POSTED: Saturday February 14th 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CANADIANS BLOWN OFF TARGET AT BIATHLON WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS IN KOREA

—Zina Kocher leads Canadian charge into top-30—

 

PYEONG CHANG, Kor.—Zina Kocher led the way for Canada’s biathletes on a blustery and challenging day to open the 2009 World Championships in Pyeong Chang, Korea.

 

With the sprint competitions in jeopardy due to pouring rain and marginal conditions, the Red Deer, Alta. native trudged her way through the soft and slushy snow to finish in 30th spot with a time of 23:26.5.

 

“This was a very hard course with big uphills and with the conditions the way they were I really didn’t feel great today,” said Kocher, who added high winds also made shooting difficult. “I do enjoy the course here and I just went out and fought as hard as I could till the bitter end. The result is not what I hoped, but I am happy that I fought a good fight.”

 

The next best Canadian in the women’s competition was Megan Imrie, of Falcon Lake, Man., who was just thankful for staying on her feet en route to finishing in 66th spot with a time of 24:58.7.

 

“My brain was working overdrive today to keep my ski tips from diving into the slush at high speeds,” said Imrie. “My goal was to qualify for the pursuit (top-60) but that evaded me by a few seconds once again.”

 

Germany’s Kati Wilhelm will be the first out of the gate in Sunday’s pursuit after winning the women’s 7.5-kilometre sprint competition with a time of 21:11.1. Simone Hauswald, also of Germany, was second at 21:21.0, while Russia’s Olga Zaitseva grabbed the bronze (21:38.2).

 

Two other Canadian women also took aim on Saturday. Megan Tandy, of Prince George, B.C., was 71st (25:11.2), while Calgary’s Sandra Keith was 77th (25:32.7).

 

Jean-Philippe Le Guellec, of Shannon, Que., finished as the top Canuck in the men’s 10-kilometre sprint competition.

 

Le Guellec, who has been posting career-best finishes all season, finished in 43rd spot at 26:42.6.

 

“I felt like I was skiing in a foot of sand today and it was more suited for water skiing,” said Le Guellec. “The conditions were very challenging with the deep slush on the steep climbs and tricky downhills. Considering the conditions for both skiing and shooting, it was quite a decent finish.”

 

The Norwegians stormed to the top of the standings grabbing the first four positions on the leaderboard. Ole Einar Bjoerndalen captured his 10th World Championship title in the men’s competition after clocking-in at 24:16.5. Lars Berger was second at 24:17.7, while Halvard Hanevold was third (24:29.0). Alexander Os finished off the podium in fourth at 24:41.1.

 

Three other Canadian men also competed in Korea. Robin Clegg, who competes for the Quebec Biathlon Team, finished 49th (26:54.1), while Brendan Green, of Hay River, N.W.T., was 81st (28:07.1), and Regina’s Scott Perras was 83rd (28:09.2).

 

The World Championships continue on Sunday in Korea with the men’s and women’s pursuit competitions.

 

 

Biathlon Canada, the governing body for biathlon in the country, oversees the Canadian Championships, Eastern and Western Canadian Championships, and North American Cups held in Canada. The organization’s mandate is to provide national level programs for the continuous development of biathlon athletes from the grassroots to the elite level. For more information on Biathlon Canada, please visit their Web site at www.biathloncanada.ca on the Internet.

 

Complete World Cup and IBU Cup results can be found at www.biathlonworld.com

(*Missed Shots in Brackets)

Top-Five Women’s World Cup Results:

1. Kati Wilhelm, GER, (0+0), 21:11.1; 2. Simone Hauswald, GER, (0+0), 21:21.0; 3. Olga Zaitseva, RUS, (0+0), 21:38.2; 4. Anna Boulygina, RUS, (0+0), 22:04.4; 5. Helena Jonsson, SWE, (1+0), 22:05.8.

Canadian Results:

30. Zina Kocher, Red Deer, Alta., (2+1), 23:26.5; 66. Megan Imrie, Falcon Lake, Man., (1+2), 24:58.7; 71. Megan Tandy, Prince George, B.C., (0+2), 25:11.2; 77. Sandra Keith, Calgary, (0+2), 25:32.7.

 

Top-Five Men’s World Cup Results:

1. Ole Einar Bjoerndalen, NOR, (1+1), 24:16.5; 2. Lars Berger, NOR, (1+1), 24:17.7; 3. Halvard Hanevold, NOR, (0+0), 24:29.0; 4. Alexander Os, NOR, (1+0), 24:41.1; 5. Maxim Tchoudov, RUS, (0+0), 24:45.6.

Canadian Results:

43. Jean-Philippe Le Guellec, Shannon, Que., (2+0), 26:42.6; 49. Robin Clegg, Ottawa, (0+2), 26:54.1; 81. Brendan Green, Hay River, N.W.T., (3+2), 28:07.1; 83. Scott Perras, Regina, (2+1), 28:09.2.

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Keywords · 2009 World Championships · Pyeong Chang · Korea

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Name: Chris Dornan
Organization: Biathlon Canada
Email:
Phone: 281-703-4394
URL: http://www.biathloncanada.ca/main.php?lan=1

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