Italy opens the Biathlon World Cup with women’s relay silver in Östersund

Italy made a dream start to the Biathlon World Cup in Östersund, Sweden, taking second place in the women’s 4x6 km relay behind pre‑race favorite France.

The Azzurre lineup—Dorothea Wierer, Michela Carrara, Lisa Vittozzi, and Hannah Auchentaller—produced a composed performance on the range and strong skiing throughout. Despite Carrara serving a penalty loop in the second leg, Italy stayed in contention and ultimately crossed the line just 13.8 seconds behind the French team.

Italy edged the surprise of the day, the Czech Republic, which took third, with Sweden recovering to fourth after early shooting errors from Moa Skottheim in the opening leg. Two expected contenders, Germany and Norway, faltered and finished 11th and 13th respectively.

The race also marked the first time in 19 months that Lisa Vittozzi and Dorothea Wierer competed together in a relay for Italy, with both contributing key legs to the podium finish. In the men’s race, Italy closed the day with a sixth‑place result.