Reid and Brown Close IBU Cup 1 With Two Top-25 Pursuit Results

After nearly three weeks of pre-season training in Obertilliach, AUT, the IBU Cup team stayed put, ready to tackle the opening races of the 2024/25 IBU Cup season on the same course. The weekend was highlighted by the return of Joanne Reid (Grand Junction, CO/Colorado Biathlon Club) to international racing, along with standout top-25 pursuit finishes from both Reid and Jake Brown (St. Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project).

Racing kicked off on Thursday, December 4 with the first of two sprints. Kelsey Dickinson (Winthrop, WA/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) led the U.S. women in 42nd, hitting all 10 targets. Reid followed in 48th after one miss in prone and two in standing, while Grace Castonguay (Jackson, NH/Soldier Hollow Elite) placed 80th with two misses in each stage. Lina Farra (Heber City, UT/Unaffiliated) finished 90th, missing only one shot in standing.

In the men’s sprint, Brown led the U.S. men in 49th, rebounding from three prone misses with a clean standing stage. Vincent Bonacci (Salt Lake City, UT/Unaffiliated) and Bjorn Westervelt (Stowe, VT/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) both crossed the line +2:59.1 back to tie for 58th. Vaclav Cervenka (Grand Rapids, MN/Army World Class Athlete Program) finished 64th with four misses.

After a rest day, the team returned for the second sprint, where Reid surged to 35th, and Dickinson posted another clean shooting day to finish 37th. Castonguay followed in 44th, qualifying three U.S. women for the pursuit. Farra placed 93rd. On the men’s side, Brown and Cervenka both earned pursuit starts in 29th and 49th, respectively. Bonacci and Westervelt placed outside of pursuit contention in 66th and 80th.

Sunday brought strong pursuit performances. Reid climbed 11 places to finish 24th, despite three misses. Dickinson, going 39 for 40 on the range over the weekend, finished 38th. Castonguay, challenged on the range with five misses, slipped just five spots to finish 49th. In the men’s pursuit, Brown overcame four penalty loops to jump from 29th to 22nd, backed by the sixth-fastest ski time of the day. Cervenka did not start.

The IBU Cup team now heads to Ridnaun-Val Ridanna, ITA, for individual, sprint, and pursuit races. Having now collected the required IBU points, Reid will race World Cup 2 in Hochfilzen, AUT this upcoming weekend.

Fans can follow all IBU Cup action live on the IBU App!