Tag Archive | "Leif Nordgren"

US Biathlon Announces 2013 World Championship Roster

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January 21, 2013 (New Gloucester, ME) – US Biathlon‘s  International Competition Committee is pleased to announce the 2013 World Championships Team.  Team USA will travel to Nove Mesto, Czech Republic for the IBU World Championships Biathlon, which opens with the mixed relay on February 7th.  A complete event schedule and links to the 2013 World Championships can be found HERE. Congratulations, and good luck Team USA.

2013 US Biathlon World Championships Team

Men
– Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, NY)
– Tim Burke (Paul Smits, NY)
– Russell Currier (Stockholm, ME)
– Leif Nordgren (Marine, MN)

Women
– Annelies Cook (Saranac Lake, NY)
– Hannah Dreissigacker ( Morrisville, VT)
– Susan Dunklee (Barton, VT)
– Sara Studebaker (Boise, ID)

2013 IBU World Championships Biathlon, Nove Mesto, CZE
– 07 Feb – 11:30 – Mixed 2×6+2×7.5 km Relay
– 09 Feb – 07:00 – Men 10 km Sprint
– 09 Feb – 10:15 – Women 7.5 km Sprint
– 10 Feb – 07:00 – Men 12.5 km Pursuit
– 10 Feb – 10:15 – Women 10 km Pursuit
– 13 Feb – 11:15 – Women 15 km Individual
– 14 Feb – 11:15 – Men 20 km Individual
– 15 Feb – 11:15 – Women 4×6 km Relay
– 16 Feb – 09:15 – Men 4×7.5 km Relay
– 17 Feb – 06:00 – Women 12.5 km Mass Start
– 17 Feb – 09:00 – Men 15 km Mass Start

US Biathlon Announces World Cup 4 and IBU Cup 4 Rosters

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December 18, 2012 (New Gloucester, ME) – The International Competition Committee of US Biathlon met today and would like to announce the women’s and men’s teams for World Cup 4 in Oberhof, GER, Jan. 1-6, and IBU Cup 4 in Otepää, EST, Jan. 4-6, 2013.

World Cup 4
Women:
– Susan Dunklee (Barton, VT)
– Sara Studebaker (Boise, ID)
– Annelies Cook (Saranac Lake, NY) – discretionary selection based on ranking as the 3rd women in WC points and second fastest ski times.

Men:
– Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, NY)
– Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, NY)
– Russell Currier (Stockholm, ME)
– Leif Nordgren (Marine, MN) – discretionary selection based on two top 60 WC finishes and fourth best skiing among the World Cup team members

IBU Cup 4
Women:
– Lanny Barnes (Durango, CO) – from World Cup qualification
– Tracy Barnes (Durango, CO) – from Nov/Dec IBU Cup qualification
– Hannah Dreissigacker (Craftsbury, Vermont) – IBU Cup trials winner
– Katrina Howe (Gilford, New Hampshire) – discretionary selection from IBU Cup trials*

Men:
– Jay Hakkinen (Kasilof, AK) – from World Cup qualification
– Jeremy Teela (Heber City, UT)- from Nov/Dec IBU Cup qualification
– Bill Bowler (Wausau, Wisconsin) – IBU Cup trials winner
– Wynn Roberts (Battle Lake, MN) – discretionary selection from IBU Cup trials*

* Due to US Biathlon financial constraints participation by the additional athletes selected by discretion from the IBU Cup trials will be on a self-pay basis.

Team USA Kicks off 2012 IBU World Championships Today in Ruhpolding

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March 01, 2012 (Rupholding, Germany) – The 2012 IBU World Championships open Mar. 1 in Ruhpolding, Germany with the 2×6+2×7.5 km Mixed Relay featuring a team of two women & two men. Sara Studebaker (Boise, ID), Susan Dunklee (Barton, VT), Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, NY) and Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, NY) will start for Team USA.

“The team arrived here in Ruhpolding on Monday after our final preparation in Ridaun, Italy. We think that we have done everything we can now, and everybody is looking forward to the start of the races ,” said US Biathlon Head Coach Per Nilsson. “The team has had an up-going trend in January and February, which we wanted due to the late date for the World Championships, so we know that we have a good capacity. The key is to continue to stay with the routine that every athlete has. They should just do the normal work and focus on things that they can impact. Then we will have some good results over the next 10 days.”

“The team really feels at home here in Ruhpolding. We’ve had several summer camps here, so it feels natural for them to be here,” said Bernd Eisenbichler, US Biathlon High Performance Director. “Everyone has done their work – the athletes, coaches, wax technicians, the physiotherapists – and now it’s time to go ahead and execute what we’ve been working on over the last year.”

The World Championships continue through March 11th. Ruhpolding has a 34 year history of hosting of World Cup and World Championship event. Ticket sales have reached 30,000 per day and the TV audience is expected to exceed 25 million viewers per competition.

Competition begins at 9:30 am (EST) Mar. 1 and will be webcast live HERE.
Please visit HERE for a link to the complete World Championship schedule and results.

2012 U.S. Biathlon IBU World Championship Team

Men
– Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, NY) – World Cup Ranking: 13th – two 5th place finishes
– Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, NY) – World Cup Ranking: 22nd – 6th & 8th place finishes
– Russell Currier (Stockholm, ME) – World Cup Ranking: 47th – two 6th place finishes
– Jay Hakkinen (Kasilof, AK) – World Cup Ranking: 33rd – 9th & 14th place finishes
– Leif Nordgren (Marine, MN) – World Cup Ranking: 94th – 33rd & 48th place finishes

Women
– Lanny Barnes (Durango, CO) – 2nd & 4th place finishes in IBU Cup 7, Canmore
– Annelies Cook (Saranac Lake, NY) – World Cup Ranking: 76th – 33rd & 39th place finishes
– Susan Dunklee (Barton, VT) – World Cup Ranking: 48th – 17th & 27th place finishes
– Sara Studebaker (Boise, ID) – World Cup Ranking: 55th – 15th & 23rd place finishes

USA’s Nordgren Storms to 21st in Men’s 12.5km Pursuit at IBU Open Euro Championships

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January 31, 2012 (Brezno-Osrblie, Slovakia) – Russia’s Alexey Volkov only missed one shot in the Men’s 12.5k Pursuit at the IBU Open European Championships that run Jan. 27-Feb. 2 in Slovakia to secure the win in a time of 31:48.0, +16.2 faster than second place, Serhiy Semenov (UKR). Daniel Bohm (GER) finished a further +2.3 back for the bronze medal. The top three only received one shooting penalty each.

The race within the race, however, was headlined by USA’s Leif Nordgren, who stormed from a 45th-place starting position to finish a phenomenal 21st, logging a time of 35:01.6 with only two shooting penalties. Team mate Russell Currier (USA) finished an impressive 24th despite a whopping five penalties. Mark Johnson (USA) finished 44th with two missed shots and a time of 37:39.9. No Canadian men competed.

Results HERE.

Interview with USA Biathlete Leif Nordgren

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March 10, 2011 (Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia) – Leif Nordgren of the US Biathlon team has had a pair of breakout races at the 2011 IBU World Championships in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. Placing 26th and 21st in the Sprint and Individual competitions respectively, the young American pulled off consecutive career bests on the most important stage of the Biathlon World Cup circuit. SkiTrax caught up with Nordgren to talk about everything biathlon, including his results, the team, and the future.

Congrats on your great result in 20km individual race – tell us how things unfolded and how your race went.
Leif Nordgren: This week has been pretty crazy. After my 26th place in the Sprint race, I thought for sure that was it, I wasn’t going to get any higher. But I put a good race together in the Individual too so that was cool. My race was almost perfect – I had good enough skiing, I was just taking it easy behind Lars Berger for a few loops, and through the first three shooting stages I had hit all my targets. I was starting to get a little tired going into the last stage though, I got away with only one penalty. But it was definitely a fight for each shot.

You’re in your first full year on the World Cup Circuit – what do you attribute to your fast development?
LN: I’ve been steered in a good direction by my coaches Per [Nillson] and Armin the last couple of years. I have great teammates like Tim [Burke] and Lowell [Bailey] to train with, they are 100% professional the way they go about their training. I’ve learned a lot of things just watching them, and they’re always keen to give me any advice when I need it. But even with all that help, you still have to have a desire to work hard. I love training and improving myself, but when the good results come, it makes it a lot more fun to train even harder.

Your results at the IBU World Championships are your best by far this season. Did you make any changes or approach these races differently than the others?
LN: I think with me it’s just a process. I’ve had a few good results this year, but I would always be eager for more. A little high strung maybe. I think I’m just now realizing there are a lot of things that it takes to put a good biathlon race together. I’ve seen those things here and there this season, but this week I’ve been able to combine them all.

Being the youngest member of the men’s team, what kind of advice have you received from the veterans who have experienced every level?
LN: Most of the time if I have a bad race I will freak out about it and spend hours analyzing and searching the places where I can improve. Possibly the most important thing I’ve learned this year from the older guys is just to chill out… there will be more races, more opportunities. Of course it’s good to look at your race and analyze your mistakes, but it’s also smart to keep everything in its place.

With these great results have your expectations changed going forward…?
LN: No, not really. I’ve a had a few ok results yes, but for me there’s still a long way to go – a lot of development and hard work that needs to take place. I don’t want to just win a race and have that be the highlight of my career… I want to be at the top for a long time, to be consistent. That’s the most important thing I think, consistency. It will still be a few years until I get to that level. And biathlon is only going to get more competitive, so who knows, I may never make it there. Perhaps it’s more about the journey you take than the final outcome…

What do you hope to accomplish in your career in the sport of biathlon?
LN: To be the best and to inspire people the same way I’ve been inspired.

Good luck with the rest of the championships and this season.
LN: Thanks Clark!

Svendsen Nips Fourcade by a Hair – Bailey Top American in 25th Despite Rookie Move UPDATED

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February 12, 2011 (Fort Kent, Maine) – Emile Hegle Svendsen of Norway took the men’s 12.5km pursuit competition today after a thrilling final lap duel with Martin Fourcade (Fra) than ended in a photo finish. Both men had a single penalty and were timed at 35:46. Third went to Tarjei Boe of Norway, with three penalties, 1:00.3 back.

From the outset, the battle was between Svendsen and Fourcade. Although both shot clean in the first prone stage, Svendsen held a 9-second lead leaving the stadium. Fourcade quickly closed the gap and was locked on the Norwegian’s shoulder for the next two loops. They both shot clean simultaneously in the second prone. Their initial tight battle ended when Fourcade had a penalty in the first standing stage, while Svendsen shot clean and got a gap.

The tables reversed in the final standing stage, when Svendsen had to tour the penalty loop and Fourcade was perfect. They went back into the Maine woods separated by just 2 seconds. Fourcade quickly closed the gap and they were elbow-to-elbow for the next 2.2km. They entered the stadium in a full sprint side-by-side. Fourcade seemed to have the edge until the final five meters when Svendsen pulled up just a bit and out-leaned Fourcade who tumbled to the ground.

Svendsen almost seemed relieved that he won the competition after the battle with Fourcade. “I saw Martin shoot clean as I was on the penalty loop and thought, ‘Oh my god’. We were not actually skiing that fast in the first part of the final loop. I knew he was a very strong skier and I knew he was there with me.

“I tried to save some energy for one last attempt. I tried to do that over by the wax cabins and hold it until the finish. But he was super strong and stayed with me. It came to a sprint and I was sure he was before me at some point. But I think I was stronger in the final meters. I managed to pull it off and am very happy about that.”

Fourcade had similar feelings to Svendsen as they approached the final loop. “I saw Emil on the penalty loop and had to make a decision, take it easy and go on the final loop by myself or try to catch him. I decided to go after him and hit all five.”

He was philosophical about second place. “This is a strange weekend. In the sprint I missed the podium by a half second and today miss the win. I hope tomorrow to reverse that trend.”

Boe retained the yellow Jersey, but said he let down a bit in the final standing stage, missing two shots while knowing he could not move up. “I saw Martin hitting all of the targets and knew Emil was away. I thought ‘no chance to take the top two.’ I knew there was a big gap and I had no chance so I took it too easy.”

Lowell Bailey of the US continued his run of strong performances with a move from 31st at the start to 25th at the finish despite a rookie move as he came into his third shooting stage two clips short losing about 40 seconds. Despite the blunder, which likely cost him a top-20 result, he maintained his composure shooting clean and missed only two shots – one in the first prone stage and the second in the final standing stage – to finish 3:23.7 behind Svendsen.

“That was such a stupid mistake. I can’t blame anyone but myself,” said Bailey in a US Biathlon release. “I just took two out of the four needed clips with me. I had some troubles zeroing and focused more on the wind and my problems in prone. I simply forgot to take the two other clips with me. I waved at the coach but I probably lost more than 40 seconds waiting for some extra clips. Of course it’s not their fault. Something like that shouldn’t happen in the first place.”

American Jay Hakkinen also had another solid day, as he got away with just three penalties to finish 34th at 4:35.5 back. Beyond those two men, it was another less-than-stellar day for North Americans.

Canada’s Brendan Green had three penalties in 39th place at 4:51.1 back, just ahead of the USA’s Leif Nordgren, with five penalties. Canuck JP Le Guellec finished 44th, while Scott Perras was 48th, one place ahead of Tim Burke of the USA.

Michal Slesingr of the Czech Republic after falling back in the middle of the competition had a brilliant last 2.5km to move into fourth, with three penalties, at 1:19.6 back, just ahead of Sweden’s clean-shooting Carl Johan Bergman, 1:20.1 back. Sixth went to Christoph Sumann of Austria, with three penalties, 1:56.2 back.

Full results HERE.

Berger Scores at IBU Men’s 10km Sprint in Ruhpolding

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January 14, 2011 (Ruhpolding, Germany) – Norway’s Lars Berger took no prisoners as he raced to victory Friday in the 10km Sprint at the IBU World Cup in Ruhpolding. Berger, who topped the podium for the first time since 2008, earned the third no-miss race of his career to finish with a time of 23:55.1.

“It is too bad that it does not happen so often, but I had a really good feeling in the 20K the other day,” Berger told Biathlonworld.com referring to the gap in his victories, “I felt very much in control today – I shot fast but felt secure.”

France’s star competitor, Martin Fourcade, claimed 2nd, posting the same result in Wednesday’s Individual 20km competition. The 22-year-old Frenchman also had a clean shooting day, finishing 21.7 seconds behind Berger. Ivan Tcherezov (RUS) grabbed the ninth bronze of his World Cup career with a no-miss performance that left him with a time of 24:18.9.

Canada’s Marc-Andre Bedard posted the top North American result with a 44th-place finish. The former Olympian shot clean for a time of 25:59.6 while team mate Brenden Green finished close behind, hitting 9 of 10 targets to finish 48th. Scott Perras took 54th place with two misses and a time of 26:21.5, and Jean-Phillipe Le Guellec missed a pair of targets in the final lap to finish 74th.

Lowell Bailey lead the US team again making 7 of his 10 shots to finish 50th, less than two minutes out of a podium spot. Tim Burke, a Lake Placid native who is still struggling to regain his form from last season, missed four shots and finished with a time of 26:22.6, putting him in 56th. Three-time Olympian Jeremy Teela took 58th place after hitting 7 of 10, and Leif Nordgren missed a pair of shots in each stage to finish 64th with a time of 26:34.5.

The conditions on Friday at Ruhpolding’s new arena were an improvement on Thursday’s rain trodden course, though the warm temperature hovered around 10˚C, making the course slow once again for the racers.

Full results HERE.

Results (brief)
1. Lars Berger, NOR (0+0) 23:55.1
2. Martin Fourcade, FRA (0+0) 24:16.8
3. Ivan Tcherezov, RUS (0+0) 24:18.9

44. Marc-Andre Bedard, CAN (0+0) 25:59.6
48. Brenden Green, CAN (0+1) 26:08.6
50. Lowell Bailey, USA (1+2) 26:09.6
54. Scott Perras, CAN (1+1) 26:21.5
56. Tim Burke, USA (1+3) 26:22.6
58. Jeremy Teela, USA (1+2) 26:29
64. Leif Nordgren, USA (2+2) 26:34.5
74. Jean-Phillipe LeGuellec, CAN (0+2) 27:00.9

Sweden Wins IBU Biathlon WCup Mixed Relay – USA 11th, Canada 13th

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December 19, 2010 (Pokljuka, Slovenia) – The Swedish team of Helena Elkholm, Anna Carin Zidek, Fredrik Lindstrom, and Carl Johan Bergman moved steadily through the field in today’s IBU WCup Mixed Relay (2x6km + 2×7.5km) in Slovenia to take gold by a mere three-tenths of a second.

The Ukrainian team of Olena Pidhrushna, Vita Semerenko, Serhiy Semenov, and Serguei Sednev captured silver and France’s Marie Laure Brunet, Marie Dorin, Vincent Jay, and Martin Fourcade grabbed the final podium spot. Team USA (Sara Studebaker, Annalies Cook, Lowell Bailey, Leif Nordgren) were 25s out of making the top 10 finishing in 11th while Team Canada (Megan Imrie, Zina Kocher, Scott Perras, Brendan Green) was not far behind in 13th.

Full results HERE.