Far from just a tourist relying on the strength of his team, 40-year-old Ole Einar Bjørndalen was integral in Norway's gold medal in the biathlon mixed relay, shooting perfectly and skiing the fastest time by a mile on his leg of the relay. He now has eight Olympic gold medals and 13 total medals, the most in history. "It's cool," the legend shrugged.
Erik Bjornsen got the call to race the Olympic team sprint after veteran Andy Newell got sick. After a huge move up the final hill in the semifinals which announced the Americans' presence in the event, Bjornsen and Simi Hamilton skied a smart race to make it around the Sochi hills and earn sixth place, a best-ever finish for the U.S. in the event.
A rookie and veteran teamed up to claim a gold medal for Finland in the men's Olympic team sprint, after a finish that was marred by a crash in the lead pack.
In a French & English article, we talk to Canada's Jean Philippe Le Guellec about the final individual race of his international career: today's Olympic mass start, where he finished 10th. After the Games are over, Le Guellec will head back home to race Canadian Championships and bring his career full circle.
Three men in the 30-racer mass start? Check. Two finishes in the top ten? Check. In a lot of ways it was a best-ever day for the Canadian men's biathlon team, but the squad was left with a slight sense of longing for what could have been. "That’s what they are disappointed about - it’s a mixed feeling because they are so close, and they know they were right there," said coach Jean Paquet.
Feeling under the weather, Andy Newell is no longer part of the American duo for Wednesday's team sprint. Instead, Erik Bjornsen will join Simi Hamilton. For the women, Kikkan Randall will keep her spot despite difficult races so far this Olympics, and Sophie Caldwell, who turned in the best U.S. women's performance ever in the individual sprint, will be her partner.
After two Americans finished in the top 30 of the first nordic-combined competition at the Sochi Olympics, the team is looking for better performances in today's large hill/10 k -- of which Billy Demong is the defending Olympic champion.
Germany’s Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle came a single second away from a bronze medal in Monday’s Olympic biathlon race, despite taking up the sport just a year-and-a-half ago.
As the first U.S. woman to ever earn a place in an Olympic mass start - which is limited to the top 30 competitors - Susan Dunklee made the most of her evening on Tuesday, skiing in the top 10 before ultimately running out of gas in the sprint finish and ending up 12th. It was still a new best mark for the American women's team.
Megan Imrie sensed there was a chance she could race Monday's Olympic biathlon mass start, but she didn't think it was a very good chance. Settled in at the athletes' village that evening, she received a call informing her that she could, 1 1/2 hours before the start. Imrie became the first Canadian woman to race an Olympic mass start, and raced the format for the first time in her career.
By winning the women's mass start in dominant fashion, Darya Domracheva became not only a three-time gold medalist and the most successful female biathlete in Olympic history, but also a Hero of Belarus - the president made her just the 11th person to achieve such honor. Gabriela Soukalova of Czech was second and Tiril Eckhoff of Norway third - after waking up feeling sick and then eating a burger for lunch.
For Norway, the country's collapse at the Olympics has prompted fevered news coverage, and speculation that the team’s coaches, and ski technicians, could lose their jobs after the games.
Fog has already delayed the men's mass start biathlon competition several times, throwing athletes, coaches, and fans for a loop. It is currently scheduled for 3:30 p.m. local time, although conditions at the venue have not improved at all over the course of the morning. While athletes and journalists can joke about the delays and fog, the decision-making process is no laughing matter for race officials.
Andy Newell skied fast and relaxed through eight kilometers of the Olympic relay's scramble leg, but suffered a figurative collapse in the final meters and lost over a minute of time. After tagging off to Erik Bjornsen, he more literally collapsed and was brought immediately back to the athlete village by team doctor Larry Gall. Here's what we know so far about his condition.
The U.S. biathlon team grinds their skis in Sochi in a ramshackle orange shipping container cluttered with machinery and coiled extension cords—with a couple of full beer cans propping up their jury-rigged waxing bench.
Photos from a bright and warm day at the Laura cross-country venue, where Sweden picked up a sensational win and a strong and spirited cheering section helped the U.S. women through a tough race.
Both Susan Dunklee and Megan Imrie turned 28 years old this week - but how do you celebrate a birthday at the Olympics, when you are still training and recovering for a few of the most important races of your life, maybe even one that night? With a little creativity, and help from your friends.
It was a rough day for Canada in the women's 4 x 5 k relay after Perianne Jones got popped on the first leg. With a strung-out pack, the gap to 13th became difficult to overcome and the Canadians finished 14th.
Disappointed with her sprint result and frustrated to sit out the pursuit, Hannah Dreissigacker "made a plan" and executed to achieve the best finish of her career, by 30 places -- at the Olympics, no less. The first-time Olympian led all North Americans with a 23rd-place finish. Megan Imrie of Canada placed 30th.
Dasha Domracheva relied on super-fast skiing and the confidence of a gold medal already in the bag to earn her second of these Olympics -- a first for Belarus in any Winter Games. Selina Gasparin shot clean for the first time in her career to take home Switzerland's first biathlon medal with silver, and Belarus had an unprecedented two on the podium with Nadezhda Skardino in third.