The Victorian Biathlon Championships is the first weekend of National Team selection racing on the Australian Biathlon calendar. For athletes moving along the Athlete Pathway, it starts the focus on racing for selection to the Australian National Team, Australian National Junior Team, and Australian Development Team. A fantastic snow season so far ensured the athletes had plenty of lead in training for this event and were well prepared to perform to their fullest potential.

The two-day event was held on the 23^rd and 24^th of July, at the Mt Hotham Biathlon Arena. A strong pool of athletes attended and participated in the event. The anticipation and excitement for this event was heightened by the fact that it was the first race back after 2 years of no racing due to the Covid 19.

On Saturday the 23^rd, the races for all age groups were the Sprint format. This required distances of between 2km to 6km depending on the age group racing. After some incredible fast times and close finishes, 33 biathletes finished with medals for their performances. A full listing of the results for Sunday’s races can be seen here

Sunday’s races were short individual contests. These races ranged from 2.5km to 12.5km depending on the age group racing. The short individual requires a strong focus on shooting as time penalties of up to 1min are added to an athletes time for each target miss. There were some great performances across all the age groups from U14 to Masters 65yrs+. Results for Sunday’s races can be seen here

Congratulations to all the athletes who took part in the Victorian Championship, which made it such a successful weekend. And a huge thank you to the volunteers who facilitated the races, your help and commitment is so valuable and much appreciated!