As soon as the season is over, the sport of biathlon is hit by a wave of retirements. The top nation Norway is not spared either: After the resignations of Tiril Eckhoff and Marte Olsbu Röiseland, a former member of the men’s national team has now announced the end of his career.
The Norwegian Erlend Bjöntegaard hangs up his rifle. The 32-year-old announced this on his Instagram channel on Wednesday.
“Life as a biathlete and top athlete is now over,” wrote Bjöntegaard, who can look back on a total of 13 years in the Norwegian national team, five of them in the elite squad. “In all these years I have had many unforgettable experiences and met many wonderful people. My dream of living as a biathlete surrounded by people with genuine passion for what they do is one of the things I cherish the most.”
Bjöntegaard has had 11 podium finishes with the Norwegian relay during his World Cup career, including seven wins. Most recently, he won with the Norway Quartet in Oberhof in January 2020. He took two second places in the sprint and mass start, and a third place in the mass start. His best finish in the overall World Cup was twelfth in the 2019/20 season.
Last year, however, Bjöntegaard was not called up to the national squad again due to the fierce competition in Norway. Nevertheless, he competed in the 2022/23 World Cup in Kontiolahti, where he finished a respectable tenth in the individual.
He celebrated his greatest success this winter at the previous Biathlon European Championships in Lenzerheide, which he dominated with two gold and one silver. He had already won three gold medals at the European Championships in the two previous years.
His first place in the mixed relay at the European Championships in Switzerland was the last official competition Erlend Bjöntegaard attended.