She first raced because someone else was missing. Years later, Ukaleq Slettemark stands at the center of Greenland’s biathlon story. In an exclusive interview, she talks about family, competing under the Danish and Greenlandic flags, sustainability, and what it means to be an athlete from a small nation.
Family Legacy and First Successes
Ukaleq Slettemark’s journey so far is anything but ordinary. Both her father and her mother were biathletes. Øystein competed at the Olympic Games in 2010 under Danish colors, while Uiloq took part in the World Championships in 2012. Her parents played an undeniable role in putting Greenland on the biathlon map. Ukaleq was born into this biathlon way of life, and through them she became familiar with the sport at a very young age.
„My parents did biathlon, and I traveled around with them when I was up to four years old. Then we moved a little bit back between Norway and Greenland. And one year that I lived in Norway, I was able to try out biathlon. And then, three years later, we lived in Greenland, and there was a race called the Arctic Winter Games, and they were suddenly missing some athletes that jumped out. And because I had tried it for a bit, then I was allowed to try and then I won all the races.”
Later, encouraged by her father, she applied to an elite sports high school in Norway. She was accepted, and the entire family moved with her. From that point on, her biathlon career became increasingly serious. In 2018, she competed for the first time at the Youth Biathlon World Championships, and in 2019, at the Youth World Championships in Brezno, Slovakia, she won Greenland’s first-ever medal at a major international event by taking gold in the individual race. Her career continued to rise, and in 2020 she made her World Cup debut in Hochfilzen, Austria.
Historic Moments as a Family
Not only Ukaleq, but her brother Sondre is also a biathlete. He made his World Cup debut in 2023. As a result, that same year marked a historic moment as Greenland was able to start in the single mixed relay for the first time. They were unable to finish that race due to being lapped, but at last year’s World Championships they managed to complete the event, finishing in 23rd place.
„Last year’s single mixed relay was amazing. This is my favorite discipline, because there’s so many possibilities and things can happen, and all the small nations really stand a chance. Our only goal was just to get to the finish line and get a placement. And we did that even with, I was in such a bad shape, and Sondre even had a penalty loop. But we were just, so happy to be there. And it was really special, because we had a bunch of our friends from our old club coming all the way from Greenland, and they were cheering us on, cheering even when we were just training. So there was a big Greenlandic flag on the stadium, and it’s a really special moment.”
Danish Colors, Greenlandic Heart
Ukaleq also competed at the Olympic Games in 2022. As Greenland does not have its own National Olympic Committee, she competed under the Danish flag. She finished 53rd in the individual race and 65th in the sprint. Earlier this week, it was officially confirmed that she will compete at the Olympic Games again this year. Her brother Sondre Slettemark has also qualified.
The Danish Olympic team:
Denmark is sending the largest Olympic delegation in its history, as Anne de Besche has also qualified alongside them. Speaking about competing under Danish colors, Ukaleq said:
” Last time I also raced for Denmark. And of course, at that time, I was, I really wish it could be for Greenland, but I was proud to represent the Commonwealth, and we were really good, taken care of by the Danish delegation this year.”
In recent months, international developments involving the USA and Greenland have caused growing concern, making this shared representation feel even more significant to her.
„I feel more strongly connected to to the Danish team because of everything that’s going on in the international politics, I think it’s really special that Greenland and Denmark stand strong together. (…), of course, my dream would be to race under the Greenlandic flag, but at the same time, I feel like everyone knows that we’re Greenlandic and we will race with our own suit that we designed with some Greenlandic markings on it. And we feel well taken care of by the Danish Olympic Committee. And they have a good team around us.”
Sport in the Shadow of Politics
Over the past year, Donald Trump has repeatedly spoken—at varying intensity—about acquiring Greenland. Reflecting on how this period felt, Ukaleq explained
„There’s a big talk about USA and Trump last winter during the World Championships, and then we came to Greenland, and there was still big topic. And then during the summer and in the fall, it was like complete radio silence. And it’s only now, the past two or three weeks that it’s come up again. (…) There was a big demonstration the other day where (…) several thousands people who showed up to demonstrate against Trump and against American annexation. I think a lot of people are worried.”
In such circumstances, it is not always easy to focus on training, but according to Ukaleq, training itself helps her cope.
„When I’m training, I’m fully focused on training, and that’s a good thing. I think it’s also important for my mental health to take a break from the news”.
Fighting for Snow: A Sustainability Ambassador
Beyond competition, the Greenlandic athlete is actively involved in shaping the future of biathlon off the track as well. Last summer, she was appointed as an IBU Sustainability Ambassador.
„I wanted to be part of the sustainability ambassador program because I wanted to make my voice heard. I felt like I had a platform that I could use for something good. I know that athletes can be influential. And I wanted to be part of changing biathlon from within. I could say that sustainability is something I care very deeply about, because, I come from Greenland, I see the changes I care about winter not disappearing.”
Her perspective goes far beyond biathlon alone, touching on issues such as climate-driven migration, melting glaciers, and species extinction. Many of the projects she works on with the international federation happen behind the scenes and may not be visible on television broadcasts.
„They have projects with carbon recycling. They have projects with snow farming, with the lead bullets to try and find alternatives.”
One of her main roles is acting as a link between athletes and the federation. She can explain to fellow competitors what the IBU is currently working on, while also conveying athletes’ feedback back to the federation. In recent years, several small but meaningful changes have already been introduced.
„In some World Cups, they’ve started replacing plastic bags at the start and finish lines with reusable boxes. We give feedback on the vegetarian food options in the family club, about the transport, how that is working. We tried to find some solution with the bib numbers perhaps using different materials or finding ways to reuse them more effectively.”
She enjoys the fact that this role allows her to create change from within. Throughout the year, the federation has organized several international awareness days in cooperation with athletes, including World Mountain Day and World Cleanup Day, as well as a vegetarian cookbook created from athletes’ recipes. A sustainability award has also been introduced among national federations, with Ukaleq serving as one of the jury members.
„I feel like I’m doing something good for the sport, hopefully, and I feel it’s important, because, as I say many times, biathlon is completely dependent on a future with snow, and if we can’t even take part in that work, then what kind of role models are we? And then how can you expect someone else to care about sustainability?”
Big Nations, Small Nations – and the Waxing Gap
In winter sports, the question often arises of how large the gap is between small and big nations in terms of opportunities. Ukaleq is very satisfied with the system she works within—her parents travel with her and support her in every aspect. However, she believes there are areas of competition where the disadvantage is nearly impossible to overcome. She offers insight into these huge differences—things an average viewer, who only watches what happens from the start of the race, would never see.
„The biggest difference is the waxing. For sure, we have no chance of getting, the same level of waxing as the bigger nations. Even if we were to hire two people full time, it would take up all our budget, and we still wouldn’t be able to get as good skis as the big nations, because they have 10 people who each of them are skiing 70 kilometers every day just to test the wax and to test the skis.”
For smaller nations, the solution often lies in agreements with larger teams to prepare their skis. Behind the scenes, there are also efforts to move toward a standardized waxing system so that races are not decided by this factor. According to Ukaleq, skis can make a massive difference—up to a full minute in skiing time during a race.
„What we really advocate for is that we should start getting common waxing. It’s something they started doing in the Ibu Junior Cup, and I really hope it will take the next step to the Ibu Cup. And the dream would be in World Cup, because you would save so many resources. You would save all these big trucks that are have a carbon footprint. You would save money for all the nations, Norway and Sweden and France and Germany, they’re all spending so much money on this. And in the end, they have, approximately the same skis, so if you had common waxing, it would be more fair, the best athlete would win, and not the one who has the biggest budget. And we try to say this, and we get some pushback from the bigger nations, but I think, in my opinion, this would benefit not only the small nations, but but also the bigger nations, because they could use their budget for something else. They could use it for development instead of wax.”
Finding Form and Looking Ahead
Around Christmas, Ukaleq was disappointed with her skiing form, but she trained extensively during the break. The results did not immediately show at the first weekend in Arber, but in Ruhpolding both her form and the course suited her much better.
” Ruhpolding is a course that fits me very well. It’s quite flat. It was a fast track. The uphills are, pretty short, and you get a good speed into the uphills. So I just felt I was flying (…) It was definitely a good feeling, because now I know that the shape is on the way.”
As for her long-term plans and how long she will remain in biathlon, that remains open.
” My ambitions in biathlon is just to get as good as my potential is. As long as I can keep developing and keep seeing that I can improve, that is what gives me motivation always, climb the ranks and take the small wins and have fun, then I am very happy. I enjoy competing, I enjoy the life on the road and and I enjoy working on the small details and seeing improvement We’ll see what happens. If in three years I hate it or lose motivation, I’ll stop. But, if I keep being motivated, then I could continue for 10 more years, so we will see.”
A special thanks to Ukaleq Slettemark for her openness and for providing such deep insights into her world. I wish her the best of luck for the Olympics and her ongoing work as a sustainability ambassador!
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