Home game for the German young biathletes: For the first time in 18 years, the Youth and Junior World Championships (JWM) are taking place in Germany again. From February 28th to March 8th, the top talents will fight for the world title in the Bavarian Forest. Sportschau.de broadcasts all decisions of the juniors in a live stream.
How could it be otherwise? The favorites also come from France and Norway – of course. But the DSV ski hunters also want to perform and expect a lot from the competitions in the ski stadium on the Großer Arber. “We want to fight for the medals and hopefully offer the spectators good and successful competitions”said junior national coach Marko Danz in the Sportschau interview.
Danz sees good chances for medals, especially in the relay competitions. With Sydney Laureen Wüstling and Melina Gaupp, the German Ski Association (DSV) also has two top talents at the start. “Both have extremely good running technique and hit very well. If everything comes together, they can definitely fish for precious metal in the individual competitions.”said Danz, who works at the base in Oberhof.
Biathlon coach Marko Danz in action
Grotian once won among the juniors
The DSV young athletes have often set highlights at Junior World Championships in the past. Selina Grotian left the 2023 JWM with four gold medals, while Julia Tannheimer won three gold medals. Both made it into the World Cup team, Tannheimer recently celebrated her Olympic debut and impressed as the starting runner in the relay.
Grotian’s career, which was often compared to Laura Dahlmeier or Magdalena Neuner, has stalled. Grotian has not yet become a winning runner. After health problems, the 21-year-old Bavarian was running behind this season and was neither at the forefront on the cross-country ski trail nor at the shooting range (78 percent hit rate).
Selina Grotian (Germany) shooting before the competition.
What do the others do better?
Why is the jump from juniors to seniors so difficult? Several factors play a role for Danz. “The athletes have to stay focused, have a good environment, not lose joy and not get busy with too many other useless things.”says the coach, who of course also looks outside the box and especially to France and Norway.
What do these two successful biathlon nations do differently? “You definitely draw from a larger pool of children and young people”says Danz, who knows that “Mass does not equal class” means, but it definitely fuels competition. In Norway, competitions with ranking lists also start later than in Germany. “Children who don’t immediately celebrate success quickly quit and are lost to us.”says Danz.
Overall, the DSV has created good conditions for the young talents. Trainers, conditions, training opportunities – all of that is great, says Danz. When making the transition to seniors, athletes need not only talent and the right decisions but also a great deal of grit and perseverance in order to achieve the big success.
| juniors | Juniors | Youth female | youth male |
|---|---|---|---|
Leni Dietersberger | Korbinian Kübler | Giovanna Nicolussi | Björn Ole Hederich |
Sydney Laureen libertine | Karl Julian Schütze | Catherine Staller | Hannes Lipfert |
Melina Gaupp | Luke Tannheimer | Leonie Hinterstoisser | Kilian Simon |
Johanna Lehnung | Clemens Böhme | Ina Lickert | Hugo Winters |
| Date | competition | In the sports show |
|---|---|---|
February 28, 10:30 a.m | Individual youth male 12.5 kilometers | Live stream |
February 28, 2:30 p.m | Individual juniors 15 kilometers | Live stream |
March 1st, 10:30 a.m | Individual youth female 10 kilometers | Live stream |
March 1st, 2:30 p.m | Individual junior women 12.5 kilometers | Live stream |
March 2nd, 11:00 a.m | Youth mixed relay | Live stream |
March 2nd, 2:45 p.m | Junior mixed relay | Live stream |
March 3, 10:30 a.m | Sprint youth male 7.5 kilometers | Live stream |
March 3, 2:30 p.m | Sprint juniors 10 kilometers | Live stream |
March 4, 10:30 a.m | Sprint youth female 6 kilometers | Live stream |
March 4th, 2:30 p.m | Sprint junior women 7.5 kilometers | Live stream |
March 6, 10:30 a.m | Mass start juniors 12 kilometers | Live stream |
March 6, 11:30 a.m | Mass start junior women 9 kilometers | Live stream |
March 6th, 2:30 p.m | Mass start youth male 12 kilometers | Live stream |
March 6, 3:40 p.m | Mass start youth female 9 kilometers | Live stream |
March 7th, 11:00 a.m | Youth male relay 3×7.5 kilometers | Live stream |
March 7th, 2:30 p.m | Relay juniors 4×7.5 kilometers | Live stream |
March 8, 10:30 a.m | Youth female relay 3×6 kilometers | Live stream |
March 8, 2:30 p.m | Relay junior women 4×6 kilometers | Live stream |
