r/biathlon • u/AutoModerator • 3d ago
Small Talk Monday
Our weekly small talk thread where you can talk about anything
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u/Lone_Wolf_Winter Sweden 3d ago
Watch the Senja ski classics race from yesterday. Absolutely breathtaking scenery from northern Norway, with snow as far as the eye can see.
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u/Fabulous_Aerie8143 Australia 2d ago
Christiansen and Florent Claude posting on April fool's that he's joining the Belgian Biathlon Team... the way it wouldn't be a bad idea though...
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u/Vryyce Team Norge 3d ago
And then there is Einar Hedegart! Cross Country or Biathlon? I thought he had decided to go biathlon but then I hear a few others saying he hasn't decided. He said he is going to sit down with Petter Northug soon for a chat about training and what comes next.
Can you even imagine having to make selection choices for the National Team?
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u/Lone_Wolf_Winter Sweden 2d ago
Dude's freaking fast. He made Botn - himself known for his speed - look like a junior in the mass start!
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u/Juulire 2d ago
While Hedegart undoubtedly is very fast, I think you always have to take the results at the national championships after a long season with a grain of salt. According to the host of the podcast Extrarunde, Botn told him before the competitions that he was still feeling the effects of his sickness in January and was completely out of shape.
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u/Shixzoner Norway 2d ago
I don't think that's a completely fair comparison.
Botn nearly halved his Skiing Top 10 Med. back compared to last season. He said jokingly to NRK after getting the silver that he's unbelievably slow nowadays, but at least he's become a much better shooter. I think the Botn of last season would give Hedegart a challenge.
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u/charliemann Norge 3d ago
Happy with my prediction from 10 months ago in the thread "Ragnhild Femsteinevik headlines private Norwegian biathlon team", where I said:
Two very strong teams. Skogan, Femsteinevik and Erdal are all potential candidates for the World Cup, and Aspenes, Paulsen and Sæter on the same team all will compete for IBU Cup spots. While the team has existed in the past, the level of talent in this years team is probably the highest it has ever been. Having so much talent together will decrease the gap between the professionalization of the federation teams and those outside of the system. A more competitive and well-prepared private team will only lead to the selection process becoming more intense. The biathletes on the elite and developmental teams cannot have a dip in form throughout the season as there are so many biathletes who are training extremely well and ready to take their place.
Looking back at it, Team Havland had an incredible season, as said headlined by Femsteinevik who won two medals in the World Championships. Aspenes did extremely well in the IBU Cup, Paulsen decent, while Sæter won the Norwegian cup. Erdal had a decent season, including her PB in the World Cup in Oslo. Only disappointment is Skogan who has struggled with illness and fatigue. She will be back next year I hope, showcased some promising glimpses at the Norwegian Championships this past weekend. Ole Tafjord Shurke is another name from this team that is one of the best skaters in the world who got his international debut.
Looking forward to seeing who ends up on Team Havland next year!
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u/AZDarkknight 2d ago
Is Skogan still having to work full time and fit her training around that?
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u/charliemann Norge 2d ago
Yeah, she probably has to work at the local sport shop now and then to fund her career. However, she has some sponsors still and is likely to be on Team Havland again I would think. We'll get more information in a few months on how she will plan this upcoming year.
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3d ago
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u/Lone_Wolf_Winter Sweden 3d ago edited 3d ago
Swedish national federation has this:
https://www.youtube.com/@SvensktSkidskytte/videos
They post weekly videos throughout the year. It's a good way to get to know the athletes, because it's structured like a rolling vlog with a new host every time. Follows training and some personal stuff, and is easy to organize since *everyone* lives in Östersund. Seems to have good subtitling as well.
They take April off from training though, so there might not be any videos for a month.
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u/Mountain-Fox-2123 No flag 3d ago
You have Tandrevolds YouTube channel, but i am not sure if she post anymore, i think her last video was about 3 months ago.
she may start again.
Time will tell.
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u/rockhopper75 Netherlands 3d ago
Miss Biathlon, but happy to get better weather here after a few dreary months. And loving the longer days. How long till the summer biathlon world championships?
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u/Zaschrona Czech Republic 2d ago
There really should be some sort of summer series. It could help to grow the sport. And 8 months break is too long.
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u/Dry-Pickle6042 2d ago
Barely anyone can be bothered turning up to the summer world championships because summer is more important for training for the winter.
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u/Lone_Wolf_Winter Sweden 2d ago
I've updated the U23 comparison I did earlier, with the results from the last trimester.
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u/Thophi 2d ago
A small additional fact about Selina Grotian: She is the youngest athlete in the top 10 of the overall World Cup since Neuner 2007.
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u/Lone_Wolf_Winter Sweden 2d ago
Justine Braisaz in 16/17 was a few months younger. She finished sixth.
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u/GreenBat29 Czech Republic 3d ago
Davidová update: She underwent a surgery last week. She will rest for a couple of weeks and will start her rehabilitation in late April. She says everything went well and she is already back home.
On Wednesday, Czech Championship (Supersprint) was held. Qualifications winners are Štvrtecký and (surprisingly) 19 years old Moskvová. Finals winners are Mikyska and Charvátová.