Three in Top 30, Five U.S. Athletes Qualify for Otepää Pursuits

The second-to-last weekend of the World Cup season got underway in Otepää, EST on Thursday, March 12, with warm temperatures and overcast skies for the men’s 10km sprint. The spring-like conditions continued into March 13 for the women’s 7.5km sprint, where athletes also contended with gusty winds on the shooting range.

Campbell Wright (Wanaka, NZL/Waiorau Nordic Skiing) led the U.S. men with a 21st place finish on Thursday, missing just one target in standing. Maxime Germain (Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, FRA/National Guard Biathlon) placed two Americans inside the top 30, finishing 29th after cleaning both his prone and standing stages. Jake Brown (St. Paul, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), racing in his first World Cup of the season, placed 58th with just one miss, advancing three U.S. men into the pursuit. Paul Schommer (Appleton, WI/Team Birkie/Ariens Nordic Center) narrowly missed pursuit qualification, finishing 73rd.

On Friday, Deedra Irwin (Pulaski, WI/Army World Class Athlete Program) delivered a strong performance in the women’s sprint, shooting clean to finish 22nd and add another U.S. athlete to the top 30 results list this weekend. Margie Freed (Apple Valley, MN/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) secured a fifth American pursuit start with her 38th place finish, missing just one target in standing. Luci Anderson (Golden Valley, MN/Team Birkie) finished 81st after five misses on the day.

Racing in Otepää continues Saturday, March 14, with the men’s 12.5km pursuit at 08:30 ET/14:30 EET, followed by the women’s 10km pursuit at 11:00 ET/17:00 EET.