Biathletes recharge before worlds

Bow Valley senior biathletes have posted a mixed bag of results this year on the world cup circuit and returned home to train in preparation for the final push of the season.

Injuries and inconsistent performance have plagued the team, however, there have been several glimmers of hope for the upcoming world championships in Kanty-Mansiysk, Russia at the beginning of March.

The team has alternated training in Kananaskis Country and Lake Louise in the lead up to the world championships, using high elevation training to prepare for the rest of the year.

Brendan Green has been the bright spot on the squad. He matched a career-best 14th place result in Oberhof, Germany and currently sits 41st on the world cup points list – only four spots behind top Canadian Jean Philippe LeGuellec.

“It was really challenging conditions. There was wind and fog rolling in, but I felt decent on my skis and the shooting allowed me to perform well.”

The result has been a highlight, but he hopes the world championship will bring even better times.

“It’s been a really good season for me. It was slow to start, but it picked up as the season went on,” Green said. “My skiing has been fairly consistent, and hopefully I can get my legs back over this short break.”

He credits increased emphasis on shooting for his better results this year.

“The shooting’s been solid. It’s the biggest difference this year,” Green said. He’s currently shooting with 83 per cent accuracy, a four per cent improvement from a year ago.

Zina Kocher, Canada’s best hope for a podium result heading into the season, has not had the results she’s hoped for. She’s currently ranked 57th on the world cup circuit, still the top Canadian on the tour.

“It’s frustrating. I’m not where I want to see myself,” Kocher said. “In mid-January, I came home. I was not only mentally tired, but physically tired as well.”

She’s remained injury-free for much of the season, but did have a few nasty falls in races in December that resulted in a bruised rib.

The 28-year-old has battled back injuries and mononucleosis in the past, but this year has struggled in finding her training groove.

“It’s more a factor of training. I’ve felt really flat and need to up my intensity levels,” Kocher said.

She skipped two world cups to put in an intense workout block,and find the form that has her threatening world cup podiums.

“Being home has been awesome. To be in my own environment and in my own bed makes a difference,” Kocher said.

A top 10 at world championships would salvage her year, and relieve pressure from sponsors. Some corporations and grant applications look to world championship results when divvying out funding. Kocher tries not to worry about that aspect of the sport, but it’s on her mind.

Megan Imrie has battled injuries for much of the season and struggled with her rifle. She did post a career-best 35th place finish, and sits 73rd in world cup rankings.

“I’ve had the odd good race, but I’ve battled a lot of injuries and illness this season. I’ll try to get back on track.

Imrie injured her shoulder in a crash with a teammate in December and developed a nasty flu that has kept her away from training for the past two weeks.

“I put a rib out of place coughing,” she said.

Spending so much time in Europe also took its toll. The team stayed in Europe over the holidays.

“It’s hard being over there for so long. I’m a home body, but I’m getting stoked for the upcoming season,” Imrie said. “I keep telling myself the world championships are the focus for this year.”

Consistent shooting is the key to posting better results, she said.

“When I have good results, it’s because I’ve shot well. This year I’ve been skiing well, but my shooting was below average.”

Imrie says she had her ‘aha’ moment recently with her shooting, which resulted in a 19 for 20 shooting performance. Now that she has the key, she hopes to replicate the performance frequently.

“I was totally relaxed and realized you don’t have to think about the target, you just have to see it,” Imrie said.

She’ll skip a world cup race in Maine to remain in Canmore for extra training, and recover from her flu.

“I’m on the mend until Saturday and then I move into a world cup race in Maine. I’ll use the time as an intense training block. It will be three weeks of pretty focused training,” Imrie said.

Rosanna Crawford is slowly getting better on the world cup circuit. As a young biathlete, she knows strong results rest in her future, so she’s trying to stay healthy and work on gradual improvements.

“I feel I’ve improved and I’m posting more consistent times. It’s hard racing the top guns, but I set ski and shooting goals for every race,” Crawford said.

Crawford has also had a relatively injury-free season compared to past seasons, and has used the time at home to re-connect with her community.

“I went up to the Canmore Nordic club and shot with the kids. It was great to see them excited about the sport that I’m still excited about,” Crawford said.

For the rest of the season, she wants to post more top 60 results, which allows her to qualify for the pursuit races. She’ll compete in two North American world cup results before heading to the world championships.

“I’ve always been a good shot, and a few more good summers of training will help,” Crawford said.