The thrill of putting on a race bib and standing on a start line in front of TV cameras and screaming spectators… Weathering the tremendous ups and downs that are biathlon’s emotional roller coaster… Laughing at the antics of teammates, wax techs and coaches every night at dinner… And skiing, on snow, everyday. I can’t wait!

The first World Cup biathlon race of the season takes place in Ostersund, Sweden on Sunday, November 25th (9:30 am eastern US standard time). It is a mixed relay, meaning that we will have two women and two men competing together on one team. You can watch it live on your computer by going to Biathlon World TV. Put it on your calendar.

In the meantime, watch replays from last year on Biathlon World TV to get fired up. The 2011/2012 World Cup 9 in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia has some good ones- scroll to the right and click on the one titled “pursuit women replay”.

I have spent the past week at home in Craftsbury trying to catch up with friends and family and get organized before the long winter away.

A few items that are coming with me to Europe this year that I didn’t have last year: a travel size guitar, a sunlamp, maple syrup, a foam roller, a German grammar workbook and a 3D puzzle.

The Outdoor Center is closed for the fall off season, so it has been quieter than normal, but I have had no problem staying busy. Even though the GRP skiers are away training in Canmore, I have had a great time getting to know the new GRP rowers. We even trained together in the gym one morning- I did strength circuits while they lined up 7 or 8 rowing machines next to each other for an interval workout.

Dinner with the rowers and friends at Faraway Farm

The Outdoor Center started blowing snow last week, which meant I got to dust off an old pair or rock skis and carve some turns. Later in the week we had 15-20 BKL kids and juniors swarming over the pile like ants. It doesn’t matter how old you are, the season’s first snow never loses its magic.

Davis took the first sledding runs down “Mt. Craftsbury” (photo: Judy Geer)

Ida was also around for a few days before heading to Europe for the cross country World Cup season. We visited our elementary school together to talk to Barton’s seventh graders about training, racing and traveling the world. The most interesting question we were asked: “Have you ever seen a lion?”

I also visited my high school, St. Johnsbury Academy and talked to the students about what it takes to chase after big goals. Watch the YouTube video

I never got around to writing a blog post about our recent national team training camp in Utah (3 weeks in late October/ early November) but here are a couple pics:

The US Women and guest star Andrea Henkel from Germany enjoying Utah’s mountains (photo: Hannah Dreissigacker). Read about what it has been like to train with and get to know an Olympic champion over the past few years here

Some of “Jonne’s Angels” enjoying our last week in Utah (photo: Armin Auchentaller). For more camp pictures and a recap from Utah, check out Hannah’s blog post here

November 11, 2012
Burke 29th in World Cup Biathlon, Canada Strong in 19th and 23rd

Antholz, Italy – Tim Burke (USA) finished 29th today in the 20km individual start biathlon race. Burke finished 4:14 behind winner Serguei Sednev (UKR) who had a perfect day on the range.

Burke skied well, posting the 6th fastest ski time, but he did not back that performance with his shooting. He had five total misses, the most of anyone in the top-30.

He did score 12 World Cup points, and make up ground in the overall. He is currently third, 11 points out of second, and 39 off of leader Evgeny Ustyugov (RUS). Both Ustyugov and EMil Svndsen (NOR) in second, did not compete.

Brendan Green had an excellent day for Canada, placing 19th, with three misses. This was easily Green’s best World Cup result, topping the 46th he had earlier this year in Slovenia. Robin Clegg was not far behind in an impressive 23rd, his top finsih in two years.

Their teammates Jean Philippe LeGuellec and Marc Andre Bedard finished 39th and 58th respectively.

The rest of the US Team struggled. Jay Hakkinen was 68th with 7 misses, Wynn Roberts 77th, Zach Hall 85th, and Lowell Bailey 93rd with 10 misses.

Men’s 20km – Complete Results

Women’s 15km

The women raced a 15km individual yesterday, with Magdalena Neuner (GE) taking the victory. Neuner has struggled with her shooting but has still managed the podium. Today was a bit better, but she needed the fastest ski time to overcome her three misses. Germany swept the podium with Kati Wilhelm 2nd, and Andrea Henkel in 3rd.

Neuner’s ski time was 1:17 faster than her closest competitor’s.

The US was led by Olympian Haley Johnson in 45th. She was closely followed by Tracy Barnes in 47th and Sara Studebaker in 50th. Johnson and Studebaker both had 4 misses and Barnes 2. Laura Spector was 75th with 6 misses.

Megan Imrie led Canada in 48th.

Women’s 15km – Complete Results

The women race tomorrow in a 7.5km sprint, while the men ski a 10km sprint on Saturday.

January 21, 2010
Tim Burke takes Third in Oestersund Biathlon 10km sprint

Tim Burke (photo: USBA)

This morning in Oestersund, Sweden, Tim Burke proved that his podium performance on Thursday was no fluke by racing to another podium finish in the second of two individual World Cup Biathlon races. For Burke, whose second place finish in Thursday’s 20km race was one of the top finishes in US biathlon history, this weekend will combine to be a historic set of races for both Burke and the team.

Ole Einer Bjoerndalen of Norway took first by 25 seconds, shooting cleanly, over teammate Emil Helge Svendsen who had one penalty. Burke, in third, also shot perfectly and finished 12 seconds behind Svendsen. German biathletes Christoph Stephan, Michael Greis, and Andreas Birnbacher rounded out the top six places.

The next American finisher was Jean Philippe Leguellec of Canada, with one penalty and 1:10.5 off the winning pace. For the U.S., Jay Hakkinen was the next finisher in 43^rd with two penalties and Lowell Bailey finished 53^rd with one penalty.

Mens10km Results

Despite windy conditions, the top five women in the 7.5 km sprint all shot perfectly. Tora Berger from Norway topped Olga Medvedtseva from Russian by just 6.8 seconds, with Kaisa Makarainen from Finland capturing third, 10 seconds back. The first American to finish was Zina Kocher from Canada, with two penalties, in 34^th place. Sara Studebaker was the top US biathlete, with two penalties in 59^th place and teammate Lanny Barnes finished 64^th with one penalty.

Women’s 7.5 km results

December 5, 2009