JAKE BROWN: CARRYING CONFIDENCE INTO THE SEASON November in Finland is a fascinating time, with limited daylight, big snowflakes falling from the heavens, and an electric atmosphere as the U.S. Biathlon Team makes final preparations for the season just days away. Heartbeat headed to the team camp in Vuokatti this week to catch up with veteran Jake …

There is a high level of anticipation at the U.S. Biathlon Team training camp in Vuokatti, Finland, with both the IBU World Cup and IBU Cup series about to begin. Coming off a season of promising results followed by eight months of an innovative preparation period, now it’s go-time! Heartbeat headed to the Vuokatti camp this week to catch up with U…

From a nationwide laser rifle program to club development tools and a new online-based education center, U.S. Biathlon sport development efforts are resulting in strong growth in the popular, fast-rising sport. To learn more, Heartbeat caught up with U.S. Biathlon’s Director of Sport Development John Farra. His enthusiasm is contagious! A longtime …

A standout cross country runner and skier from Wisconsin, Deedra Irwin picked up biathlon at age 25. Now, seven years later, her poise and confidence are readily apparent as she talks to Heartbeat about the World Cup season ahead. Now a seasoned veteran, she’s coming off a season that saw her score her first top-10 World Cup finish, moving up 20 pl…

Just three years ago, Susan Dunklee was a regular on the IBU World Cup Biathlon tour. Today, she’s evolving into a formative biathlon coach at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center with its Green Racing Project program. Heartbeat caught up with Dunkee at Craftsbury with the winter season quickly approaching, kicking off season five for the U.S. Biathlon Po…

The 2023-24 season was filled with athletic advancement with personal bests across both men’s and women’s team. And with the IBU World Cup in the books, the team has headed to Bend, Ore. for on-snow training six months out from next season’s tour. Heartbeat caught up with head coach Armin Auchentaller live from Bend to analyze the team’s success, a…

Every biathlete dreams of skiing into the range and having the crowd roar with each shot. Doing it on the snow where you grew up is all the sweeter! At the IBU World Cup in Soldier Hollow, Utah native Vincent Bonacci and his teammates had just that feeling as they skied to a best-ever fourth in the men’s relay. Heartbeat caught up with Bonacci at t…

This weekend American fans will be trackside at Utah’s Olympic and Paralympic venue of Soldier Hollow as the BMW IBU World Cup Biathlon tour comes to the USA for the first time in five years. In anticipation, Heartbeat went behind the scenes at Soldier Hollow to learn more about the event – how it got back to America after five years, what it takes…

Imagine being 17 or 18 years old and traveling the world, living your life out of a duffel bag while pursuing the sport you love. That’s the life of Alaskan Elias Soule and Utah native Emily Caldwell. Elias and Emily are two of the top U.S. Biathlon junior athletes, rising up out of outstanding club programs and now taking their skills on the road.…

For over a decade, Susan Dunklee was a prominent face of the U.S. Biathlon Team, competing in three Olympics and winning silver at the 2017 IBU Biathlon World Championships. Now in her second season of retirement from international competition, she’s finding a joyous pathway as a biathlon coach at her longtime home at Vermont’s Craftsbury Outdoor C…

If the recent U.S. Biathlon Trials event at Mt. Itasca Winter Sports Center is any indicator, athlete development is on the upswing. Record numbers of athletes were on hand seeking to qualify for major youth and junior events. In this episode of Heartbeat, U.S. Biathlon’s Director of Athlete Development Tim Burke, talks about sustained competitive …

There are many routes into biathlon. Grace Castonguay is part of a new generation of athletes who are finding the sport and moving quickly up the ranks. A passionate runner, Castonguay only got into cross-country skiing when an injury curtailed her running. She loved it! Just a few years later, she made her World Cup debut in December 2023, racing …

In the long term plan for U.S. Biathlon, talent transfer is a big topic – cross country ski racers trying biathlon. How practical is it? Well, just look at the example of Margie Freed. Last season, the veteran Minnesota native and University of Vermont ski team alum, now part of the Craftsbury Green Racing Project, borrowed a biathlon rifle, qualif…

Longtime U.S. Biathlon Team athlete Maddie Phaneuf grappled with her life’s direction after retiring. A full time move into coaching wasn’t really in her plan. But, today, she enters her third season as a coach – leading one of America’s most noted biathlon programs, studying with coaches from nearly 20 nations at International Biathlon Union works…

After several years of preparation, the IBU 2023-24 season will begin with a full ban on fluorocarbons, which have been used for decades. What will change for teams? How will IBU manage testing? U.S. Biathlon Team Manager Federico ‘Fede’ Fontana, one of the sport’s most renowned experts on ski preparation, talked to Heartbeat about the impacts and …

In 2017, Lowell Bailey’s World Championships gold helped ignite the sport across America. Today, as high performance director for U.S. Biathlon, Bailey remains at the forefront guiding the upstart organization in its march to sustained competitive excellence. Bailey talked to Heartbeat during the team’s vital pre-season camp at Soldier Hollow in Oc…

Walk into a room with Campbell Wright and you’re struck first by his Kiwi accent, his lighthearted approach to life and his confidence. The junior world champion was born in New Zealand to American parents, one of four boys who grew up in Rotorua where mom put them in sports to burn off energy. A later move to the South Island put Wright onto snow.…

Jack Gierhart, a highly respected Olympic sport leader, heads into his second season as president and CEO of U.S. Biathlon eager to take his first year experience and forge a pathway to the future for the fast-growing sport. In the debut episode of season four of Heartbeat, Gierhart talks about his past roles in Olympic sport and the open welcome h…

Maxime Germain: A Breakthrough Season If you’re a skier or passionate outdoor enthusiast, two of the coolest places in the world are Chamonix and Alaska. U.S. Biathlon Team athlete Maxime Germain has roots in both. Germain is coming off a breakthrough season that saw him ski nearly an entire IBU World Cup season plus come home with a medal from the…

Injuries are a part of sport. It’s something every athlete faces at some point. This past winter, Olympic biathlete Paul Schommer cut his season short with an early March knee surgery. In this episode of Heartbeat, he shares insights into his injury, his rehab plan to get back in top physical shape, the ways he’s managing the mental aspects and how…

The family-owned Wisconsin company Ariens is known worldwide as the King of Snow for its reliable, hard-working snow blowers. After an introduction to biathlon at Ruhpolding, President Dan Ariens was hooked! The U.S. Biathlon sponsor has gone all in on the sport, not only supporting the team but in building the new Ariens Nordic Center in its home …

One of the most successful winter Paralympic athletes with nine cross country and five biathlon Olympic medals, Team USA's Oksana Masters has documented her remarkable story in a gripping new book from Simon & Schuster: The Hard Parts: A Memoir of Courage and Triumph. In her Heartbeat interview she dives deep into her emotional story An injury has …

The IBU Biathlon World Championships are underway in Oberhof, Germany. For the U.S. Biathlon Team, six world championship veterans will combine with four first-timers on the U.S. Biathlon team competing Feb. 8-19. Heartbeat caught up with Head Coach Armin Auchentaller in Oberhof for a preview of the sport's annual world championships. The U.S. men’…

The IBU Biathlon World Championships in Oberhof are underway, with a U.S. Biathlon Team mixed with veterans and rookies. One of those newcomers, Vincent Bonacci, earned his spot with a strong season including an 11th in the sprint at the Open European Championships. The Utah native spoke with Heartbeat about his pathway in the sport and what he hop…

Two years ago Tara Geraghty-Moats was the number one women's nordic combined skier in the world when she made the call to return to her biathlon roots. Today, she's making her way through the IBU Cup, World Cup and now World Championships in Oberhof. The Vermont native who trains with Craftsbury Green tells her story of biathlon to ski jumping to n…

At any BMW IBU World Cup, the wax cabin is the heart and soul of the competition. U.S. Biathlon's legendary service technician Fede Fontana takes Heartbeat listeners behind the scenes inside the wax cabin in Antholz just hours before the competition to give us insights into his background and the role of his service team.…

This week 1,500 athletes from 50 nations are competing in Lake Placid at the biggest multisport winter event in America since the 2002 Olympics as the Adirondack village takes on tones of its own 1980 Games. On the eve of the World University Games, International University Sports Federation Deputy Secretary General Sarah Lewis talked to Heartbeat …

A small college just outside the Olympic village of Lake Placid is starting to shake up the biathlon and nordic ski world. U.S. Biathlon has named Paul Smith's College its Official Higher Education Partner. PSC coach Matt Dougherty talks with Heartbeat about the vision for the new program, as well as the upcoming FISU World University Games.…

A key component of U.S. Biathlon's 2030 strategic plan is building the biathlon base. Olympian John Farra knows that landscape well. His new role as sport development director is focused on growing and supporting clubs, innovating talent ID and transfer and building education for coaches. Just a few months into the role, he talks enthusiastically a…

S3 Ep5 - Armin Auchentellar Tom Kelly: [00:00:00] And today, Heartbeat is taking you to the heart of Vuokatti. Finland. The training camp for the US biathlon team. Armin Auchentaller, the head coach for the men's and the women's team. Armin, thank you for joining us on Heartbeat. Armin Auchentaller: [00:00:13] Thank you. Thank you for inviting me. …

Amidst all the biathletes training at Soldier Hollow in October, one stood out. After being sidelined for nearly the entire Olympic season with complications from COVID, she was bouncing back strong with a smile on her face heading into the 2022-23 season. Heartbeat sat down with Levins at the end of the camp as she prepared to get back to Europe w…

A year ago, the Olympic season was a great unknown for Deedra Irwin, an up-and-coming biathlete. Perseverance and consistency paid off, as Irwin earned a trip to Beijing where she recorded the best finish ever for a Team USA biathlete. Irwin spoke with Heartbeat at the end of the October pre-season camp in Utah's Soldier Hollow, eager to take the m…

For over three decades, Max Cobb's leadership of U.S. Biathlon set a standard for Olympic sports organizations helping lead the sport to success and a solid future. As he prepares to take on leadership of the International Biathlon Union, Max talked with Heartbeat about his career, his philosophies of positivity in leadership and what he sees in th…

Growing up as a cross country ski racer in Idaho, Sara Studebaker-Hall didn't give officiating too much of a thought. But a helpful mentor pointed her in the right direction after her two-Olympic career with U.S. Biathlon. Today, she's the first U.S. woman to achieve IBU technical delegate certification. Here Sara's story and her encouragement to o…

In his World Cup finale at Holmenkollen this year, Leif Nordgren was hoisted onto the shoulders of his teammates, celebrating a distinguished career that took him to three Olympics. Leif talks to Heartbeat about his pathway to biathlon and what a decade on the international tour meant to him, and his plans to remain with the Vermont Army National G…

Both Susan Dunklee and Clare Egan had their share of top international results. But as they retire from the international tour to pursue the next chapter of their lives, both will be remembered most for the spirit and leadership they brought to biathlon. In this episode of Heartbeat, we'll hear from Susan and Clare as they ski down memory lane, spe…

The Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games provided some strong highlights for the U.S. Biathlon Team. Heartbeat explores Beijing with US Biathlon High Performance Director Lowell Bailey and recaps highlights of the Youth and Junior World Championships at Soldier Hollow with Development Director Tim Burke.…

A native of Minnesota's Iron Range, Salmela had a strong career as an athlete on the U.S. Biathlon Team, then as a coach with the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn. He is most noted for his broadcast voice with NBC and Peacock TV, where he will be calling his fifth Olympics for the network at Beijing. Salmela has been at the microphone for…

Biathlon will be one of the most viewed events at the upcoming Olympics in Beijing. And it comes with long history, from the days of hunters on skis with bows and arrows 1,500 years ago to the military patrol event at the first Winter Olympics in 1924. Art Stegen, one of the foremost historians on the sport, joins Heartbeat for some fascinating his…

Paul Schommer wasted no time in November, qualifying for an Olympic spot for Beijing at the opening races of the BMW IBU World Cup Biathlon. The Wisconsin native had a promising career as a wrestler in high school, before discovering cross country skiing. While at St. Scholastica College, he found biathlon. Schommer is also known as the visionary b…

Dickinson is a fascinating young athlete. She was just six when her parents followed family friends in a move to Winthrop, Wash. at a time when the community was starting to make a splash as a premier nordic center in America. Cross country skiing became a way of life, with junior racing and high school as she forged her path in the sport. For Dick…

Growing up in Wisconsin, Deedra Irwin loved to run. She had never heard of cross country skiing. But a friend introduced her to the sport as a winter training opportunity. After a strong high school and college career at Michigan Tech, she was ready to retire until another friend, biathlete Joanne Reid, introduced her to biathlon. Now in the nation…

Lowell Bailey and Tim Burke grew up together in Lake Placid, both finding their passion in biathlon. After strong careers that saw them each win World Championship medals, they are still together leading the next generation of biathletes onto their pathway to success. Lowell and Tim explore their career successes, but also look forward to the futur…

Here’s a snapshot of the Heartbeat interview with Sean Doherty. How important is your camp at Soldier Hollow? One of the big things is just it's great pre-season with the altitude here. Coming out for three weeks really gives us a nice physiological benefit as we plan on also the Beijing Games being at a similar elevation. The scenery helps keep th…

Any athlete will face highs and lows in their career. For biathlete Maddie Phaneuf, the 2020-21 COVID season had a crazy blend. But amidst the challenges, a pair of consecutive career-best IBU Cup finishes have put her on a promising pathway for the future. She talks about her career as an athlete and her passion as a sustainability advocate with P…

Athletes need to be methodical, with the virtue of patience guiding their careers. Minnesota native Jake Brown's career best 12th at World Championships was just another step for the soon-to-be 29-year old biathlete who discovered biathlon after a successful collegiate career at St. Olaf's and Northern Michigan University. He speaks to Heartbeat ab…

In just 18 months at the helm of the International Biathlon Union, Niklas Carlsson is modernizing the international sport federation for the future. Carlsson talks about the direction of the sport and how the unusual combination of cross country skiing and marksmanship can capture such a huge global following. The episode was recorded at the 2021 I…

Athletes come into sport through many different pathways. One of the most common is family. Among America's top biathletes for a decade, two-time Olympian Leif Nordgren's story is one of family. He joins Heartbeat from northern Italy to talk about his passion for biathlon and the role both U.S. Biathlon and the National Guard are playing in his sto…

Matt Emmons: Staying on Target When a biathlete squeezes the trigger, it takes just .15 seconds to strike a two-inch target 50 meters away. The precision is incomprehensible. Matt Emmons, an Olympic shooting gold medalist, has brought a new range of knowledge as U.S. Biathlon Team shooting coach. Emmons tells a story of a challenging sport and how …

Cross country skier and runner Clare Egan didn’t take up marksmanship until she was 25. Today, at 33, she’s established herself as one of the top biathletes in the world. What inspired her to take up biathlon mid-career? And what are the motivational factors that push her to continue her quest for excellence? Clare spoke to Heartbeat from Kontiolah…