Suspension served
Biathlon ace after cheating scandal: “It wasn’t easy”
12/12/2025 – 4:17 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
After her ban, Julia Simon is back in the Biathlon World Cup. She talks in more detail about the excitement surrounding her credit card fraud.
French biathlete Julia Simon, who was convicted of fraud, has returned to the World Cup after her ban. At the second World Cup weekend of the season in Hochfilzen, the ten-time world champion started in the sprint and took 19th place after a shooting error.
After the race, the 29-year-old spoke on the ARD microphone about the excitement around her. “It wasn’t easy. The media part in particular wasn’t easy, but I learned a lot in my life and about life,” she said. She asked herself a lot of questions, including whether she would even return to the World Cup again. But the answer was clear: “Yes, I love it. I still have good races ahead of me,” continued Simon. “It’s what I love the most and now I’m back here and I’m happy. I had a lot of fun today. It was very painful but it was also very fun.”
The overall World Cup winner for the 2022/2023 season caused an uproar with the explosive credit card affair. Simon had confessed to having purchased goods worth around 2,500 euros online using stolen credit card details from her teammate Justine Braisaz-Bouchet and a team physiotherapist. She was then sentenced on October 24th to a three-month suspended prison sentence and a fine of 15,000 euros.
The French Ski Association banned Simon from competing and training for six months – although five months of that were suspended. The ban applied from November 7th, so she only missed the start in Östersund. The association spoke of a “very strict” decision, but even with the fine of 30,000 euros, 15,000 were suspended.
Immediately before the start of the Olympic season, the well-informed magazine “Ski Chrono” spoke of a “tense atmosphere” within the French women’s team. It seems difficult to imagine that Simon can be reintegrated normally. However, the French association also knows about the sporting qualities of the fast shooter, who should win as many medals as possible at the Winter Games.
Simon won four gold medals at the World Championships in Switzerland in the spring and became the most successful athlete. After Olympic silver with the mixed relay in Beijing in 2022, her first Olympic victory is now her big goal.
When asked about the tensions in the team, Simon appeared calm on ARD: “No one is really friendly. We are competitors,” she said. France has a good team and all athletes are fighting for their place in the World Cup. “It’s always very difficult and I feel okay about it. I’m here for the sport. I’m happy with my performance today and the team did well too. Lou was also strong today. Everyone showed what they can do,” continued Simon.