OSLO, Norway (February 4, 2012) - Team USA continued their rise in overall finishes at the E.ON IBU World Cup 7 in Oslo today. Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, NY) led the team with an 6th place finish, up from his start at 15th, in the 12.5K Pursuit, posting a time of 32:52.8 and clean shooting. Burke finished 1:08.8 back from today’s winner Arnd Peiffer (GER) at 31.44 (0+0+0+0). Norway’s Emil Hegle Svendsen was 2nd (32:15.3/0+1+0+1), and Evgenly Garanichev (RUS) took third at 32:30.3/0+0+1+1.
“Today was a great day for me,” said Burke. “This was the first time that I have shot 0 penalties in a four stage race so of course I am very happy about that. This was the perfect way for me to bring in my 30th year. I guess it took me this long to figure out that racing is much easier when you don't have to ski any penalty loops! I am also feeling strong on the course and I am looking forward to tomorrow's mass start.”
“It was amazing day for Tim Burke today,” added U.S. Biathlon High Performance Director Bernd Eisenbichler. “He had a perfect biathlon performance and moved from 15th to 6th in that competitive field. It was really impressive and a super day for the entire U.S. Biathlon Team. We are looking forward to the mass start tomorrow.”
Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, NY) finished 12th (33:32.3/0+0+2+1), and Jay Hakkinen (Kasilof,AK) was 25th with a time of 34:46.7/0+1+2+0.
“I’m definitely happy with the result today,” said Bailey. “I executed my game plan, except for a few small mistakes (in standing). Otherwise, I feel good about the result and I'm looking forward to tomorrow's mass start. It was great to be racing up at the top of the field and have Tim in the mix there as well! I think we're both pretty psyched for the race tomorrow!”
Extended results from the men's 12.5K Pursuit are available here.
In the Women’s 10K Pursuit, Sara Studebaker (Boise, ID) had her second top-25 finish in Oslo this week with a 25th today (34:18.5/0+0+0+2), back 3:47.4 minutes from today’s winner and overall World Cup leader Magdalena Neuner (GER) with a time of 30:31.1 (0+1+1+0). Olga Zaitseva (RUS) finished 2nd with 31:07.6 and clean shooting, while Darya Domracheva (BLR) finished third posting 31:22.5/0+0+2+0. Susan Dunklee (Barton, VT) finished 35th (35:45.2/2+2+1+0).
“Today was a solid day for me,” said Studebaker, “I like the courses here, and feel like things are finally coming together for me with my skiing, which is perfect timing. Of course, I would have liked today to be just a little better to put me in the mass start, but there's still a chance, so maybe I'll get lucky!”
“Sara had a great performance today,” said U.S. Biathlon Head Coach Per Nilsson. “She shot three times clean, with two misses at last stage, and two top-25 finishes in two days. This week is a big step forward for Sara.”
Complete results from the women's 10K Pursuit are available here.
Racing continues tomorrow with the Mass Start events. The women's race begins at 13:15 (CET), and the men start at 15:15 (CET). Biathlon fans can watch the races live athttp://www5.biathlonworld.com/en/