Ukrainian biathlon team wins first men’s relay World Cup medal in five years
Pravda Ukraine
The Ukrainian men’s biathlon team has won a bronze medal in the relay at the seventh stage of the Biathlon World Cup, held in Nove Mesto, Czechia.
Source: Champion, a sports news platform within Ukrainska Pravda’s holding company
Details: Ukraine was not among the pre-race favourites for medals but demonstrated excellent shooting precision while rivals struggled with accuracy.
In the first leg, Artem Tishchenko used two spare rounds but was traditionally slow on the course, handing over to Vitalii Mandzyn in ninth place, over a minute behind the leader.
Mandzyn skied faster, used three spare rounds, and kept Ukraine in ninth place at the halfway mark. Meanwhile, Sweden unexpectedly collected five penalty loops.
Anton Dudchenko delivered a flawless shooting performance, missing no targets. By the standing stage, a German competitor had earned three penalty loops, while a Slovenian athlete was forced to ski an extra 300 metres.
Dmytro Pidruchnyi began his leg in fifth place, with over a minute to make up on third-placed Italy, while Switzerland was also ahead. However, mistakes from rivals allowed the Ukrainian captain to fight for bronze.
Italian finisher Biona left two targets standing in prone shooting, reducing Pidruchnyi’s deficit to just 30 seconds with two laps and one shooting stage remaining.
In the final shooting session, the Swiss athlete missed three targets, while Pidruchnyi required only one spare round and entered the last lap in third place, four seconds ahead of Germany’s Horn. He extended the gap and secured Ukraine’s long-awaited medal.
This is Ukraine’s first men’s relay bronze at a World Cup event in five years. The last time Ukraine reached the podium in this discipline was also in Nove Mesto in March 2020, when Pidruchnyi, Artem Pryma, Serhii Semenov and Ruslan Tkalenko won silver.
Additionally, this is Ukraine’s first Biathlon World Cup medal in any discipline since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Biathlon World Cup, Nove Mesto, Men’s Relay Results:
- France (0+4)
- Norway (1+8) +1:26.6
- Ukraine (0+7) +2:45.4
Later today, on 9 March, the World Cup stage in Nove Mesto will conclude with the women’s relay, featuring Ukraine’s team of Khrystyna Dmytrenko, Yuliia Dzhima, Olena Horodna and Oleksandra Merkushyna. The race starts at 17:45 Kyiv time.
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