Biathlon Olympic champion Denise Herrmann-Wick ends her sporting career this Sunday. The three remaining races at the season finale at Holmenkollen in Oslo will be her last as a ski hunter. “After 16 years of cross-country skiing and seven years of biathlon, it’s time to start a new chapter. I’m looking forward to the adventures that life has in store for me now,” said the 34-year-old on Instagram on Tuesday. In Norway’s capital, sprint, pursuit and mass start are still on the program from Friday.
Due to the expected retirement after a long career, the German biathletes are losing their most successful athlete and leader by far. At her last sporting highlight, the home World Championships in Oberhof in February, the Saxon won gold in the sprint and silver in the pursuit and relay.
Herrmann-Wick crowned her career last year at the Olympic Winter Games in Beijing with gold in the individual and she also led the relay to bronze as the final runner. Herrmann-Wick had already become world champion in pursuit in 2019 and has a total of nine world championship medals (2 gold/6 silver/1 bronze). She won her first Olympic medal in 2014 with the cross-country skiing relay (bronze) in Sochi, Russia. Two years later she switched from cross-country skiing to biathlon.
