At the beginning of May, Johannes Kühn made his departure from biathlon public. Now the long-time DSV star has spoken in detail about his motives for the first time.
After 14 years as a biathlon professional, Johannes Kühn has had enough; the German ski hunter has been officially retired for a few weeks. But why actually? He gave information about this in an interview with the “biathlonworld” portal.
“I was one of the older athletes on the team, and it was clear that at some point I had to ask myself how long I wanted to do this. I also had to think about a career outside of sport, which had to start at some point,” explained Kühn.
His last season at the top level had some setbacks. “Of course my goal before the season was to take part in the Olympic Games and I was disappointed that I didn’t make it, but that had already become apparent during the season,” said the 34-year-old, who said he lacked a concrete “goal” that he could have “worked towards”.
Kühn honestly: “So I decided that I was no longer willing to put so much energy into it. At some point it’s enough, you have to accept that.”
When “a world collapsed” for biathlon ace Kühn
Kühn competed in the World Cup for the first time in December 2012 and made his debut on the big biathlon stage in the sprint in Pokljuka.
Over the course of his career, the Passau native celebrated a number of successes – probably the greatest at the 2025 World Cup in Switzerland, when he ran to the bronze medal with the German relay team.
But there were also some difficult moments. “My two shoulder injuries were a physical and mental challenge, especially the second time, in November 2016, because they meant I had to miss the entire season,” recalled Kühn.
His relay exit at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing also had an impact. “Looking back, I can understand that, but my world collapsed at the time,” admitted the 34-year-old.