February 06, 2013 (Nove Mesto, CZE)  – To commemorate tomorrow’s one year countdown to the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia and to kick-off its Road to Sochi campaign, the United States Olympic Committee, in partnership with NBC Sports and the U.S. Biathlon Association, will air two hours of same-day coverage of the 2013 IBU World Championships from Nove Mesto on the NBC Sports Network Feb 9 and 10 at 6 PM EST.  Universal Sports will air additional coverage of the opening weekend on Feb. 11 and 12 at 7 PM EST.

“Same day coverage of the IBU Biathlon World Championships on the NBC Sports Network is a profound step forward for biathlon in America,” said Max Cobb, US Biathlon President & CEO. “Biathlon has long been Europe’s most watched winter sport and now Americans will get a chance to enjoy the great drama and excitement that is biathlon.  It is a wonderful one year to go preview of the 2014 Olympics.”

Veteran play-by-play announcer Steve Schlanger, who provided commentary for the London 2012 Olympic Games and has experience in nearly 30 sports over his 15-year career, will work with biathlon expert Chad Salmela who will serve as the program’s analyst. Salmela, a biathlon coach and former competitor, was NBC’s biathlon commentator during the Torino and  Vancouver Olympic Winter Games.

“The Road to Sochi is about sharing our athletes’ journeys to the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, and with just one year until the Games, we are thrilled to bring Olympic winter sport competition into living rooms across the country,” said USOC Chief Marketing Officer Lisa Baird. “America’s athletes are incredibly inspiring, determined and talented, and these Road to Sochi telecasts will help introduce their stories and their sports to the American public ahead of the Games.”

NBC Sports Network and Universal Sports “Road to Sochi” 2013 IBU Biathlon World Championship Schedule

Team USA Arrives in Nove Mesto for 2013 IBU World Championships 

2013 IBU World Championship Schedule
(all times CET, +6 hours ahead of EST)
Livestream webcast of all races will be available here

January 24, 2013 (Liberec, Czech Republic) – On Day 4 of the 2013  U23/Junior Nordic World Ski Championships, Ragnhild Haga took home  the first gold medal for the ambitious Norwegian team winning the women’s 10km FR race. The men’s 15km FR competition was clearly dominated by the Russians as they won gold and silver.

Team USA’s Caitlin Patterson and Erik Bjornsen led the North Americans, placing 14th and 15th in the women’s and men’s competitions, respectively.

Kazakhstan also celebrated their first medal of the championships winning silver in the women’s 10km thanks to Anastasia Slonova, while the bronze medal went to Italy, courtesy of Debora Agreiter.

USA’s Sophie Caldwell finished 17th in the women’s race, with teammates Annie Pokorny and Elizabeth Guiney in 29th and 42nd, respectively. Heidi Widmer posted the top Canadian women’s result in 28th place, while Annika Hicks finished 37th, Andrea Lee placed 40th, and Marlis Kromm took 43rd.

Bjornsen’s men’s teammate Sam Tarling finished 39th in the 15km event, followed by David Norris in 50th and Eric Packer in 54th. Top Canadian man was Colin Abbott in 63rd. Patrick Stewart-Jones (CAN) finished 71st.

Women’s 10km Individual Free – Haga Scores First Gold for Norway
Fifty one women set off on the demanding course in Vesec on Thursday morning. The conditions were worsened by thickly falling snow and hard frost. Nevertheless, only two skiers failed to reach the finish.

“I am really satisfied. Today, it was a real exhausting race; I could not afford to relax. Two years ago, I triumphed at the junior world championship so I am happy that I managed to pick up on this success,” said winner Ragnhild Haga.

Haga literally flew through the course and left second-placed Slonova half a minute behind. She was especially strong in the second half of the race. It was the young Kazakh, however, who performed admirably after the unsuccessful first third of the race when she overtook seven competitors and got a well-deserved silver.

Anastasia Slonova: “I feel good after the race. I am really pleased with the result. We watched the weather carefully, so we were able to prepare the skis very well. It is a great achievement for us, indeed. We picked up on the successful performances during the World Cup competition which took place in Liberec few days ago.”

Debora Agreiter: “I do not know what I lacked for being the second placed. I guess I did not have enough strength at the end; after all, it was a difficult race. But I am still excited about the third place.”

Men’s 15km Individual Free – Russian Dominance
The strong Russians again confirmed their role as favourites of the cross-country competitions. The 15km freestyle was won by Sergey Ustiugov ahead of Evgeniy Belov. The bronze medal goes to Germany thanks to Thomas Bing.

Just before noon on Thursday, 84 competitors set off on an extremely demanding course in Vesec. Conditions were really difficult, as the skiers were slowed down by freshly fallen snow.

Ustiugov dominated the whole race and was the fastest at all split times. In the end he triumphed with a lead of nineteen seconds. The twenty-year-old Russian followed his great performance of last year at the WC in Turkey, where he won four gold medals. His countryman Belov won his second medal at these championships. On Tuesday, it was silver in the sprint.

“It is fantastic! I feel really wonderful. I achieved my goal: I was in first position for the whole race. I feel really happy,” rejoiced the confident winner Sergey Ustiugov from Russia after the finish.

Evgeniy Belov: “I am really satisfied with the result of the race. Today´s race was just a training for the next month – I will started at the FIS Nordic World Ski in Val di Fiemme in Italy, so I did not expect medal. That pleased me more.“

Thomas Bing: “I am incredibly happy. Today, it was a really tough race. I did not want to overvalue the start; I saved my energy for the end. And it was worth it: as time went on, I worked my way to the fourth place – thanks to the cooperation with Clementini from Italy, as well. And then, I got enough strength in the finish.”

Women’s 10km Free results HERE.
Men’s 15km Free results HERE.

Complete results are available at www.liberec2013.cz.

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

January 14, 2013 (Liberec, Czech Republic) – Check out these audio interviews with Canada’s Dash Gaiazova and Len Valjas following the Liberec World Cup sprints on the weekend. Gaiazova had a stellar day on the 1.3 CL course, finishing just off the podium in fourth. In the team sprint, Gaiazova and Perianne Jones finished 11th. Gaiazova is coming off of recent podium finishes on the OPA Cup circuit.

Valjas was the top Canadian man of the day in Liberac’s 1.6 CL event in 10th place. It was the rangy Canadian’s first race back after the grueling Tour de Ski during which he delivered the country’s first World Cup medal of the season.

Gaiazova

Valjas

January 07, 2013 – US Biathlete Tim Burke celebrated his first World Cup podium this season in Pokljuka, Slovenia, with a third-place finish in the men’s 15km mass start – his first podium since his incredible 2009-10 campaign when he scored three podiums and became the first American to wear the World Cup leader’s bib.

Just prior to the start of the second half of the E.ON World Cup Biathlon season in Oberhof, Germany this past weekend, SkiTrax touched base with American Tim Burke to get his thoughts on the initial World Cups, what he was up to over the holiday break, his thoughts on his recent WCup podium, and what he expects for the upcoming World Championships.

How satisfied are you with your performance for the 1st third of the season? Has your skiing been what you expected, and how well you’ve been shooting?
Tim Burke: I was very pleased with my results from the first world cup period, especially considering that I did not feel 100% for most of the period. I expected to feel better on the skis during the first period but after struggling a bit with my health at the start of the season, I was forced to more or less race into shape. The biggest difference with my results during the first world cups was that I was much more consistent on the shooting range. This was something that I have worked very hard on and I hope to continue this for the remainder of the season.

You podiumed in the 15km mass start WCup race in Pokljuka, Slovenia reminiscent of your 2009/10 season. How did it feel and how important is it for your confidence going forward ?
TB: I think the most important thing about my podium in Pokljuka was what it did for my shooting confidence.  I never had any doubt that my skiing was strong enough to get back to the podium over the last few seasons but I struggled a lot on the shooting range.  Coming through under pressure like in Pokljuka is absolutely the best shooting training that I could have.  I hope to carry this confidence through the rest of the season.

What have you been up to since round three in Pokljuka, Slovenia?
TB: I went back to Lake Placid for the holidays. This was my last chance to go home before the end of the season, so it was important for me to see my family and friends and also to get a little mental break. Unfortunately, the snow was not so good at home so I had to spend a lot of time roller skiing on the treadmill. Of course this gets a little boring but I was able to get in some good training.

What are your expectations heading into the World Championships in Nove Mesto, CZE from Feb. 7-17?
TB: I am very excited about the Nove Mesto World Champs. I feel that this course suits me well and I will put a big focus  on these Championships even if that means training through some of the other World Cups.

Good luck in the rest of your season.
TB: Thanks.

January 15, 2011 (Liberec, CZE) – Ola Vigen Hattestad (NOR) skated to gold in the men’s World Cup skate sprint in Liberec, Czech Republic today placing 10th in the qualifications and then going on to dominate his 1/4 and semi-final heats. Andy Newell (USA), 11th in the qualifications, had a great start in his 1/4 final round, moving into second spot on final uphill, but was passed in the finishing straight by Josef Wenzl (GER) ending up third and did not advance finishing 13th overall. Canada’s Len Valjas, the lone Canuck in the field, was 42nd in the qualifications and did not advance to the quarter finals.

In the final, Italy’s young rising sprint star, Federico Pellegrino, who made the cut as one of the lucky losers, issued a valiant attempt for the win attacking early near the finish. He surged into the lead, but the determined veteran Hattestad passed him as they headed down the final chute to take the glory for a decisive win. Dosian Kozisek (CZE) won bronze to the delight of local fans earning his first WCup podium as did Pellegrino.

Full Men’s sprint results HERE.

January 15, 2011 (Liberec, CZE) – Kikkan Randall (USA) won the women’s sprint final today at the FIS World Cup in Liberec, Czech Republic, earning her second career World Cup victory – her first was in Dec. 2007 in Rybinsk, Russia.

The women’s quarter finals were filled with drama as race favourite Marit Bjoergen (NOR) won her heat over Slovenia’s Katja Visnar while Petra Majdic (SLO) bested Randall as they shed top contender Arianna Follis (ITA) who settled for third and did not advance.

It was a tough day for Canada as top sprinter Chandra Crawford and team mate Daria Gaiazova both qualified but were matched up in the same 1/4 final heat. Crawford was well-placed in second behind Hanna Falk (SWE) but slipped up suddenly and lost her balance having to sit back on her skis. While she didn’t crash her race was done as Gaiazova finished third behind Marianna Longa (ITA) and did not advance.

The semis took their toll as Bjoergen tangled with Visnar midway through their heat, and while neither went down, both skiers did not advance. Bjoergen tried to regain some ground but ended up third to finish 7th overall – her winning streak ended.

Randall returned the favour to Majdic in their semi taking the win while Falk in third took advantage of the fast pace to advance to the final as a lucky loser.

In the end, the real battle came down to Falk and Randall in the final, with the US star coming out on top powering by Falk in the finishing stretch with a decisive victory. Celine Brun-Lie (NOR) took third while Majdic had to settle for fourth.

Liberec has been lucky for Randall, as it’s the site of her first Nordic World Championship medal – and first ever US women’s Worlds medal – where she won the skate sprint silver in 2009.

Full report and more photos HERE.
Full women’s sprint results HERE.