Strelow and Hettich-Walz win “Biathlon auf Schalke” World Team Challenge

Germany’s Justus Strelow and Janina Hettich‑Walz captured the World Team Challenge (“Biathlon auf Schalke”) in Gelsenkirchen, delivering the first German win at the event since 2016. In front of roughly 40,000 spectators inside the football stadium, the duo topped the favored French team of Lou Jeanmonnot and Fabien Claude after a combined mass start and pursuit format.

Strelow praised the atmosphere and his shooting form, missing only one of 40 shots across both races, while Hettich‑Walz said the setting gave her confidence, especially for standing stages in the pursuit. Both hope the performance boosts momentum ahead of January’s World Cup round in Oberhof and the February Olympic Winter Games.

Mass start - Strelow/Hettich‑Walz also won the opening mass start, with four total penalties across eight shooting bouts and nine 1.4 km laps. - Jeanmonnot/Claude incurred seven penalty loops and finished 10.8 seconds back.

Pursuit (12.6 km) - The Germans laid the foundation for overall victory with only five penalty loops across 16 shooting bouts (80 shots) on the day. - A key moment came midway through the pursuit when Strelow cleaned his first standing stage; Claude missed twice and trailed by about 30 seconds at the exchange. - After Hettich‑Walz missed one shot on her final standing, the gap shrank to 11.6 seconds, setting up a final duel. Strelow cleaned the last shooting; Claude missed again, and Strelow finished first. Claude arrived 21.4 seconds later.

Podium and other results - 1) Justus Strelow / Janina Hettich‑Walz (GER) - 2) Lou Jeanmonnot / Fabien Claude (FRA) +21.4 s - 3) Juni Arnekleiv / Mats Øverby (NOR) +1:12.8, who started to honor their late teammate Sivert Bakken, saying they were “racing as three.” - The second German team, Marlene Fichtner / Danilo Riethmüller, placed eighth (+2:28.9).

Prize money and format notes - The event distributed more than €30,000, one-third after the mass start and two-thirds after the pursuit. Time gaps from the mass start were partly reduced for the pursuit (5.0 seconds per position).

The feature also links to related coverage, including re‑live videos of the races and items about biathlon news, the late Sivert Bakken, and German relay athletes’ retroactive Olympic gold ceremony in Antholz.