The 2025/2026 Biathlon World Cup couldn't have started any better for Italy. At the opening round in Östersund, Sweden, the Azzurri claimed two silver medals right out of the gate.

WOMEN'S RELAY: WIERER LEADS OFF, AUCHENTALLER ANCHORS

On Saturday, November 29th, the quartet of Dorothea Wierer, Michela Carrara, Lisa Vittozzi and Hannah Auchentaller finished second, just 13.8 seconds behind France. Wierer delivered a flawless opening leg, handing over in first place. Carrara had to ski a penalty loop but held position, Vittozzi pushed hard to maintain momentum, and Auchentaller brought it home cleanly. Behind the Azzurre, the Czech Republic claimed a surprise bronze. Pre-race favorites Germany and Norway faltered badly, finishing 11th and 13th respectively.

MIXED RELAY: ITALY VS FRANCE DOWN TO THE FINAL SHOT

Sunday brought more of the same. Tommaso Giacomel, Lukas Hofer, Dorothea Wierer and Lisa Vittozzi took on the French powerhouse in a nail-biting contest. Giacomel came out firing, crossing first at the opening exchange despite using four spare rounds. Hofer was simply flawless: zero misses, a perfect display at the range, keeping Italy in the lead pack alongside France and Norway.

In the second half of the race, Wierer delivered a masterful prone stage (21.8 seconds) to keep the battle alive. Then it was Vittozzi versus Lou Jeanmonnot. Lisa closed the gap with a superb prone shoot, but at the final stage the Frenchwoman went five for five while the Italian missed her last target. Silver by 25.2 seconds – but what a fight.

France took gold in 1:05:16.5 using just 6 spare rounds, Italy followed with 8, while Norway trailed by over a minute after Tandrevold's penalty loop.

EXACTA WINTER: ITALIAN PRECISION AT THE RANGE

The Italian athletes rely on the Biathlon line – Exacta Winter and TT Winter – ammunition specifically designed to deliver precision, reliability and consistent performance even in the harshest weather conditions.

UPCOMING CALENDAR

  • December 12-14 – Hochfilzen (Austria)
  • December 18-21 – Annecy-Le Grand Bornand (France)
  • January 8-11 – Oberhof (Germany)
  • January 14-18 – Ruhpolding (Germany)
  • January 22-25 – Nové Město (Czech Republic)
  • February 8-22 – Winter Olympics – Anterselva (Italy)
  • March 5-8 – Kontiolahti (Finland)
  • March 12-15 – Otepää (Estonia)
  • March 12-22 – Oslo (Norway)