Irwin Leads U.S. Women in World Championship Individual

After a day off from competition, the U.S. Biathlon women were back on the start line for the 15km individual. Another day of sunshine and blue skies in Lenzerheide, SUI made for warmer-than-normal conditions, but that didn’t stop the team from hitting World Championship personal bests and top-30 results with solid shooting and speedy skis. 

Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, WI/Army World Class Athlete Program) led the women wearing bib three and landed 29th in the field of 91 athletes. With just two misses out of 20, Irwin posted the 32nd overall ski time. Chloe Levins (Williston, VT/Unaffiliated) mirrored Irwin on the range, hitting 18 of 20 targets to cross the line in 41st overall, besting her previous World Championship personal best 42nd at the 2024 World Championships in Nove Mesto, CZE.

Finishing just 13 seconds back from Levins, Lucinda Anderson (Golden Valley, MN/Team Birkie) placed three U.S. women in the top-45, racing to a World Championship personal best 42nd. Anderson posted a 12th overall ski time, +1:07.7 behind the fastest skier of the day Justine Braisaz-Bouchet of France, and shot a solid 80% with four misses overall. Grace Castonguay (Jackson, NH/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) rounded out the women in 77th in her World Championship debut, also with four misses on the day.

“I felt really good today,” said Anderson after the race. “Shooting went really well, I felt really controlled on the range and controlled on skis. I paced my race really well, which I haven’t been doing lately, so it was awesome to feel really fast today. The skis were awesome, the energy was awesome, and I had a great time!”

The women will have a day off from racing tomorrow as the U.S. men will toe the line in their 20km individual. Racing will begin at 9:05 EST/15:05 CET with a live stream available on Eurovision Sport.