[GRP Biathlon] Early January IBU and World Cup Racing
Written by Luke Brown, GRP Biathlete.
January has brought a plethora of racing opportunities for the GRP Biathlon team as they gear up for the Olympic Games and Open European Championships.
Hallie Grossman and Kelsey Dickinson went to Osrblie, Slovakia for the second part of Olympic Trials at IBU Cup 4 on January 8th and 9th. In the first sprint of the weekend, Hallie placed 38th with Kelsey in 79th. In the second sprint, Hallie finished in 55th. Kelsey was 65th. These performances, in conjunction with earlier races in Arber against a crew of five women vying for two spots, earned Hallie the alternate position on the Olympic team.
Meanwhile, Jake Brown and Susan Dunklee raced on the World Cup circuit in Oberhof, Germany. In the men’s sprint, Jake placed 34th. Susan earned 28th in the women’s race with clean shooting. In the following pursuit races, Jake placed 45th with Susan taking 56th. Susan also raced the single mixed relay with USBA teammate Paul Schommer - they finished in 22nd.
Tara is all smiles in Slovakia! Credit: Igor Stancik.
The following weekend, Raleigh Goessling, Luke Brown, and Tara Geraghty-Moats traveled to join the IBU Cup crew in Osrblie which was also hosting IBU Cup 5. The weekend started with a short individual: Kelsey placed 41st with Tara in 62nd. Raleigh placed 81st with Luke in 86th. The next day, Kelsey was 55th in the women’s sprint with Tara in 70th. The men’s sprint was postponed to the next day due to extremely high winds. Luke placed 67th and Raleigh 81st. The women’s pursuit saw Kelsey moving up into 41st.
Hallie in the Ruhpolding Sprint. Credit: Filippo Maddalin
GRPers were also racing the Ruhpolding World Cup that same weekend. In the women’s sprint, Susan placed 51st, with Clare Egan in 76th, and Hallie in 111th. Susan then moved up to 37th in the pursuit. The team relay, which included Susan, Clare and Hallie was a highlight. Hallie, who had gotten called up to the World Cup that week, skied much of her leg with former GRP training partner Johanna Taliharm of Estonia. The US squad ended up in 12th.
Up next for the biathletes is the Antholz World Cup Jan 20-23rd and the Arber Open European Championships Jan 26-30 for the IBU Cup crew.