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Twenty-eight nations started the Single-Mixed Relay on Thursday at Biathlon World Championships in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic. After just over 35 minutes of fast and furious racing, France claimed the gold, last year’s bronze medalists from Italy the silver, and the defending champions of Norway the bronze.
The Single-Mixed Relay combines the performances of one man and one woman who each ski two short biathlon races, tagging off in between. The importance of shooting speed and accuracy is magnified in this format because the ski loop is only 1.5 k; there is relatively little distance over which to recover lost time. As in all biathlon relays, athletes can use up to three spare rounds per stage to hit their five targets, but loading each spare takes precious time, and if targets remain un-hit, the penalty loop awaits. The event is a wildly unpredictable fan favorite.
The field was stacked. Team Norway comprised the two current World Cup Overall leaders, Johannes Thinges Boe and Ingrid Tandrevold. But Tandrevold’s standing shooting has been hit or miss at World’s—more often miss than hit. For France, Lou Jeanmonnot got called up to race with Quentin Fillon Maillet. France’s top star, Julia Simon, decided to sit out and rest after winning three golds and a silver in the first four events of the Championships. But Jeanmonnot has been fantastic in her own right, finishing third, sixth, and seventh in the non-team competitions here in Nove Mesto. Italy put forward one of the strongest women in the field, Lisa Vittozzi, fresh off a victory in the 15 k Individual. Her partner, Tommaso Giacomel, has been 15th, 20th, and 45th in non-team competitions, combining reliable ski speed with less reliable shooting, but the same duo was a successful pairing in 2023 when they took bronze.
Germany’s team combined the two most accurate shooters in the World Cup field. Sweden is always a threat, and Switzerland put forward two of the fastest shooters and the most likely person to demolish the last lap: Lena Haecki. For more discerning fans, the US was also a solid pick for the day: Campbell Wright and Deedra Irwin showed their potential in this event in January in Antholz, Italy, when they stayed in podium contention through the first half and eventually finished ninth in a very tight race, just 1:09 out of the lead.
The lead constantly changes in the Single-Mixed Relay as the athletes make their way through a combined eight shooting stages and nine course loops. At the first exchange, France was in the lead but the eventual silver-medalists from Italy were down in 14th, with fourth place finishers Sweden following behind them in 15th. Wright shot 10/10 on the first leg to tag Irwin in fourth. At the second and third exchanges, France and Norway continued to trade the lead, while the US, Germany, Switzerland, and Finland shuffled around the next four places and Italy and Sweden gradually moved up.
In the defining final stage of the race, Tandrevold, a lefty, stood on lane one, face to face with Jeanmonnot on lane two, in a shooting dual for the gold. Jeanmonnot shot with confidence, hitting 4/5 targets and her spare round in a total of just 28 seconds. But Tandrevold needed all three spares and still had to ski a penalty loop, opening the door for Vittozzi to leave the range in second after a flawless 19.6-second shooting bout. While Jeannmonnot skied to a decisive victory, Tandrevold caught and passed Vittozzi part way through the last lap, only to be convincingly out-sprinted by Vittozzi in the final two hundred meters. About thirty seconds behind that trio, Irwin shot clean and left the range in fourth, but three teams followed within the next nine seconds. The athletes from Sweden (H. Oeberg), Switzerland (Haecki), and Germany (Voigt) skied three of the four fastest course times on the last loop to push the USA down to seventh.
For US Biathlon’s Campbell Wright, this season’s relays are a first. Wright is a dual citizen who grew up in New Zealand and competed for that country up through last season. As the only top Kiwi biathlete, he never had teammates with whom to race relays. Speaking of his experience shooting clean and tagging in fourth at the World Championships, Wright said, “I’m lovin’ it. I know I can ski well at the moment so it’s not as stressful skiing with fast people.” At just 21 years old, Wright is still coming to terms with the fact that he is one of the “fast people.” This was Wright’s second-ever Single-Mixed Relay after the one Antholz in January where he had a great start but then had to ski a penalty loop. Today’s shooting was different, he said, “because I had less pressure because Deedra was on the last leg!” He added, “That last leg is bloody hard.”
Irwin performed magnificently in the last leg on Thursday. Coming into the final stage in fourth, shooting for a chance at a World Championship medal, she cleared all five targets in a smooth and deliberate rhythm. “I went into the last standing thinking, ‘I have to be super aggressive,” she said. “On the first standing, I took my time, but everyone is shooting so fast and clean. That mindset worked which was awesome.” After the final shooting, Irwin was shocked when she saw Norway and Sweden skiing around the penalty loop and realized how well she was doing. But she was also aware that she left range, as she put it, “with all these people on my ass.” Irwin felt her best in January, but then was sick during the pre-World Championships training camp and has been doing a heavy load of racing as the top American woman, so she doesn’t feel quite as sharp now. But, she said, “I’m still in the best shape of my life this year.” Although it was frustrating to be passed on the final loop, Irwin was still content about her performance against some of biathlon’s top talents. “It’s very humbling and cool to fight against them. I’m never gonna complain about a top eight.”
Up Next
Saturday 17 Feb Women’s 4×6 k Relay 7:45 Eastern Time
Saturday 17 Feb Men’s 4×7.5 k Relay 10:30 Eastern Time
