Junior Nordic Skiier Tyler Gustafson has spent the last four winters dividing his time between competing in nordic skiing and competing in biathlons. Over Winter Break, Gustafson flew to Presque Isle, Maine to compete in the Junior World Championships trials, just like he has done for the past several years. Only this year it was different. Gustafson’s performance at the trials qualified him to compete for the United States of America at the Biathlon Junior World Championships this February.
“This year’s trials was my favorite experience that I’ve had with the Biathlon. I was surprised to qualify—I surprised myself by skiing really fast,” Gustafson said.
Thirty-five countries will be represented at the Biathlon Junior World Championships, which will be held at the same course the trials were held, in Presque Isle, Maine. The two-week event starts the last week of February and runs through the first week of March. Gustafson will compete in three to four events over the two-week period against other 19 and 20 year-olds.
A biathlon is an event that combines cross-country skiing with rifle-marksmanship. Competitors do a lap of skiing before stopping to shoot, and repeat that pattern several times throughout the event. The four types of events are sprint, pursuit, an individual race, and a relay race, each involving a different number of skiing laps and shooting stages. In the sprint event there are two types of shooting—prone, where the biathlete lies down to shoot at the target, and standing, where the biathlete stands to shoot at a smaller target. If the competitors don’t hit their target they must ski a penalty loop.
“Biathlons are so exciting because literally anyone can win. It’s all about your skill as a shooter—your speed doesn’t matter,” Gustafson said.
To prepare himself to compete in biathlons, Gustafson has been a part of the nordic ski team at Gustavus for the three years. Gustafson, a routinely top performer, credits the team and Head Coach Jed Friedrich with his success in the biathlon.
“Skiing is a huge portion of the race, so being able to train with talented skiers here is super beneficial. Here I have a coach and teammates, which is so much better than trying to train on my own,” Gustafson said.
Gustafson enjoys both of sports and has the support of his teammates.
“We support Tyler through our training and spending time together. The nordic team is very close and we love seeing each other succeed. We have such great hopes for Tyler for the rest of the season and when he goes to the Junior World Championships,” Junior Josh Blankenship said.
The nordic team’s last race of the season is Feb. 15-16 when they will travel to Houghton, Michigan for the NCAA Central Region Championships. Following that meet Gustafson will depart for Maine to compete against the best young biathletes in the world. Gustafson’s teammates are excited to watch him compete in the Junior World Championships.
“We as a team obviously want Tyler to prove that he can race with the best in the world in Maine. I think that he is going to do great. Tyler has proven to be a dependable asset to this [nordic] team, but moreover, to the USA in biathlon as well. This is an excellent opportunity for Tyler and we look forward to seeing what he can do against the best in the world,” Junior Scott Williams said.