Junior National Team

Virginia Cobb (Westford, VT/Ethan Allen Biathlon Club)

Mirra Payson (Lexington, MA/HSC Biathlon)

Haley Finch (Anchorage, AK/Alaska Winter Stars)

Wes Campbell (Park City, UT/ Team Soldier Hollow)

Thor Sheppard (West Yellowstone, MT/Team Altius)

Cale Woods (Bozeman, MT/Team Crosscut)

Elias Soule (Anchorage, AK/Anchorage Biathlon Club)

John Lohuis (Anchorage, AK/Biathlon Alaska)

“We are happy to announce the names of the exceptional athletes who have earned their place on the Junior National Biathlon Team, marking the highest domestic level of achievement in youth and junior development,” said U.S Biathlon Director of Athlete Development Tim Burke. “As in the past, this team’s reach will continue beyond those named to the Junior National Team, as we will include additional athletes at team training camps to create a balanced training environment.”

Coach Brian Halligan will oversee the Junior National Team for the 2024-25 season. Halligan is heading into his third season coaching the Junior National Team, serving his first season as head coach last season.

“I am really excited to work with this year’s Junior National Team,” said Junior National Team Head Coach Brian Halligan. “We are beginning to see some great depth in our Youth and Junior fields and I feel the athletes who have been selected for the JNT this year not only possess great talent, but will work hard and continue to grow as they mature as athletes and humans. After all, that is what this team is about: growth and development.”

“It’s great to see that many of our current Junior National Team members have come through the U.S. Biathlon development pipeline by participating in U.S. Biathlon’s Regional Select Camps and Elite Development camps,” added Burke. “I look forward to seeing these programs continue to grow.”

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

U.S. Biathlon Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

The weekend kicked off with the final women’s 7.5km sprint of the season on Thursday, where Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, WI/Army World Class Athlete Program) led the team with a 26th place finish, shooting a perfect 10 for 10, to qualify for Saturday’s 10km pursuit. Margie Freed (Apple Valley, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) landed in 74th with just misses on the range. Chloe Levins (Rutland, VT/Team Crosscut) followed Freed in 81st place, hitting nine of ten targets, and Kelsey Dickinson (Winthrop, WA/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) rounded out the group in 90th place with two misses in standing.

In Friday’s men’s 10km sprint, Campbell Wright (Wanaka, NZL/U.S. Biathlon) finished in 28th, after putting three shots wide on the range. Jake Brown (St. Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) joined Wright in the top 40 to score World Cup points, racing to 36th place with just one miss on the day. Vincent Bonacci (Salt Lake City, UT/Team Crosscut) and Sean Doherty (Center Conway, NH/National Guard Biathlon) just missed out on Saturday’s pursuit, finishing in 70th and 73rd, respectively.

Due to her outstanding performance in the sprint and pursuit, Irwin received bib 29 in Sunday’s 12.5km mass start, her second mass start of the season. She continued her clean shooting streak through the first stage, but three misses in her second stage and one miss in her final standing shoot landed her in 27th. Irwin ended the season in 38th in the World Cup overall standing, her highest placement thus far in her career.

With the 2023-24 BMW IBU World Cup season in the rearview mirror, athletes now head their ways with many traveling to Fort Kent, Maine for one final race weekend at the 2024 U.S. Biathlon National Championships and inaugural U.S. Biathlon Collegiate National Championships, March 22-24. To find all World Cup results and standings, visit biathlonworld.com/results. For information on the upcoming U.S. Biathlon National and Collegiate National Championships, visit usbiathlon.org/national-events-calendar.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

U.S. Biathlon Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

“It feels amazing to shoot clean in the last pursuit of the year,” said Irwin. “I’m happy it was enough to get me into the mass start and it’s always exciting to get another opportunity to race and score points. I’m definitely feeling pretty fatigued on the course, but the wax crew is doing an amazing job of giving me competitive skis.”

Her first World Cup pursuit clean and second clean shooting in a four stage race this season, the first taking place in the mass start in Lenzerheide, Switzerland in December 2023, Irwin has proven mentally tough as the long season is coming to a close. The veteran athlete has shot a perfect 30 for 30 in both the sprint and pursuit races, putting her in a position to race in her second mass start of the season in Canmore.

”Armin, Emil and I have been working really hard after a shaky start to the trimester with my standing shooting,” Irwin added. “I’m so happy I’ve been able to get over that mental hump on the range and clean all my stages so far this weekend.”

Later in the day, Campbell Wright (Wanaka, NZL/U.S. Biathlon) and Jake Brown (St. Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) toed the line for their final pursuit race of the season, wearing bib 28 and 36.

With the final day of World Cup racing ahead, Irwin will start the women’s 12.5km mass start wearing bib 29 at 1:10 ET/11:10 MT, with the men’s 15km mass start to follow at 5:10 ET/3:10 MT. Information on how to watch can be found at usbiathlon.org/how-to-watch. For spectator resources, visit usbiathlon.org/spectator-resources.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

U.S. Biathlon Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

Starting in bib 14,, Bonacci kicked off the race with a phenomenal lead leg, shooting clean and tagging off to Doherty in third place, just 10 seconds off the leaders. Bonacci, who is a native of Salt Lake City, Utah, wanted to “put it on for my city”. The local fans showed up, filling every corner of the course, making sure the team could feel the support.

“We had more fans than the last time the World Cup was here,” Doherty said after the race, “Real home crowd feeling, I have to say I love it. It was fun, we put on a good show which is what we always aim to do.” 

Doherty continued pushing, staying with the leaders and, after using just three spares on the range, tagged off to Wright in fifth place. Wright, as we have seen time and time again, had a spectacular leg, only needing one spare round in prone and cleaning his standing shoot to push the team up to second place at the third and final exchange. Brown, despite having to ski one penalty lap, kept his calm and pushed to the limit on his final lap, fending off a late charge from the Swedish team, to secure the team a fourth place finish.

“My favorite spot was out on cabin hill. I went by the fans and they were chanting ‘Jake, Jake, Jake,’ which was pretty surreal,” Brown said just after finishing, “I had never had something like that before, so that was really cool.” 

The team crossed the line just +1.30 off the leading Norwegian team of Sturla Holm Laegreid, Tarjei Boe, Johannes Thinges Boe and Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen. Norway was joined on the podium by Italy’s Patrick Braunhofer, Tommaso Giacomel, Didier Bionaz and Lukas Hofer, and Germany’s Justus Strelow, Johannes Kuehn, Benedikt Doll and Philipp Nawrath.

*The best-ever U.S. men’s relay finish took place in Ruhpolding Germany in 1988, where the team of J. Thompson, C. Schreiner, D. Binning and L. Nelson raced to third place.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

U.S. Biathlon Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

After two training weeks in Italy, the U.S. Biathlon Team is geared up for the 2024 BMW IBU World Championships in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic. The two week event features 12 different races, giving each athlete multiple opportunities for success and fans a taste of each biathlon discipline. Racing will kick off with the mixed relay on Wednesday, February 7.

Looking back at past World Championship highlights, only a handful of U.S. athletes have personally experienced the feeling of winning a medal at the event, but Lowell Bailey, U.S. Biathlon Director of High Performance, is the sole U.S. athlete who has stood on top of the podium. Back in 2017, one of the last athletes to start the men’s 20km individual, Bailey had the race of his life, shooting a perfect 20 for 20, and clinching the gold medal by just 3.3 seconds.

Reflecting on his experience, Bailey said, “World Championships is the pinnacle of the season, but that doesn’t mean that an athlete should do something different from what they’ve done all season long. The key to success at the big events is not varying from what you have spent so much time training to do; all you have to do is go out and execute the skills you’ve already built.”

The U.S. Biathlon Team has racked up impressive results, continuously improving throughout the season. Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, WI/Army World Class Athlete Program) has built up momentum from personal best results in the sprint and mass start events earlier this season in Lenzerheide, with her top ski speed and shooting accuracy proving to be a consistent piece of the puzzle in relays. Most recently, Irwin teamed up with Campbell Wright (Wanaka, NZL/U.S. Biathlon) to finish ninth place in the single-mixed relay in Antholz, Italy.

Jackie Garso (Lake Clear, NY/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) will race in her first World Championships after achieving a World Cup personal best in Antholz, finishing 66th in the women’s short individual. Chloe Levins (Rutland, VT/Team Crosscut) is coming off one of her best race weeks, shooting a perfect 100% at the 2024 IBU Open European Championships in Brezno-Osrblie, Slovakia, and racing to a personal best 28th place in the women’s individual.

Tara Geraghty-Moats (West Fairlee, VT/National Guard Biathlon) will race in her second biathlon World Championships after a strong individual performance at Open European Championships, achieving a season best result. Filling the World Championships spot left by Kelsey Dickinson (Winthrop, WA/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), who will take time to focus on health and recovery, Lina Farra (Heber City, UT/NYSEF) will also race her first IBU World Championships.

Wright, racing in his third World Championships and first wearing red, white and blue, came out of the second trimester with a World Cup personal best 12th in the sprint and 17th in the pursuit in Ruhpolding, two of his three top results on the circuit. Vincent Bonacci (Salt Lake City, UT/Team Crosscut) had a standout performance at Open European Championships, skiing to sixth place, his second of the season, breaking up a Norwegian top-six sweep in the men’s individual. This will be Bonacci’s second World Championships appearance.

With an individual 10th place finish at Open European Championships, placing two U.S. men in the top 10, Maxime Germain (Chamonix-Mont Blanc, FRA/National Guard Biathlon) is showing solid ski speed and shooting coming into his second World Championships. Sean Doherty (Center Conway, NH/National Guard Biathlon) leads the U.S. Biathlon Team in international racing experience, competing in his eighth World Championships. Rounding out the roster, Jake Brown (St. Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), racing in his fourth World Championships, currently holds the top World Championships result amongst this year’s U.S. Team heading into Nove Mesto.

“I think Nove Mesto will be a special one for the team,” said Brown. “I think we’re ready to go!”

It is guaranteed to be an exciting two weeks of racing, so be sure to tune in to the livestream, follow live results on the IBU app and follow along on social media. For all information on how to watch, visit usbiathlon.org/how-to-watch. For spectator information, visit usbiathlon.org/spectator-resources.

2024 BMW IBU World Championships – Nove Mesto Na Morave, Czech Republic

February 7

Mixed Relay (M+W) 11:20 EST/ 5:20 CET

February 9

Women’s 7.5km Sprint 11:20 EST/ 5:20 CET

February 10

Men’s 10km Sprint 11:05 EST/ 5:05 CET

February 11

Women’s 10km Pursuit 8:30 EST/ 2:30 CET

Men’s 12.5km Pursuit 11:05 EST/ 5:05 CET

February 13

Women’s 15km Individual 11:10 EST/ 5:10 CET

February 14

Men’s 20km Individual 11:20 EST/ 5:20 CET

February 15

Single Mixed Relay (M+W) 12:00 EST/ 6:00 CET

February 17

Women’s 4x6km Relay 7:45 EST/ 1:45 CET

Men’s 4×7.5km Relay 10:30 EST/ 4:30 CET

February 18

Women’s 12.5km Mass Start 8:15 EST/ 2:15 CET

Men’s 15km Mass Start 10:30 EST/ 4:30 CET

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

U.S. Biathlon Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

“It felt good to ski with everyone today and be in the mix,” said Irwin. “I think we pulled together a great race. The wax techs did an amazing job with the skis. Antholz really showed off her beauty today!”

Despite having to ski a penalty loop each, Irwin and Wright landed just +1.09.5 behind Germany’s leading pair of Vanessa Voigt and Justus Strelow, who used just one spare round. Germany was joined on the podium by Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold and Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen of Norway and Austria’s Lisa Theresa Hauser and Simon Eder.

Of the two single mixed relays this season, Team USA has placed in the top 10 each time. Back in November in Oestersund, Sweden, the pair of Irwin and Sean Doherty (Center Conway, NH/National Guard Biathlon) skied to an eighth place finish, cleaning their prone shoots and only using three spare rounds in standing. Just two months later, Irwin and Wright placed ninth with two added penalty loops, further proving the USA to be dangerous competition.

The third and final single mixed relay of the season will take place on January 15 at the 2024 World Championships in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic. Team USA will be looking to top their best finish and continue delivering top ski times. For information on how to watch, visit https://usbiathlon.org/how-to-watch. For spectator resources, visit https://usbiathlon.org/spectator-resources.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

“I’m feeling really good on the skis,” said Wright. “Great contrast from Oestersund when I was 100th ski time, so good progression. Just loving it.”

Wright was +50.1 behind the sprint victor, Vetle Christiansen of Norway, who shot clean. Christiansen was joined on the podium by Tommaso Giacomel of Italy and Norwegian teammate Tarjei Boe. Feeding off the energy from his stellar relay leg on Thursday, Wright was able to re-write his previous World Cup personal best 15th from the 2021/22 season in Antholz, Italy.

“Campbell had a really smart race today,” said U.S. Biathlon Team Head Coach Armin Auchentaller. “On the first loop he had Tarjei Boe in front of him and we kept telling him to stay in the draft, which allowed him to save energy for the second loop, where he had one of the best course times. He stayed relaxed and did a good job on the range with a fast shooting time. I am very proud of him.”

Jake Brown (Saint Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) skied to 57th, shooting clean in prone and missing just one target in standing. Brown will race with Wright in tomorrow’s pursuit. Vincent Bonacci (Salt Lake City, UT/Team Crosscut) hit nine of ten targets and finished in 66th. Sean Doherty (Center Conway, NH/National Guard Biathlon) did not start in the sprint.

Racing will kick off tomorrow with Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, WI/Army World Class Athlete Program) racing in the women’s 10km pursuit set to begin at 6:30 ET/12:30 CET. Wright and Brown will follow suit in the men’s 12.5km pursuit at 8:45 ET/2:45 CET. For information on how to watch, visit usbiathlon.org/how-to-watch. For spectator resources, visit usbiathlon.org/spectator-resources.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

Irwin, who shot clean in the sprint, was followed by teammate Grace Castonguay (Jackson, NH/Ethan Allen Biathlon Club) in 74th with one miss, skiing to a World Cup personal best after making her debut in Hochfilzen. Jackie Garso (Lake Clear, NY/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) finished in 80th with three misses in standing. Irwin continued to have a strong weekend, finishing 21st in Saturday’s pursuit after only two missed shots in her first stop in prone. In Sunday’s mass start, Irwin shot 20 for 20, the first of her World Cup career, landing her in 13th to round out the weekend.

“Just incredible to have two of my races go clean. It’s just unreal. It’s really just a dream come true to have all of this come together,” said Irwin. “The wax team did such an amazing job and my coaches did an amazing job preparing me, so to be able to share this weekend with so many amazing people who have helped me get to this point is just so cool. I can’t wait to come back to Lenzerheide next year for World Championships!”

Friday’s men’s 10km sprint brought a strong showing by the U.S. men’s team. Sean Doherty (Center Conway, NH/National Guard Biathlon) led the group in 27th with one missed shot. Jake Brown (Saint Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) and Vincent Bonacci (Salt Lake City, UT/Team Crosscut) finished neck and neck in 48th and 49th to both qualify for Saturday’s pursuit, Bonacci’s first World Cup pursuit qualification. Campbell Wright (Wanaka, NZL/U.S. Biathlon) finishing just out of pursuit contention in 72nd with two misses on the day.

In Saturday’s pursuit, Doherty skied to 37th place after one miss in each of his four shooting bouts. Bonacci followed suit, also missing four, finishing 48th. Brown did not start the pursuit.

The first trimester has brought World Cup debuts, personal bests, clean shooting and stellar performances. During the World Cup premier in Östersund, Sweden, Kelsey Dickinson (Winthrop, WA/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) raced to a personal best 36th in the women’s individual, where Margie Freed made her World Cup debut. Irwin’s 8th place, clean shooting and feature in the mass start, and Bonacci’s 48th place and pursuit qualification in Lenzerheide highlighted the weekend’s results.

The U.S. Biathlon Team will now head into a well-deserved holiday break before the second trimester of World Cup racing begins in Oberhof, Germany on January 4. Highlighting the new year will be World Championships taking place February 7-18 in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic, and March 8-10 will bring the IBU World Cup back to home soil for the first time since 2019. The top biathletes will be racing at Soldier Hollow in the second-to-last race weekend of the season, which is sure to be a spectacle. For information on the Soldier Hollow World Cup, check out https://ibuworldcuputah.com/.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

“Emil [Bormetti] and Armin [Auchentaller] gave me an amazing pep talk last night,” said Irwin. “We tried to focus on coming into this race with less nerves and focusing on one thing at a time. It feels incredible to have it all come together. My first 20/20 on the World Cup and in a mass start! I couldn’t ask for a more perfect day.”

Coming into the mass start, Irwin raced to a World Cup best eighth in the sprint, cleaning both rounds of shooting. In the pursuit, the nerves showed in the first round of shooting with two misses, but she was able to shoot clean the rest of the way and finish 21st. Irwin currently sits in 27th on the World Cup total score with 93 points, which landed her bib 27 in the mass start.

The coming weeks will be a well-deserved rest period for the U.S. Biathlon Team. World Cup racing will resume after the new year on January 4 in Oberhof, Germany. The weekend will feature another round of sprint, pursuit and mass start races to kick off the second trimester.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

“I am happy to have had a World Cup where I didn’t really feel stressed to race, and was just happy to have some sun and mountain air to go for a fun race in,” said Bonacci. “It’s super cool to be in the top 60 with Jake and Sean as well and I am excited for the race tomorrow.”

Bonacci’s time was +2.30 behind the sprint victor, Benedikt Doll of Germany, who shot a perfect 10/10. Doll was joined on the podium by Johannes Thingnes Boe of Norway and German teammate Philipp Nawrath.

This season has been one of notable improvements for Bonacci. Today’s 49th place was a 17-spot jump from his previous World Cup personal best 66th in last season’s sprint at the World Cup in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic. Two weekends ago, at the IBU Cup in Kontiolahti, Finland, Bonacci also jumped 16 spots to claim 6th place in the individual and a spot in the flower ceremony.

Team USA teammates Sean Doherty (Center Conway, NH/National Guard Biathlon) and Jake Brown (Saint Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) also qualified for the pursuit. Doherty finished in 27th place with one miss standing, and Brown finished only one second ahead of Bonacci in 48th, with two misses in standing. Campbell Wright (Wanaka, NZL/U.S. Biathlon) crossed the line in 72nd with one miss in both prone and standing.

Doherty, Brown, Bonacci and Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, WI/Army World Class Athlete Program) will race in tomorrow’s pursuits. Irwin will kick the day off wearing bib eight in the women’s 10km pursuit set to begin at 6:45 ET/12:45 CET, followed by the men’s pursuit at 8:40 ET/2:40 CET. Live stream can be found at eurovisionsports.tv/ibu/.

As the Olympic sports organization centered around the sport of biathlon, the United States Biathlon Association, known as U.S. Biathlon, is recognized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) as the national federation for biathlon in the United States. Founded in 1980, U.S. Biathlon exists to support and encourage the development of biathlon in the United States, to work with biathlon clubs and regional centers around the country to organize training and competition from the grassroots to elite level, and to prepare athletes for international competition. U.S. Biathlon staffs and finances the U.S. Biathlon national and junior national teams and is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization. For more information, visit usbiathlon.org.

Media Contact

Sara Donatello

saradonatello@usbiathlon.org

+1 (518) 524-5354

“Emil and Armin really helped me put together a good ski plan for the race the past couple of days, and I really felt confident on the range all week,” said Irwin. “Fede, Gio and the wax team gave me amazing skis today. Honestly, we’ve all been saying it since Östersund that I have all the puzzle pieces and just had to fit them all together on the same day. Today was that day. It was a perfect team effort from everyone to keep me motivated and working the course from start to finish!”

Shooting a perfect 10/10, Irwin crossed the line only 13 seconds behind Germany’s Franziska Preuss and +1.12.6 off the leader, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet of France, who also shot clean. Braisaz-Bouchet was joined on the podium by Norway’s Ingrid Tandrevold and Italy’s Lisa Vittozzi.

Coming into the sprint race in Lenzerheide, Irwin’s World Cup personal best was a 14th in the sprint in Otepää, Estonia during the 2021/22 season. Jumping six spots to rewrite her personal best as eighth, reiterated Irwin’s place as a top contender amongst the women as they head into the pursuit on Saturday.

“I am really looking forward to the pursuit,” added Irwin. “I’ve never started this far up before and I’m ready to keep the momentum going.”

Team USA also had a World Cup personal best from Grace Castonguay (Jackson, NH/Ethan Allen Biathlon Club) with a 74th place finish in her second-ever World Cup start. Jackie Garso (Lake Clear, NY/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) finished in 80th. Kelsey Dickinson (Winthrop, WA/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) did not race in the sprint.

Looking to feed off the energy of Irwin’s result, the U.S. Biathlon men’s team will race in the 10km sprint tomorrow at 8:15 EST/02:15 CET. Live stream is available at eurovisionsports.tv/ibu/.

“Hochfilzen is such a great venue – they have such an experienced organizing committee and such great fans that the atmosphere is amazing,” said Studebaker-Hall. “It was where I had my first top-30 result, so it also holds a special place for me personally! I had the opportunity to work with some really experienced TDs from IBU and it was great to be able to learn from them and gain more experience on the biggest biathlon stage.”

Though it typically takes four years of experience to become eligible for a technical delegate (TD) certification, Studebaker-Hall was able to get her license in three years given her history as a biathlete and experience as a coach. To become a TD, one must attend conferences with current TD members and take both an oral and written exam, over a two-day period.

After passing her exam and officially becoming the first American woman with a technical delegate certification, Studebaker-Hall was also elected to the IBU technical committee in September 2022.

For Studebaker-Hall, the 2022/23 season consisted of officiating at two IBU Cup events in Canmore, Canada, as the start/finish referee, as well as being a shooting range referee at the 2023 FISU World University Games in Lake Placid, NY. It wasn’t until this past weekend in Hochfilzen, Austria that Studebaker-Hall had the opportunity to officiate as the start/finish referee at an IBU World Cup event.

“Refereeing at the IBU Cup last season helped me gain knowledge, confidence and experience, but there’s nothing quite like the big show of the World Cup! It was such an exhilarating experience and really made me excited for hosting the world at Soldier Hollow in March.”

As a strong advocate for gender equality in sport, Studebaker-Hall is breaking barriers in the U.S. and being a role model within the international biathlon world. Not only did she officiate her first World Cup event, but did so with her six-month-old daughter in tow.

“Last year, I was about six months pregnant with my daughter, and this year I was able to bring her along. IBU was so supportive of me having her there with my parents to watch her during the races. I think it’s really important for athletes, especially women, to see that you can stay involved in the sport after competing and still have a life,” she added. “It takes some planning and lots of support, but I’m so glad I was able to continue working as a referee this season despite having my daughter. She won’t remember it, but hopefully someday she’ll also look back and see that I was able to have this great experience of working the World Cup while nursing a baby and feel empowered by that. I really love officiating and am excited about being one of many women coming up as IBU referees!”