If you’re like me, you only just recently learned about the dynamic and exciting world of the Olympics biathlon.
The biathlon tends to fly under the radar when compared to other winter Olympic sports, but it has received new attention this year due to one athlete’s public confession of infidelity and another’s credit card fraud conviction against her teammate.
The women’s biathlon 7.5km sprint finals take place today, and for those who may be tuning in for the first time, fear not: I’ve done the research for you! Today’s race consists of a 7.5km freestyle cross-country skiing sprint with two rounds of rifle shooting, the first in a prone position and the second standing.
The French contenders are expected to perform well today. Watch out for Julia Simon, who became France’s first woman to win the individual 15km earlier this week, and her teammate Lou Jeanmonnot, who took silver. Sisters Hanna and Elvira Öberg, of Sweden, are also vying to share the podium.
Check out my live blog below to keep up with the action.
The women’s 7.5km biathlon sprint begins! // 8:48 am ET
The first few athletes take off in the Anterselva Biathlon Arena in Italy. There are 91 athletes competing in the biathlon today, who will begin their sprints in staggered intervals.
Keep an eye out for the US contenders // 8:51 am ET
The United States has never medaled in this sport. The American contenders competing today are:
- Joanne Reid, of Wisconsin
- Deedra Irwin, of Wisconsin
- Margie Freed, of Colorado
- Lucinda Anderson, of Minnesota
A new documentary featuring the U.S. biathlon team’s training leading up to this year’s Olympics is now streaming on Peacock and playing on NBC this month.
The first shooting round begins // 8:56 am ET
The first athletes have reaching the initial shooting round, including three-time Olympian Joanne Reid from the U.S. The women are shooting prone for this first round.
This photo of Joanne Reid from the 2022 Beijing Olympics demonstrates the prone shooting position.
Ukrainian athlete Oleksandra Merkushyna is in the lead right now // 8:59 am ET
Oleksandra Merkushyna has accurately shot each target in the first round and is leading the biathlon currently. She has now reached her second shooting round, which is completed standing up.
What is the biathlon? // 9:02 am ET
The biathlon is a sport that tests athletes rifle shooting skills and their speed in freestyle cross-country skiing. Competitors begin by racing on skis and, after each lap, complete shooting rounds in both prone (lying down) and standing positions. They fire five rounds of shots at targets 50 meters away during each shooting round. If athletes miss a target, they receive a time penalty. You can read more on Britannica’s biathlon page.
Lou Jeanmonnot of France begins her sprint // 9:06 am ET
Lou Jeanmonnmet is number one in the world right now. So far, she has received the gold medal in the mix relay and the silver medal in the individual with the fastest ski time. She is a top contender today.
Merkushyna is the first to cross the finish line // 9:09 am ET
The Ukranian athlete crosses the finish line and quickly goes down to her knees in exhaustion. Her finish time was 22 min 51.8 seconds.
What are the red bibs? // 9:11 am ET
Athletes competing today with red bibs are some of the best in the sport. The red bib indicates that they are leaders of a specific discipline, like the sprint, pursuit, individual, or mass start, in the IBU World Cup standings.
Most of them have started the course now. Keep an eye on them, as they’re the ones to watch!
Kamila Zuk of Poland takes the first place spot // 9:17 am ET
Kamila Zuk crossed the finish line with a time of 21 min 50.1 sec. She immediately collapsed faced down in the snow shouting “Oh my god!”
Jeanmonnot misses in second round of shooting // 9:22 am ET
In an unexpected twist, Jeanmonnot misses a target in her standing round of shooting. As she was the favorite, this mistake opens up the competition for other athletes to take the lead.
Julia Simon misses twice in the second round of shooting // 9:23 am ET
The other French favorite, Julia Simon, misses twice in the second round of shooting. As stated by NBC’s announcer Randy Moss, “the door is wide open!”
Simon is the athlete convicted of credit card fraud against her national teammate in October.
Hanna Öberg of Sweden misses twice // 9:27 am ET
Hanna Öberg, one of the Swedish sisters aiming for dual medals today, misses twice in her standing round of shooting. With this mistake, she will not be reaching the podium. Several leading contenders are missing targets today, giving other athletes an unexpected shot at a medal.
Jeanmonnot finishes the course in the lead // 9:30 am ET
Jeanmonnot crosses the finish line with a time of 21 min 04.5 sec, but will that be fast enough to make up for her missed shots in the standing round of shooting?
France’s youngest competitor rises to the top // 9:32 am ET
Oceane Michelon is 23 years old and #11 in the world, but she has never won gold at any professional event in her career. She is currently in control as she races toward the end of the course.
While everyone has been talking about her French teammates Simon and Jeanmonnot, Michelon has surprised with a fantastic performance today.
Michelon is now first // 9:34 am ET
She’s taken the lead! Michelon crosses the finish line with a final time of 20 min 44.6 sec. She remains on her hands and knees in the snow for several minutes, trying to catch her breath.
She now waits to see if any other competitors can beat her time.
Norwegian Maren Kirkeeide takes the win by 3.8 seconds // 9:38 am ET
This race has been a nail biter! Norwegian athlete Maren Kirkeeide absolutely blasts through the rest of the course, speeding through the finish line to beat Michelon’s time by mere seconds.
Photo courtesy of the Washington Post.
Kirkeeide wins gold, Michelon takes silver, & Jeanmonnot gets bronze // 9:42 am ET
First-time Olympian Kirkeeide overtook Michelon gradually throughout the course, never missing a shot. Her incredible speed at the end carried her to beat Michelon for the gold medal.
The rest of the athletes finish the course // 9:47 am ET
While the top medals have been claimed by Norway and France, the rest of the athletes still need to finish the course. Nearly every competitor today falls to their knees after they cross the finish line. There’s no doubt these women have given this sprint everything they’ve got.
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