The Biathlon World Cup opener in Kontiolahti, Finland will take place without defending champion Lisa Vittozzi. Your trainer has now given an update. It is still unclear when the Italian will celebrate her comeback.
Lisa Vittozzi remains on hold after suffering a back injury. No decision has yet been made about a return to the World Cup. The last World Cup race will take place in Finland on Sunday (women’s mass start from 5:10 p.m.), and five days later the sprint will continue in Hochfilzen, Austria (December 13th, 11:30 a.m.).
Italy’s biathlon coach Klaus Höllrigl cannot yet say with certainty that the top biathlete will travel to the Alps. “Lisa is training and trying to find the condition for Hochfilzen,” he said in an interview with “Fondo Italia”: “Only at the weekend will we see whether it is enough or not. Then we will make a decision.”
Vittozzi was slowed down by back problems shortly before the start of the World Cup, which is why she did not travel to Kontiolahti with the Italian team.
The comeback of biathlon talent Passler is still unclear
The 29-year-old won the big crystal ball for the overall World Cup victory for the first time in her career in 2023/24. The big goal for the new season is now defending the title. If she also misses the World Cup in Austria, she will have to chase a big gap.
It is also unclear for the Italians whether ski hunter Rebecca Passler is an option in Hochfilzen. The 23-year-old is only now starting training again. “At the beginning of next week we will assess whether she is ready to go to Austria or not.”
But they won’t take any big risks with Passler, “because we have athletes who can replace her.”
Despite the two failures, Klaus Höllrigl had not made any squad adjustments for the World Cup. “We decided to do this to give the girls in the IBU Cup the opportunity to compete in more races.”