In the new season, Dorothea Wierer is struggling with illness-related problems. At the Biathlon World Cup in Lenzerheide, the superstar pulled the ripcord.
In the Lenzerheide sprint on Thursday, Dorothea Wierer did not get past a disappointing 32nd place with two shooting errors and a manageable running performance. The Italian will no longer take part in any further races in the Swiss holiday resort.
This was confirmed by the Italian winter sports association. “She will not take part in the remaining races in Switzerland, will return to Italy and will try to get as fit as possible,” it said in a statement.
Lisa Vittozzi, Rebecca Passler, Beatrice Trabucchi and Samuela Comola will be competing for Italy in the pursuit on Saturday (12:45 p.m.).
Wierer initially missed the dress rehearsal for the biathlon season in Sjusjøen, Norway, in November due to a flu-like infection.
Wierer “sick three times in 22 days”
At the start of the biathlon in Östersund, the 33-year-old suffered from health problems again. 14th place in the pursuit was her best result at the start of the season. She only finished 17th in the individual and sprint.
Before the second World Cup stop in Hochfilzen, Wierer was sick again. Nevertheless, she competed in the sprint and pursuit. However, the results (26th and 17th place) left a lot to be desired.
“Great start to the season,” the 33-year-old commented on a snapshot of herself on Instagram last week with a large dose of irony. “I was sick three times in 22 days,” was the sobering message from the Italian.
She complained to “Fondo Italia”: “It really seems to me at the moment as if fate was angry with me.”
Now Wierer also had to cancel the World Cup in Lenzerheide. This marks the end of 2023 for the four-time world champion.