Italy wins maiden gold in Biathlon

ANTHOLZ-ANTERSELVA, ITALY - FEBRUARY 15: Gold medalist Lisa Vittozzi of Team Italy celebrates with her team after the medal ceremony for the Women's Biathlon 10km Pursuit on day nine of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Anterselva Biathlon Arena on February 15, 2026 in Antholz-Anterselva, Italy. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Lisa Vittozzi made history for her country at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics on Sunday. The Italian brought home their first gold medal in the sport, winning the women’s 10km pursuit event at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena. Norway’s Maren Kirkeeide missed three shots and still won the silver medal. Finland’s Suvi Minkkinen brought home her country’s first medal in the sport with bronze.  

The medalists of Saturday’s sprint got 40 seconds to work with against the rest of the field in the 10km race. The five-lap race consisted of four stops at the range and a short 1.6km course to ski around. While plenty of snow fell the other day, it was another sunny day for the athletes to work with, and a slight wind provided a challenge. French star Julia Simon withdrew from the event due to her disastrous finish in the sprint.

Kirkeeide and Michelon stayed close together, with Jeanmannot shortly behind them, and the rest of the group moved along. The range would determine who would lead out on the second lap. The leaders got into the prone position, with Kirkeeide going perfect and Michelon missing twice. With the laps in her future, the silver medalist from the sprint was out of it. Jeanmannot was nine seconds back of the Norwegian, while Vittozzi took over the third spot, going perfect.

The two leaders returned for the second prone shooting, with Vittozzi going five-for-five while they had to run a penalty lap for missing once. While she only had four seconds on the Norwegian, it was a great halfway mark to make a move. In the third visit to the range, she stayed perfect with Kirkeeide, but followed the Norwegian. Jeanmannot missed another shot, moving her 35 seconds back, and the gap was getting tighter behind the Frenchwoman.

In the fourth shooting range, Kirkeeide and Vittozzi came in alone, and the unthinkable happened. While the Italian kept it together and went perfectly, the Norwegian missed twice. With the shocking change and a 40-second lead, the gold medal was in the Italian’s reach. Kirkeeide somehow stayed in reach for a medal her but Minkkinen was in front of her, and not by much. The hill section of the course was Kirkeeide’s moment to take over the silver position, keeping Minkkinen behind her.

Sweden's Martin Ponsiluoma wins men's biathlon pursuit gold

ANTHOLZ-ANTERSELVA, ITALY - FEBRUARY 15: Gold medalist Martin Ponsiluoma of Team Sweden, Silver medalist Sturla Holm Laegreid of Team Norway and Bronze medalist Emilien Jacquelin of Team France pose for a photo on the podium during the medal ceremony for the Men's Biathlon 12.5km Pursuit on day nine of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Anterselva Biathlon Arena on February 15, 2026 in Antholz-Anterselva, Italy. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Sweden made their mark with Martin Ponsiluoma winning gold in the men’s 12.5 kilometer biathlon at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics on Sunday. Norway’s Strula Holm Laegreid took the silver medal, and France’s Emilien Jacquelin won bronze at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena.  

60 athletes qualified for the pursuit, with the medalists being the challenge for others to best them on the two-kilometer course. Quentin Fillon Maillet led out the two Norwegians, who medaled with him, were the first to leave the line, but without a big margin.

The leaders came into the range, with Jacquelin getting into the mix. Both of them missed once, with the Norwegian’s doing the same. Laegreid fell back in fourth as Ponsiluoma moved into third, with a perfect run of the targets. In the second range visit, Jacquelin went perfect while Fillon Maillet missed two. The Norwegians went clean, following the Frenchman out, while the defending gold medalist fell out of the running for a third consecutive Olympics.

In the third visit, Jacquelin gave himself time to be in it alone and shoot perfectly before Christiansen could fire his first shot. Both he and Laegreid missed one, while Ponsiluoma took over second place, 34 seconds behind the Frenchman. The Norwegians came out third and fourth, with French biathlete Eric Perrot in front of them.

On the course, Christiansen and Laegreid got in front of Perrot, trying to close the gap on the Swede. At the last range visit, Jacquelin was completely alone and shockingly missed twice. Ponsiluoma nailed every target, coming out ahead of the French star by 14 seconds. Christiansen missed another while Laegreid went perfect, leaving the Norwegian alone to go for a medal. Jacquelin somehow got back on the course in third place, but was unable to catch the Norwegian and Swede in front of him.

Norway's Kirkeeide narrowly wins women's sprint gold

14 February 2026, Italy, Antholz: Olympia, Olympic Winter Games Milan Cortina 2026, biathlon, women, sprint 7.5 kilometers in the Anterselva Biathlon Arena, Maren Kirkeeide from Norway (M, gold), Oceane Michelon from France (l, silver) and Lou Jeanmonnot from France (bronze) cheer with their medals at the award ceremony. Photo: Hendrik Schmidt/dpa (Photo by Hendrik Schmidt/picture alliance via Getty Images)

It was a thrilling nail biter in the women’s 7.5 km biathlon, with Norway’s Maren Kirkeeide winning the gold medal at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics Saturday. She beat French biathlete Oceane Michelon by a hair, with Lou Jeanmannot earning bronze at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena. 

The conditions was perfectly snowy for the women’s sprint as France attempted to continue putting athletes on the podium, with Julia Simon leading the way. The athletes completed three 2.5 kilometer laps, with two visits to the shooting range. The winning medalists of the event would be pursued in the next biathlon event Sunday. 

Jeanmannot set the bar for France, finishing the first lap and shooting clean in 6:53. Vanessa Voigt of Germany went 10-for-10, sending the crowd into a frenzy that would challenge Jeanmannot’s time. Simon went perfectly in the first visit to the range, but sat behind her compatriot. Hanna Oberg of Sweden, an Olympic medalist from 2018, bested Jeanmannot by half a second. 

In the second visit to the range, Jeanmannot had a shocking miss, knowing that she needed to ski for her life to set a time of 21:04, leading by 36 seconds. Simon fell apart after missing two targets, taking her completely out of earning a third consecutive medal. Oberg missed two shots to also take her out of contention. 

Lisa Vittozzi went 10-for-10, sitting just short of Jeanmannot’s time, giving Italy a chance to medal in the discipline for the first time. She ran out of gas to prevent history from happening, finishing fifth. Anastasiya Kuzmina, who won the event twice in 2010 and 2014, and retired in 2018, returned to compete in the event. She placed 36^th but was a welcoming sight to see back in her fourth Olympics. 

Michelon, who hadn’t been a threat to the level of her teammates came in 20 seconds ahead of Jeanmannot for the lead. There was still Norway’s Marin Kirkeeide, who continued to cut into Michelon’s time on the final lap and close in on the gold. She took the gold away by 3.8 seconds, using all her efforts to cross the finish line. 

Fillon Maillet takes gold in men's 10km sprint biathlon

(From L) Silver medalist Norway's Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen, gold medalist France's Quentin Fillon Maillet and bronze medalist Norway's Sturla Holm Laegreid pose on the podium of the men's biathlon 10km sprint event during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena (Sudtirol Arena) in Anterselva (Val Pusteria) on February 13, 2026. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP via Getty Images)

Quentin Fillon Maillet bested his silver medal from Beijing and upgraded it to gold at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics Friday. The Frenchman had an impressive day, beating the talents of his own teammates to win the men’s 10 kilometer sprint at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena. Norwegians Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen and Sturla Holm Lagreid took the silver and bronze respectively.  

It was a fast-paced event with three laps around the 2.9 kilometer course, and two visits to the shooting range. On what was a sunny day on the course, the competitors had near-perfect conditions to get the job done.

Finland’s Olli Hiidensalo, who missed out on the medaling, led the race, going 10-for10 at the range. He crossed the finish line at 24:02 with three top biathletes still on the course. Fillon Maillet came into the first range, with the defending silver medalist going clean. Sweden’s Sebastian Samuelsson also went clean, but had to remain perfect in order to be contentious. His time wasn’t enough to stand in medal contention. 

Emilien Jacquelin of France made an impressive finish to his time at the range, shooting perfect, and with such speed, coming out ahead of Fillon Maillet in the second exit of the range. The defending silver medalist arrived at the finish more than a minute of Hiidensalo, securing his spot at the top. 

The Norwegians were still out on the course, but struggled to make a threat of Fillon Maillet’s time. The skiing from Norway’s biathletes made the difference to bring them in the fight for a medal. Laegreid, who made his admissions go viral around the world, got into second, 15.9 seconds back, but moved to third with Christiansen beating him for the spot.  

Simon, Jeanmonnot medal at the top in womens 15km Biathlon

Silver Medalist Lou Jeanmonnot of Team France, Gold Medalist Julia Simon of Team France and Bronze Medalist Lora Hristova of Team Bulgaria poses for a picture during the medal ceremony for the Women´s 15km Individual on day five of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Anterselva Biathlon Arena on February 11, 2026 in Antholz-Anterselva, Italy. (Photo by Kevin Voigt/GettyImages)

France went gold and silver in the women’s 15 kilometer individual at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics Wednesday. Julia Simon and Lou Jeanmonnot, who won gold on Sunday as a team, won their medals respectively at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena. Bulgaria’s Lora Hristova held her own for bronze, besting challenges from Germany’s Vanessa Voigt, and Italian Dorothea Wierer. 

The 91 competitors did five laps around a three-kilometer course with four stops at the range to shoot five targets. Jeanmonnot and Simon won gold earlier in the mixed team relay, intent on doing well to make the podium each. The Italian, Norwegian, and German women would fight to make their place for medals, but shooting well would help immensely. 

France won gold and silver in the women’s 15-kilometer individual at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics on Wednesday. Julia Simon and Lou Jeanmonnot, who won gold on Sunday as a team, won their medals at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena. Bulgaria’s Lora Hristova held her own for bronze, besting challenges from Germany’s Vanessa Voigt and Italy’s Dorothea Wierer. 

The 91 competitors completed five laps around a three-kilometer course with four stops at the range to shoot five targets. Jeanmonnot and Simon won gold earlier in the mixed team relay, intent on making the podium. The Italian, Norwegian, and German women were fighting to secure medals, and shooting well would help immensely. 

Simon was clean in her first visit to the range, coming out seconds faster than the leader on the first lap. Jeanmonnot arrived at the range 30 seconds before Simon and flew through it, besting her teammate’s first-lap time. Simon missed once in her second shooting, but kept her skiing pace fast against the others. Johansen remained dominant in the third range visit, besting the lead by more than ten seconds. Voigt also went 15-for-15, keeping Germany in the hunt with one visit to the range to go. 

Johansen went 19 for 20 on the last visit, leaving her time of 43:52 out of medal contention. Hristova went perfect in the last range visit, holding a massive lead and setting the bar at 42:20, something to beat. Voigt took her time and made sure she didn’t miss one target, leaving the range for the finish. She came in 12 seconds after the Bulgarian, leaving her with little hope of making the podium.

Simon was 14 for 15 in her third visit to the range, while her teammate Camille Bened was five for five in her visit. Simon went perfect, while Bened missed her last target, taking her out of medal contention. Simon crossed the range exit line 52 seconds ahead of Hristova, giving her a shot at setting a top time. 

The Frenchwoman arrived at the finish line at 41:15, besting Hristova by 64 seconds. Despite missing two targets, Jeanmonnot arrived to take second by 11 seconds, moving the Bulgarian back to bronze.

Botn wins gold in men's 20km Biathlon

Silver Medalist Eric Perrot of Team France, Gold Medalist Johan-Olav Botn of Team Norway and Bronze Medalist Sturla Holm Laegreid of Team Norway poses for a picture during the medal ceremony for the Men 20km Individual on day four of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Anterselva Biathlon Arena on February 10, 2026 in Antholz-Anterselva, Italy. (Photo by Kevin Voigt/GettyImages)

Norway’s Johan-Olav Botn overcame much despair and psychological distress to win the gold medal at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics on Tuesday. He and Sturla Holm Laegreid locked up the medal podium for Norway, with France’s Eric Perrot getting silver in the men’s 20-kilometer individual in Biathlon at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena. Botn, who lost one of his teammates in a tragic discovery, went 20 for 20 on the range to lock up the gold his friend and country. 

Frenchman Quentin Fillion-Maillet was back in the competition to defend his gold from Beijing and keep France out front as the dominant team. Competitors from Norway, Germany, and Italy were his biggest challenge in going back-to-back. 

In the first run of shooting, Norway, and Germany weren’t close to perfect at the range, allowing Maillet to set the bar comfortably. He missed one target, leaving himself vulnerable for the remainder of the race. Martin Uldal missed one in his start to the shooting discipline. Botn went perfectly in his first visit, as one of the best shooters in the world. His teammate Laegreid also went clean at the range, leaving the pair to keep Norway alive. 

Sweden looked great at the halfway point, with Sebastian Samuelsson and Martin Ponsiluoma going ten-for-ten. Finland’s Olli Hiidensalo was in the hunt, remaining perfect through three visits to the range. Perrot was France’s only hope, as he missed just once through three visits. 

Hiidensalo went perfectly through all the shooting, gaining a two-minute lead on the leader. He came across the finish line in 53 minutes and change. Perrot took a 58-second lead on the Finn, giving him a shot at setting a great time with only one miss. Both the Swedes missed enough to take them out of medal contention, allowing Perrot to get in place to do it. He had more than two minutes to take the lead away from the Finn by a 1:14. 

Botn was perfect in their last visit to the range, beating Perrot’s out time by 11 seconds, but there was still a lap to the finish to complete for the Norwegian. With four-tenths of a kilometer left, Botn remained ahead of Perrot to give him the top spot and the potential gold medal. His teammate Laegreid managed to cross the line to take the bronze medal. 

  

France win gold in mixed-relay biathlon

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France put themselves as the ultimate champions of Biathlon at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics on Sunday. The French team won the gold medal in the mixed relay, shooting brilliantly at the Anterselva Biathlon Arena. The Italians secured the silver medal, with Germany taking home the bronze.

The Norwegians were back to defend their gold medal from four years ago on a course that they, and their 20 competitors, were used to during World Cup competitions.  While they didn’t leave the line first, their fourth-start placement behind the United States gave them a great chance to show their power in the sport’s first medal event of the Olympics. 

The first lap on the 6-kilometer course was fierce and fast, with everyone moving along in a pack, with no one falling back. Coming into the stadium, they each prepared to shoot at targets 50 meters away in the prone position. Italy was the first to take off, with cheers from the home crowd as Tommaso Giacomel completed his task. France, Germany, Latvia, and Norway made up the top five going into the second lap. 

The situation changed at the end of the first leg at the range, with Giacomel missing twice in the standing position. He used his reserve to complete the task, but lost the lead. Norway’s Martin Uldal got out front, with France, Germany, Poland, and Italy behind. The pace remained fast on the course as laps were completed by the top competitors. At the exchange, Norway made the first tag, with France and Italy close by. 

Germany was the new leader after shooting in the second leg, with Philipp Nawrath getting back on the track, before Norway’s Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen, close behind. Italy finished their shooting in time to track them down and fight for position on the second lap. At the second shooting, Nawrath showed his wrath, completing the targets with speed. Norway and Italy didn’t come off the range until 12 and 19 seconds later, giving Germany a decent lead. 

On the tallest climb of the course, Germany had Norway back on its tail while Italy fought for third position with France 20 seconds back. Norway came to the second exchange, where the women took over the competition, with Germany tagging in their teammates five seconds later. Germany did well in the shooting range, with Vanessa Voigt hitting all five targets fast and clean. Italy came out second, with Norway missing a couple times, needing time to close out the fifth target. 

It remained close between Germany, France, Italy, and Norway, as they came into the second shooting in standing position. France’s Lou Jeanmonnot impressed her fans by firing clean at the targets, leaving the range first. Norway, Germany, and Italy were still in the hunt, as the final exchange came into place. 

France was first to tag up, sending Julia Simon on her way. The gap between them and the top four was 18 seconds, but enough to catch up on the first lap. On the hill, the ladies of Germany, Norway, and France had Simon in their sights, leaving the range to speak for itself as they shot in the prone position. Simon finished before her competitors could fire their first shot. Italy got a five-second jump on Germany, and six on Norway. 

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 The four countries were still close to one another, leaving the final shooting to complete and sort out the medal podium. Simon held on to her 18-second gap, hoping to repeat her first visit to the range, but standing to do it. She nailed all five before anyone shot. Italy got out clean, while Norway and Germany missed shots. Germany missed one and Norway two, giving France a definite win of the gold. Italy had a 72-second gap in the silver position, but sat 19 seconds behind France.

Passing lapped traffic, Simon completed the climbs and opened the gap to 22 seconds, as she entered the stadium to celebrate with her French teammates. In a time of 1 hour, four minutes, she clinched gold for her country. Lisa Vittozzi brought home the silver for the host nation and Germany crossed the line for bronze 40 seconds after the Italians.