November 22, 2010 (Canmore, Alberta) – The U.S. Biathlon Team’s International Competition Committee is pleased to announce the roster of athletes competing in the first series of IBU World Cup and IBU Cup events of the 2010-2011 season. Team trials were held November 16-19th at the Canmore Nordic Center, which hosted two sprints and one mass start to determine the final World Cup team for the December races.

Two-time Olympian Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, N.Y.),  Leif Nordgren (Marine, MN), 2010 Olympian Sara Studebaker (Boise, ID) and three-time Olympian Jeremy Teela (Heber City, UT) pre-qualified for the World Cup team based on their 2009-2010 results. The trials determined one spot for the men’s team and one spot for the women’s team. For the men’s team there is also the option for an additional spot based on the discretion of the coaches and the International Competition Committee.

2010 U.S. Biathlon December World Cup Team

Men
– Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, NY)
– Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, NY)
– Russell Currier (Stockholm, Maine)
– Leif Nordgren (Marine, MN)
– Jeremy Teela (Heber City, UT)

Women
– Laura Spector (Lennox. MA)
– Sara Studebaker (Boise, ID)

2010 U.S. Biathlon IBU Cup Team

Men
– Bill Bowler (Wausau, Wisconsin)
– Zach Hall (Nikiski, Alaska)

Women
– Tracy Barnes (Durango, CO)
– Annelise Cook (Saranac Lake, NY)

Following the announcement of the 2010 teams, US Biathlon Association President and CEO Max Cobb commented “Laura Spector and Russell Currier both made huge improvements over the summer and performed really well at the trials. For Bill Bowler this will be his first time competing in major international competitions and it’s clear he has made great strides over the summer.”

The IBU World Cup season opens December 1st – 5th, in Östersund, Sweden. The US Team will join IBU-Cup in Martel, Italy on December 11th. Watch streaming video of the World Cup and follow all the competition results at http://www.biathlonworld.com/en/home.html.