This year’s women’s biathlon season brought both surprises and clear power dynamics. Although we saw 11 different winners throughout the year, Lou Jeanmonnot’s consistent performance ultimately decided the overall title. However, the story of the season was defined not only by her dominance but also by the Olympics, the breakthrough of young athletes, and the fluctuating form of several rivals.
The Season in Numbers:
- 25 individual races (21 World Cup + 4 Olympic events).
- 11 different winners, with several athletes winning 4 races during the season (Elvira and Hanna Öberg, Vittozzi, and Simon).
- 19 different podium finishers from 10 different nations.
- A mixed picture, with the Swedes and French winning a significant number of races this season
Looking at the figures above, we can conclude that it was a diverse season, but like the men’s field, it is worth dividing it into several parts.
1. The Journey of the Yellow Bib: Strong Starts for Wierer, Minkkinen, and Magnusson
At the beginning of the season, the Italian, Swedish, and Finnish athletes all had remarkably strong starts. Wierer won the very first race, claiming victory for the first time since March 2023. Behind her was Leinamo, who secured her first-ever podium.
The anomaly of the season: After the podium of Leinamo, her best result was only a 29th place in Antholz, and in most sprint races she didn’t even make it into the top 60.
As the first weekend continued, Minkkinen stood on the podium twice, allowing her to head into the next weekend in first place. Interestingly, at this point, Jeanmonnot was only 9th in the standings, while the top German, Tannheimer, sat in 21st.
By the second weekend, Magnusson secured two more podium finishes, giving her a total of three after just five races, placing her at the top of the overall standings. Kirkeeide and Jeanmonnot were also performing strongly, holding 2nd and 3rd place. Meanwhile, the two Öberg sisters were struggling, with neither of them breaking into the top 10 at the time.
2. Jeanmonnot Turns the Tide
During the final weekend before the Christmas break, three individual races were held where Jeanmonnot collected a massive amount of points. With one win and two second-place finishes, she easily took the lead in the overall standings. Kirkeeide followed in 2nd, but she couldn’t match the French consistency. Magnusson, who had been performing so well, hit a slump and barely scored points in France. On the other hand, Hanna Öberg showed the first signs of life by winning a race.
3. Resurgence of the Öberg Sisters, Jeanmonnot’s Growing Lead
After the break, Elvira and Hanna Öberg drew attention to themselves with increasingly better results during the first two German weekends. Elvira won both races in Oberhof, with Minkkinen taking two second places behind her. At this point, the Finn climbed to 2nd in the standings and was still within striking distance of the French leader. Magnusson’s form completely collapsed, and her deficit grew to over 100 points.
In Ruhpolding, Hanna Öberg took a victory and a 2nd place. Jeanmonnot also achieved a 1st and a 2nd place, significantly increasing her lead to over 100 points. The top German at the time was Preuss in 12th, though it should be noted she missed several races due to illness. During this Olympic season, Wierer and Vittozzi were performing solidly, both having multiple podiums by this stage. In the final weekend before the Olympics, Jeanmonnot extended her lead to nearly 200 points. Additionally, the French duo of Braisaz-Bouchet and Simon signaled with their victories that they were forces to be reckoned with. Preuss secured her first podium of the season here, which later turned out to be the final podium of her career.
4. A Diverse Olympics
The Olympics featured several great improvements in form and unexpected results. Among the surprises were the podium finishes for Hristova and Voborniková. Neither athlete had ever secured a top-3 finish before, but everything clicked for them here. Michelon showed significant improvement; after a fluctuating pre-Olympic period, she was almost perfect at the Games, with outstanding ski speed and stable shooting (except for the pursuit).
Jeanmonnot did not become an individual Olympic champion, but she delivered very strong races, standing on the podium twice in individual events. Simon proved once again that she is the master of major championships. She performed brilliantly in the relay and added a gold and a silver medal in the individual events—a great redemption considering her start to the season and legal troubles.
For the Swedes, it was a disastrous Olympics, failing to win a single medal in the individual races. The two Öberg sisters and Magnusson combined for only four top-10 finishes. To put the failure into perspective, the average finish of the four Swedish starters across four races showed Gestblom as the best, yet even her average was only 16.5.
For the Italians, Vittozzi fulfilled her dream, becoming an Olympic champion on home soil. Wierer finished in the top 10 in three races but ultimately left without an individual medal. The Italians could be proud of their mixed relay, delivering a near-perfect performance, though they couldn’t catch the flawless French team. For Suvi Minkkinen, she achieved what the legendary Mäkäräinen never could: winning an individual Olympic medal for Finland. This was Finland’s first medal since 1998. As for the women, this was Finland’s first medal.The Germans failed to secure an individual medal, the first time this has happened since 2014. However, they did manage a bronze in the mixed relay. Finally, Kirkeeide from Norway cannot be overlooked, winning two individual medals. Her sprint gold, secured on the final lap, will be remembered for a long time.
5. Flashes from Vittozzi, Simon, and the Öberg Sisters
The final three weekends of the season were essentially dominated by these four athletes. They won all seven remaining races and controlled most of the podium spots. However, this did not pose a serious threat to Jeanmonnot’s overall victory, as Hanna Öberg, one of four in-form pursuers, trailed by more than 250 points before the Olympics. Despite their great form, they couldn’t bridge the gap. Jeanmonnot also secured two more podiums during the final stretch.
Olympic breakout stars Hristova and Voborniková continued their strong performances. Before the Olympics, the Czech was 20th with 214 points, while Hristova was 73rd with 27 points. By the end of the season, Voborniková finished 12th with over 500 points, and Hristova finished in the top 50 with nearly 100 units. Jeanmonnot was the only one to finish above 1000 points, clinching the overall title a year after dramatically losing it 300 meters before the finish line. In a symbolic moment, her rival from last year, Preuss, handed over the Big Crystal Globe.
Ultimately, Hanna Öberg and Lisa Vittozzi finished 2nd and 3rd, with Elvira Öberg in 4th. Jeanmonnot led almost all discipline standings, except for the Mass Start, which was won by Simon. Kirkeeide was the best U23 athlete, while the French won the relay title. However, the Swedes managed to win the Nations Cup for the first time thanks to their strong results in the final weeks.
Winter Sports Hub Awards:
Throughout the season, I awarded the “Athlete of the Weekend” as well as positive and negative surprises. To those wondering why the numbers might not align with the nine weekends: I chose one winner total between the men and women each time.
| Kategória | Versenyzők |
| Athlete of the Week (2x) | Lou Jeanmonnot, Elvira Öberg |
| Athlete of the Week (1x) | Maren Kirkeeide, Hanna Öberg |
| The positive surprises of the season | Suvi Minkkinen (Strong start in Östersund) Elvira Öberg (Resurgence in Oberhof) Tereza Voborníková (Strong weekend in Finland after the Olympics) Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold (Her best weekend in the season in home) |
| The negative surprises of the season | Julia Simon (Weak comeback in Hochfilzen) Anna Magnusson (Slump in the third weekend) Janina Hettich-Walz (Failed to score any points on home weekend) Maren Kirkeeide (Slump in form in Kontiolahti) Suvi Minkkinen (Major slump in the overall standings and loss of the small crystal globe in the final weekend) |
Shooting Stats:
Looking at those who fired at least 100 shots, Vanessa Voigt was the best with a 93% success rate. The second-highest accuracy, shared by several, was 91%, achieved by Suvi Minkkinen, Camille Bened, Julia Simon, and Marit Oygard.
Skiing Performance:
Lampic and Braisaz-Bouchet were the two fastest on the tracks over the entire season. They were followed by the Öberg sisters, Tandrevold, Kirkeeide, and Jeanmonnot.
Performance Graphs:
As with the men, I would like to highlight three graphs showing changes in performance among women.
Started the season extremely poorly in all aspects but improved significantly toward the end, especially in skiing, where she was 1.5–2 seconds faster per kilometer.
Jeanmonnot’s graph is the second one. At the beginning, her shooting is a little shaky, but then every element of her graph stabilizes nicely. Her victory was also due to the fact that her performance was not characterized by major fluctuations.
Started with a brilliant performance and genius shooting, which eventually fell back, costing her a chance to fight for the top 3 at the end. Still, it was the best season of her life.
Retirements
Many great athletes retired at the end of the season. Following the Olympics, Wierer and Preuss called it quits. At the end of the season, Fialková, Hauser, and Vinklárková also hung up their rifles. Fialková, despite being an excellent competitor (finishing 6th overall once), never won a race but stood on the podium 11 times.
The careers of Wierer and Preuss would deserve separate articles in themselves, so I will only list the most important results here.
Dorothea Wierer:
- 400+ races
- 17 individual World Cup wins
- 2 Overall World Cup titles
- 4 Discipline titles
- 4 Olympic medals (1 Silver, 3 Bronze)
- 12 World Championship medals (4 Gold, 5 Silver, 3 Bronze)
With Wierer’s retirement, we haven’t just lost a champion, but one of the greatest icons of biathlon.
Franziska Preuss:
- 6 individual World Cup wins
- 1 Overall World Cup title
- 3 Discipline titles
- 2 Olympic bronze medals
- 11 World Championship medals (2 Gold, 6 Silver, 3 Bronze)
Lisa Theresa Hauser:
- 6 individual World Cup wins
- 4 World Championship medals (1 Gold, 3 Silver)
- 1 Discipline title (Individual)
Replacing Hauser will be extremely difficult for the Austrians. She was the only Austrian in the top 30 overall this season.
What Worked, What Didn’t – And What Awaits Us Next Season?
In my pre-season preview, I tried to predict the outcomes. I highlighted Magnusson, Wierer, Vittozzi, and the Öberg sisters. While the Öbergs were inconsistent and Magnusson faded after a hot start, Wierer and Vittozzi remained strong on average. Jeanmonnot returned motivated after losing the title last year and got the job done.
The big question for next year is whether she can maintain this motivation after reaching the summit. It remains to be seen if the Öberg sisters can find stability; if they do, they will be extremely hard to beat. For the French, Michelon could be the next superstar if she continues to develop. Kirkeeide will be dangerous to everyone, having been remarkably successful at such a young age. Will the circle of elite nations expand to include the Czechs or Bulgarians? Voborniková and Hristova are still young, and another step forward could make them serious contenders. For the Germans, it is a mystery who will consistently stay at the top. Voigt and Hettich-Walz are no longer the youngest, and while Tannheimer performed slightly weaker, she is only 21 and was the youngest in the overall top 40—the potential is clearly there.
The new season starts at the end of November, where all of the above questions will be answered. The Biathlon World Cup starts again in Finland on November 26th.
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