Laura Dahlmeier’s life was definitely looking for freedom. For this, the biathlon Olympic champion gave up competitive sports and devoted herself to her second passion: mountaineering. She has been fatally accidental.
It may be almost a comforting thought that Laura Dahlmeier died where she was preferred: in the mountains. When the two-time biathlon Olympic champion talked about the mountains, her eyes shone a little more than usual. Climbing the highest peak in the world was her passion. Her life at the age of 31 ended at the Laila Peak in the Karakorum Mountains in Pakistan at a height of over 6,000 meters.
Dahlmeier was hit by a rockfall and fatally injured. This announced her management. What remains is the memory of an athlete who was always looking for freedom and found it in the mountains.
Laura Dahlmeier: Even as a child in the mountains at home
“Even as children we were outside in the mountains, went a via ferrata or were on the Alpspitze,” said the native of Garmisch-Partenkirchenerin Last December in the interview in “Blickpunkt Sport”. Even during her successful career, it was always important to her “that I do something else. That I am climbing or mountaineering with my friends at the weekend, where other things are important and other values count,” said Dahlmeier in retrospect at the time. In the mountains she felt freedom. They were already their retreat and source of strength to their active career.
For mountain sports she ended her Biathlon career
But biathlon sports limited her and her passion too much. “The free days simply reduce to a maximum of one day a week and I would have loved to go to climb,” said Dahlmeier in 2021 in the BR program “hits”. After two Olympic wins, seven World Cup titles and 33 World Cup victories, she ended her biathlon career in 2019 at the age of just 25. Also to escape the hype around her.
Dahlmeier sets record in the Himalayas
After her biathlon career, she devoted her life to extreme sports and climbed the highest peak of the planet. With the Huber Buam, she defeated the Mont Blanc in 2021. She also rose to the PIK Korschenewskaya with a height of over 7,000 meters. Last year she set a new record in the Himalaya Mountains. For a documentary, she climbed the 6,800 meter high Ama Dablam after she failed as an active biathlete in 2016 due to the bad weather.
“We were finished a little earlier and had another three days. Then I thought: Man, if there are still three days of buffers, I take two break and then I would go again, without filming, without breaks.” No sooner said than done. In 12 hours she managed the 25 kilometers and 2,355 vertical meters. Before the other, no woman had defeated Ama Dablam twice in front of her.
Dahlmeier was already accidental in 2014 at the Zugspitze
But despite all the fascination about the mountains, Dahlmeier always knew about the risk of her passion. The mountain and ski guide, which had been state-certified since 2023, had already lost three friends. In 2014 she also had an accident at the Zugspitze. At that time she lost her hold and was very lucky. She “only” suffered a breach of ankle, ribbon tear and several bruises. Nevertheless, they always attracted the mountains like magical. “For me it is just so nice to feel this freedom, to say that I go to mountaineering. I go on a ski tour in the morning, in summer I may be going back on an expedition.”
Laura Dahlmeier: Her own freedom was important to her
Dahlmeier likes to talk about freedom: “The value freedom is very high for me. It is super important to me and it is sacred to me. I also look at it and try that I always keep the freedom. No matter what I do.” Dahlmeier had this freedom until the end. Also in the decision what to do with her in the event of an accident.
Because Dahlmeier did not want others to be in danger for their rescue, her body remains where she was best and felt freedom: in the mountains.
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Source: BR24Sport on radio 31.07.2025 – 06:54 a.m.
