November 21, 2007 (Calgary, AB) – Canada’s top biathletes, one of the youngest biathlon teams in the world, will head to Europe loaded with confidence and international competition experience, when the national team departs for Finland this week.

Biathlon Canada named 11 athletes to the senior Canadian Biathlon Team that will compete on the World Cup and European Cup circuits this winter following a pre-season selection process in Canmore in September allowing the selected teams to prepare adequately for the first events of the season.

Zina Kocher, of Red Deer, Alta., will lead the six Canucks on the World Cup this season. The 25-year-old Olympian gave proof of the resurgence of the Canadian biathlon program when she became the first Canadian in more than a decade to win a World Cup medal when she captured a bronze medal in O˝stersund, Sweden nearly one year ago. Recruited to the sport from cross-country running, Kocher consistently placed with the world-leaders in just her third season in the senior line-up.

Kocher will be joined on the women’s World Cup team by Olympic teammate Sandra Keith, of Calgary, and World Cup rookie, Meagan Imrie, of Falcon Lake, Man. The 27-year-old Keith continues to make strides on the international scene as the veteran of the national team, while the 21-year-old Imrie, who is one of the first athletes in recent years from Manitoba to make it into the senior national team ranks, will make her first tracks on the World Cup following a top-10 finish at the World Junior Championships last year.

Two-time Olympian, Robin Clegg, will guide Canada’s male trio through Europe this winter. The 30-year-old Ottawa native, who is entering his ninth season on the team, is determined to keep fighting the world’s best to accomplish his career goals of standing on the podium. Clegg will be joined by Jean-Philippe LeGuellec, of Val Belair, Que., who is evolving into one of top male biathletes that Canada has seen. LeGuellec, who competed for Canada at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in just his second year on the team, recently won a silver and bronze medal at the Subaru Summer Biathlon Tour held in France this summer. Another flatlander, Scott Perras, of Regina, Sask., will make his World Cup debut to round out the men’s contingent.

“Canada has assembled a team that brings a combination of Olympic and World Cup experience, with success at both the junior and senior international level,” said Joanne Thomson, executive director, Biathlon Canada. “With Zina’s breakthrough, our young team now knows Canadian biathletes can win, and they will continue gaining experience and push to put Canada back on top of the world biathlon podium.”

Biathlon Canada will also send five more male athletes to Europe this week to compete on the European Cup circuit.

Patrick Côté, of Grand-Sault, N.B., who will also compete in selective World Cups throughout the year will lead Canada on the development circuit. Côté will be joined by François Leboeuf, of Val Bélair, Que.; Jaime Robb, of Edmonton; Nathan Smith, of Calgary; and Maxime Leboeuf, of Val Bélair, Que.

Canada’s biathletes will suit up for the season-opening World Cup race, November 29 to December 2 in Kontiolahti, Finland, while the first European Cup race will take place from November 23-25 in Geilo, Norway.

Biathlon Canada, the governing body for biathlon in the country, oversees the Canadian Championships, Eastern and Western Canadian Championships, and the North American Cups held in Canada. The organization’s mandate is to provide national level programs for the continuous development of biathlon athletes from the grassroots to the elite level. For more information on Biathlon Canada, please visit their Web site at www.biathloncanada.ca.