Kontiolahti 2025-2026 Preview

Dates: March 5, 2026 – March 8, 2026

Schedule:

Thursday March 5th: Women’s 15km Individual
Friday March 6th: Men’s 20km Individual
Saturday March 7: Women’s 12.5km Mass Start + Men’s 4×7.5km Relay
Sunday March 8: Woen’s 4x6km Relay + Men’s 15km Mass Start

Course Overview

Unfortunately the maps provided by Kontiolahti for this season don’t show the climbs on the course. Kontiolahti is actually an interesting course because the range is actually at the highest point on the course which makes it a little unusual. This means that there is no opportunity for a downhill, and rest, before the range. Also it doesn’t show the most unique part of the Kontiolahti course: the wall. It’s a massive steep climb that takes place around the mid point of the lap.

This course could prove to be a real problem for these athletes for multiple reasons. First of all, that climb is tough no matter when it happens. But right now, in particular, is that it takes place the first competition after the Olympics. At this point in any season there will be tired legs. At this point in an Olympic season, when many athletes put it all in for a peak in Antholz, there will be some tired legs out there. Not everybody, but certainly some athletes. This could be a real wheat from the chaff situation showing who has the legs and who doesn’t. It will be fascinating to watch especially in the Relays and Mass Starts.

Weather

I tried to post the report directly from the Finnish weather service but it wasn’t copying very well. This report matches pretty closely. The Finnish report does indicate a chance for light snow throughout the week as well, mostly at night. Possible snow/rain on Sunday as well. The Finnish weather service also indicates likely a little more wind as well. Regardless, this is pretty good all things considered. In Arber for the Youth/Junior Worlds right now it’s a slush fest due to a heat wave and the course conditions in Konthiolahti should be pretty perfect.

Globe Updates

Overall – For better or worse both Overall races are basically decided. Here’s where things stand right now. But Eric Perrot and Lou Jeanmonnot are the heavy favorites with just seven races left in the season. We’ll note the top 5 but lets be honest it’s just a formality.

Athlete	Score
Lou Jeanmonnot 🇫🇷	848
Suvi Minkkinen 🇫🇮	646
Anna Magnusson 🇸🇪	585
Maren Kirkeeide 🇳🇴	576
Hanna Öberg 🇸🇪	560

Lou Jeanmonnot has 202 point lead in the Overall race. At this point she could sit out the weekend while Suvi wins both races and she would still have a lead. This one, as they say, is all over but the shouting.

Athlete	Score
Eric Perrot 🇫🇷	834
Tommaso Giacomel* 🇮🇹	797
Sebastian Samuelsson 🇸🇪	668
Johan-Olav Botn 🇳🇴	630
Quentin Fillon Maillet 🇫🇷	503
Johannes Dale-Skjevdal 🇳🇴	501
Martin Ponsiluoma 🇸🇪	500

This is really sad. The Men’s Overall Globe was setting up to be a race to the finish between Eric Perrot and Tommaso Giacomel. If we were lucky it was going to go down just like the Women’s race did last year (without the fall of course). With Tommaso Giacomel now out for the rest of the season after his heart condition as noted above, we’ll be robbed of that. Without wishing ill on Perrot, we can hope that Sebastian Samuelsson or Johan-Olav Botn will put in a charge and make things interesting in Oslo! Just want to keep a little drama in one of the Overall races before the end!

Individual – One of two Globes to be decided this week. The Individual is always the hardest to predict. With just three races to decide it it is far more at risk or one good or bad race deciding the Globe. So, as we decide the Globe this week there are still many men and women still in the competition.

Athlete	Score
Lou Jeanmonnot 🇫🇷	130
Dorothea Wierer* 🇮🇹	106
Justine Braisaz-Bouchet 🇫🇷	90
Anna Magnusson 🇸🇪	89
Franziska Preuss* 🇩🇪	77
Sonja Leinamo 🇫🇮	75
Amy Baserga 🇨🇭	70
Camille Bened 🇫🇷	65
Lisa Vittozzi 🇮🇹	65

Lou Jeanmonnot has a fairly strong 40 point advantage over Justine Braisaz-Bouchet and 41 points over Anna Magnusson. The other two women in the top 5 are no longer racing after their recent retirements. Lou Jeanmonnot is exceptionally strong. Justine Braisaz-Bouchet is good enough to win the Individual. Same with Anna Magnusson. Both could do it. Even if they do though, they need Jeanmonnot to finish 5th (for Braisaz-Bouchet) or 6th (for Magnusson) or worse. That’s asking a lot considering her current form. She’s only finished below 6th in an Individual once in her last six Individual races.

Athlete	Score
Eric Perrot 🇫🇷	121
Johan-Olav Botn 🇳🇴	119
Emilien Jacquelin 🇫🇷	105
Martin Uldal 🇳🇴	75
Tommaso Giacomel* 🇮🇹	72
Lukas Hofer 🇮🇹	68
Sebastian Samuelsson 🇸🇪	65

The Men’s Individual is truly a toss up. Just 2 points separating Eric Perrot and Johan-Olav Botn makes this a virtual tie considering the scoring system. Emilien Jacquelin being just 16 points back of Perrot is completely in the race as well. If he wins, as long as Perrot isn’t in 2nd he wins the Globe. It would take a lot more for Martin Uldal to win the race but we’ll keep the light on for him.

Mass Start – With just five races in the Mass Start globe season, like the Individual, the Globe for the Race of Kings/Queens is a bit more susceptible to a good or bad race here or there than the Sprint or Pursuit. Add in that there were some athletes missing from Nove Mesto, the site of the 2nd Mass Start of the season, for Olympics prep and it really opens things up more. We are only halfway through this Globe competition and with two races to go this is where things stand

Athlete	Score
Lou Jeanmonnot 🇫🇷	130
Julia Simon 🇫🇷	110
Camille Bened 🇫🇷	105
Oceane Michelon 🇫🇷	101
Maren Kirkeeide 🇳🇴	90
Justine Braisaz-Bouchet 🇫🇷	90
Amy Baserga 🇨🇭	84
Franziska Preuss* 🇩🇪	73
Lisa Vittozzi 🇮🇹	65

With two races left and the quality of these women I’m not counting any of them out. Yes it would be difficult for Vittozzi to make a full come back, but if she wins both the Mass Start this week and in Holmenkollen, she would get herself to 245 points. That could put her in range of the winning number. Of course Lou Jeanmonnot could still get to 280 by finishing 2nd in each race. All that to say that there are a ton of women still in the mix for this Globe!

Athlete	Score
Eric Perrot 🇫🇷	165
Tommaso Giacomel* 🇮🇹	120
Campbell Wright 🇺🇸	116
Johan-Olav Botn 🇳🇴	91
Fabien Claude 🇫🇷	77
Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen 🇳🇴	65
Sverre Aspenes 🇳🇴	65
Sebastian Samuelsson 🇸🇪	64

The men’s Mass Start Glob isn’t quite as wide open as women without Tommaso Giacomel in the mix to try to hunt down Eric Perrot. The French likely Overall Globe winner has a 49 point lead on Campbell Wright and 74 points on Johan-Olav Botn. It’s going to take a big time effort for them to try to hunt him down!

Relay – The other Globe that will be decided this week are the Men’s and Women’s Relay Globes. These Globes are really going to come down to the last race and if we’re lucky it will be coming to the last shoot!

Nation	Score
France 🇫🇷	280
Norway 🇳🇴	268 (-12)
Sweden 🇸🇪	260 (-20)
Italy 🇮🇹	211 (-69)
Germany 🇩🇪	205 (-75)

This is a true three horse race. With the point gaps this one is still wide open. Sweden would need France to finish in at least 3rd but Norway has been surprisingly good. With Norway it’s a real example of the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. You line up their legs 1-3 and they are almost always outmatched by France and Sweden on paper. On paper being the key part. When they line up and race it’s a different story.

I’m also very interested in the team that France puts out there. In the Olympics they went for the “safe” and “low risk” route but running Camille Bened. The theory being she was les likely to hurt them by hitting the penalty loop. Unfortunately that’s not the way it played out though. Will they go with Justine Braisaz-Bouchet again? Interesting decision coming up. France clearly has the highest ceiling but they’ve also missed the podium entirely in two races.

Long story short: France is absolutely the favorite to not only win the race but the Globe, but Norway and Sweden are absolutely alive.

Nation	Score
Norway 🇳🇴	345
France 🇫🇷	315 (-30)
Sweden 🇸🇪	250 (-95)

Norway has won all but one relay this season. They didn’t win in Ruhpolding and crucially they also didn’t win at the Olympics. While the Olympic gold medal was absolutely the prize of the season, Norway can save some pride by taking the Relay Globe. But France can also take take the glory of the season by not only taking Gold and the Globe. The Norwegian/France rivalry is ultimately a friendly one, but it’s always fun to be able to hold the bragging rights over your friends. Even though France got the Gold they are going to want the Globe too! I included Sweden in this only to show how far ahead Norway and France really are.

News and Notes

1) Retirements – Sadly we won’t be seeing two of the most revered and popular athletes in the field. Dorothea Wierer and Franziska Preuss said goodbye to the biathlon world in Antholz and we won’t see them outside of a possible social appearance in Oslo (I’m mostly just wish casting here).

We also learned about the impending retirement of Paulina Batovska Fialkova who will be racing the rest of the season. I have shared this already but I didn’t care much about her one way or the other throughout her career. Nothing negative at all, I just didn’t know much about her. That changed last year in Oslo. She had a magnificent charge in the Pursuit to make it all the way up to 6th which qualified her for the Mass Start. She was so excited to achieve that! Positively dancing with joy. You could absolutely feel how much that meant to her and the team. Anybody that cares that much I will always love.

2) 🇮🇹 Tommaso Giacomel – If you watched the Men’s Mass Start at the Olympic Games then you saw the incredibly sad moment when Tommaso Giacomel, leading the race, had to pull out. The messaging was mixed at first but we know now that he suffered from an episode of AV nodal re-entrant tachycardia. He has since had the same ablation procedure that Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold had last season. He won’t return this season but he’ll be back next season. We’ve seen with Tandrevold that she has no difficulty with training and skiing. So he should be able to return to full strength.

3) 🇨🇿 Marketa Davidova Back Flare Up – Unfortunately Marketa Davidova has suffered from a recurrence of her back injury. In the same location as where she had surgery last March, she has a recurrence of her bulging disc. At the moment she is putting an end to her season. We’ll see what she decides to do in regards to her back and career later this Spring I sincerely hope that she only decides to do what brings her the most joy. If it’s racing, I’ll be here cheering for her. If it’s moving on to the next part of her life then I hope she only finds joy and success.

Recent History

Women’s Top 5 Finishers Last 5 Competitions (includes 2 weekends in 2020-2021 season)
– Does not include retired or ineligible athletes

Athlete	Finishes
Elvira Oeberg 🇸🇪	🥇🥈🥉🥉🥉, 4
Hanna Oeberg 🇸🇪	🥇🥇🥇🥉, 4
Lisa Vittozzi 🇮🇹	🥈🥉, 4, 5
Julia Simon 🇫🇷	🥇🥈, 5
Johanna Skottheim 🇸🇪	🥉, 4, 5
Karoline Knotten 🇳🇴	🥉, 5, 5
Linn Gestblom 🇸🇪	🥉, 5
Vanessa Voigt 🇩🇪	4, 4
Lou Jeanmonnot 🇫🇷	🥇
Marketa Davidova 🇨🇿	🥇
Lisa Hauser 🇦🇹	🥇
Ella Halvarsson 🇸🇪	🥈
Suvi Minkkinen 🇫🇮	🥉
Natalia Sidorowicz 🇵🇱	4
Julia Tannheimer 🇩🇪	5

Men’s Top 5 Finishers Last 5 Competitions (includes 2 weekends in 2020-2021 season)
– Does not include retired or ineligible athletes

Athlete	Finishes
Sebastian Samuelsson 🇸🇪	🥇🥈🥈, 4, 4, 5
Sturla Holm Laegreid 🇳🇴	🥇🥈🥈🥉🥉
Quentin Fillon Maillet 🇫🇷	🥇🥇🥈, 4, 5
Emilie Jacquelin 🇫🇷	🥇🥉, 4, 5
Martin Ponsiluoma 🇸🇪	🥇🥉
Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen 🇳🇴	4, 5
Jakov Fak 🇸🇮	5, 5
Eric Perrot 🇫🇷	🥇
Niklas Hartweg 🇨🇭	🥈
Fabien Claude 🇫🇷	🥈
Phlipp Nawrath 🇩🇪	🥉
David Zobel 🇩🇪	🥉
Lukas Hofer 🇮🇹	🥉
Campbell Wright 🇺🇸	4
Vitalii Mandzyn 🇺🇦	4

Recent Memorable Moments/Performances

– November 2024 Women’s Short Individual – Although we had already seen Ella Halvarsson in the Single Mixed Relay team up with Sebastian Samuelsosn and take the win, we didn’t yet know if it was just one magical race or something more real. Turns out it was something more real. Racing in bib 4, very early in the race, she hit 19/20 and appeared to be skiing quite well. But she was so early in the start order (remember this was our first look at the new start system) we really didn’t know what it was going to mean. Turns out it was a hell of a race and her 19/20 ended up putting her in 2nd at the end of the day. She was joined on the podium by Lou Jeanmonnot and Elvira Oeberg, two fo the strongest women of the last few seasons. Not bad company! The rest of the top 10 gave us a pretty interesting group of women too:
– Natalia Sidorowciz
– Franziska Preuss
– Lisa Theresa Hauser
– Oceane Michelon
– Regina Ermits
– Vanessa Voigt
– Suvi Minkkinen

Looking back that’s a pretty good preview of what’s happened last couple of seasons.

– November 2024 Women’s Sprint – This was our first clue that Suvi Minkkinen may be ready for a massive breakthrough season. Known for her amazing shooting but her relatively slow skiing, she went out in the first Sprint of the season and found not only the top 10 (like she did in the Short Individual) but the first podium of her career. As we know now this was just the new Suvi Minkkinen. Since then she has nine more podiums including a medal at the 2025 World Championships and at the 2026 Olympics. Pretty damn good if you ask me.

It’s also worth noting the woman who won this race, Marketa Davidova. She started out the 24-25 season looking so amazingly good. After winning this race she slipped into the yellow bib. She continued to race well for the next couple of races with four top 10’s in the first five races of the season. We hadn’t seen this version of Davidova in a couple of seasons. Then she had some back pain. It became severe enough that she missed practically the entire remainder of the season before having surgery in March. She rejoined the World Cup in November of the 2025-2026 season but was never quite able to find her form again. She ended up having to pull out of the 2026 Olympics because the back pain returned. Now her future looks incredibly uncertain. This could go down as the last victory of her career.

– November 2024 Men’s Sprint – The podium in this race was Emilien Jacquelin, Sebastian Samueson, and Philipp Nawrath. But in this race it wasn’t who was on the podium but who was just off of it. Campbell Wright showed that he was ready to make a leap by finishing in 4th place. We all know now this was just the start for Wright as he proved to be a threat throughout the season including taking back to back silver medals at the Lenzerheide World Championships.

– November 2022 Women’s Sprint: Lisa Vittozzi came in 2nd place. There were signs that Vittozzi had correct her shooting difficulties, but when she came in 2nd it felt like this enormous exuberant celebration. She had done it! She had fixed herself! At times it seemed impossible but she did it! This race was also interesting because Emma Lunder finished in 4th! It was the first of several top 10’s in her career best season!

– November 2022 JT Boe: It was a memorable weekend for two reasons. First, he started the season finishing 12th. That was the only time all season that he finished off the podium. I’m not kidding. That was the only race for the entire 23 race season that he finished off the podium. Of course he won the Sprint and the Pursuit and he was off!

– November 2022 Men’s Individual: Niklas Hartweg immediately declares his intention to chase the u25 Globe (as it was at the time) by coming in 2nd place. He showed off his great shooting (20/20) as well as a new level of skiing we had never seen from him. While Tommaso Giacomel nearly won the globe, Hartweg pulled it out in Oslo.

– February/March 2022: This was the first race after the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. It was also the first weekend after the Russian and Belarusian athletes had left the World Cup. It was great to see the amount of support that the athletes gave for their Ukrainian fellow competitors but it also just felt strange not to see the Russians and Belarusians there. It doesn’t really feel strange anymore though. Also this week Stina Nilsson made it to the podium and everybody lost their collective minds believing that she was going to take over the World Cup. She is now racing long distance cross country races. That’s not a shot at Stina Nilsson. In fact, it just goes to support the biathletes out there as this sport is really hard!

– March 2020: Kontiolahti was the last weekend of racing before biathlon, like the rest of the world, shut down. It served to be a bit of a strange farewell for Martin Fourcade who did what so few athletes are able to do, and went out on top with a victory in his last race. Yet it was JT Bø, who won the Sprint, and did just enough in the Pursuit, to take home the Overall Globe. On the women’s side Wierer finished 19th and 11th but had more than enough of a lead to take home her second Overall Globe as well. By the way, take a look at the top 5 for the last women’s race. Just five seasons ago but it feels like a different era. That, by the way, was Julia Simon’s first career victory.
– Julia Simon
– Selina Gasparin
– Lisa Vittozzi
– Kaisa Makarainen
– Monika Hojnisz-Starega