Team USA Results in Kontiolahti Set the Stage for Hochfilzen

Kicking off the 2024-25 season in Kontiolahti, FIN, Team USA did not disappoint. With World Cup points accumulated, personal bests achieved, clean shooting, and fast skiing, the U.S. Biathlon team now heads to Hochfilzen, AUT with momentum for three days of sprints, pursuits, and relays slated for December 13-15, 2024. 

Opening the 2024-25 World Cup season, the single mixed relay duo of Maxime Germain (Chamonix-Mont Blanc, FRA/National Guard Biathlon) and Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, WI/Army World Class Athlete Program) clinched a 10th place finish. Irwin had a strong day both on skis and on the range, using just five spare rounds total, cleaning her final prone shooting. Similarly, Germain excelled both on the course and the range, using just three spares and also cleaning his final prone shooting. In the final leg, Germain found himself neck and neck with Artem Tyshchenko for a photo finish, ultimately finishing just +0.1 behind the Ukrainian.

The next day saw the U.S. men’s relay team start the season strong with a sixth place finish. Germain, Campbell Wright (Wanaka, NZL/Wairaou Nordic Skiing), Sean Doherty (Conway, NH/Army World Class Athlete Program), and Jake Brown (St. Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) made up the quad in Kontiolahti. Staying amongst the top competitors throughout the race, Doherty crossed the line to secure a sixth place finish for the team. Using just 11 spare rounds between the four athletes, the team held a top-five combined ski time thanks to speedy skis from the Wax Cowboys!

After a day of rest, Maxime Germain led the U.S. team in the men’s 15km short individual with a personal best 20th place. Finishing +2:21.7 behind the clean shooting Endre Stroemsheim of Norway, Germain rewrote his World Cup personal best 45th from the 2022-23 season with his 20th place finish. Shooting a near perfect 19 for 20 also propelled Germain to his first-ever World Cup points.

Deedra Irwin also delivered in the women’s 12.5km short individual! The 15th place finish marked Irwin’s fifth-best World Cup finish and seventh-best career finish, which includes the historic seventh place 2022 Olympic result in Beijing, CHN. One of just five athletes to shoot clean, Irwin crossed the line +2:18.6 behind the race victor, Lou Jeanmonnot of France. Jeanmonnot was joined on the podium by the Swedish up-and-comer Ella Halvarsson and her teammate Elvira Oeberg. 

The personal bests kept coming as Campbell Wright claimed fourth place in the men’s 10km sprint and a ticket to his second World Cup flower ceremony. Shooting a perfect 10 for 10, Wright crossed the line 29.1 seconds behind the leading Frenchman Emilien Jacquelin and just four seconds back from a podium finish. Jacquelin was joined on the podium by Sweden’s Sebastian Samuelsson in second and Philipp Nawrath of Germany in third. 

The final day of competition saw both Campbell Wright and Deedra Irwin toe the line in their respective mass starts - Wright in bib 10 and Irwin in bib 26. Despite struggles on the range, both Irwin and Wright were able to secure a few more World Cup points: Wright is currently 17th overall with 78 points and Irwin is 30th overall with 30 points. 

Coming up this week, Lucinda Anderson (Golden Valley, MN/Team Birkie) will make her World Cup debut and join Irwin, Grace Castonguay (Jackson, NH/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) and Margie Freed (Apple Valley, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) in Hochfilzen. Kelsey Dickinson (Winthrop, WA/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) will take this week to focus on recovery from illness and continue training to prepare for World Cup 3 in Annecy-Le Grand Bornand, FRA. The men’s team of Wright, Germain, Doherty, and Brown will race in Hochfilzen. 
Racing is slated to begin on Friday, December 13 with the women’s 7.5km sprint at 05:30 EST/11:30 CET and men’s 10km sprint at 08:20 EST/14:20 CET. Saturday, December 14 will feature the women’s 12.5km pursuit and men’s 15km pursuit, with the final day of racing to include both women’s and men’s relays on Sunday, December 15. For information on how to watch, click HERE. For spectator resources, click HERE.