Premiere becomes an unforgettable biathlon festival

The first BMW IBU World Cup Biathlon Lenzerheide was a success - and has whetted the appetite even more for the World Championships at the same venue in February 2025. A total of 22,500 spectators flocked to the Roland Arena over the four days of competition. They turned the first showdown of the assembled biathlon world elite in the Grisons holiday region into a major sporting event.

Justine Braisaz-Bouchet was the most influential figure at the event. Victory in the sprint on Thursday, victory in the pursuit on Saturday, victory in the mass start on Sunday — the 27-year-old Frenchwoman achieved the triple in Lenzerheide. Johannes Thingnes Boe, the top star on the scene, dominated the men's race. The 30-year-old Norwegian won the pursuit and the mass start after finishing second in the sprint.

From the Swiss team, Lena Häcki-Gross and Niklas Hartweg were particularly impressive at their first-ever home World Cup. Häcki-Gross, runner-up in the pursuit in Hochfilzen, finished 11th (pursuit), 17th (mass start) and 19th (sprint), Hartweg 11th (sprint), 12th (pursuit) and 15th (sprint).

The local organising committee succeeded in staging a World Cup premiere at a high level. «Basically, we are very satisfied,» says Jürg Capol, CEO of the World Cup and the 2025 Biathlon World Championships in Lenzerheide. «The six highly attractive competitions, the crowds over the weekend and the consistently cheerful, peaceful and fair atmosphere were very pleasing.» The largest number of spectators was welcomed on Saturday, when 10,000 people gathered in the stands and along the course — including numerous celebrities such as tennis king Roger Federer and wrestling king Christian Stucki.

The organisation was put to the test in many respects during these World Cup days. This dress rehearsal can provide all the more valuable insights regarding the 2025 World Championships. «We are aware that not everything went smoothly and hope for a certain degree of understanding for this,» says Jürg Capol. «We will be analysing the concepts and processes in detail over the coming days and weeks. Where there is a need for optimisation, we will implement the necessary measures to be able to hold a major event at the very highest level in February 2025. In addition to a few points of criticism, we have received an overwhelming amount of positive feedback and can say that the international biathlon family is already looking forward to returning to Lenzerheide.»

The 600 or so volunteers who registered to work at the BMW IBU World Cup Biathlon Lenzerheide via the volunteer management platform Swiss Volunteers played a huge part in the successful organisation of the event. They, and hopefully many new volunteers, will also be the backbone, heart, and soul of the 2025 World Championships.