France and Norway were on a tear in Antholz 2026—until Martin Ponsiluoma and Lisa Vittozzi claimed the Pursuit gold medals, putting other nations back in the spotlight ahead of the Relay spectacle in front of another sold-out biathlon crowd on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Women: France is overwhelming favourite, but . . .

With Julia Simon skipping the Pursuit due to not feeling well, France suddenly needs to consider more options than previously planned. Lou Jeanmonnot has already won three medals in Antholz 2026 and narrowly missed a fourth, making her the fixture everyone relies on. Oceane Michelon is in fabulous form, flying high after silver in the Sprint and finishing fifth in the Pursuit. If there was previously a dilemma over whether to field the excellent shooter Camille Bened or speedster Justine Braisaz-Bouchet—who shot only 60% in the Individual and Sprint and missed the Pursuit—France might now need to send both into action.

Hanna Oeberg, Elvira Oeberg, Anna Magnusson, and Linn Gestblom will give France a fight, Simon or no Simon. Their form is picking up: Elvira was the fastest on the skis in the Pursuit, Magnusson the third fastest, Gestblom 10th, and Hanna 15th.

Marthe Krakstad Johansen, Karoline Offigstad Knotten, and Sprint Olympic champion Maren Kirkeeide will surely start for Norway. The question remains: will Juni Arnekleiv replace Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold, who missed nine shots in the Pursuit? Remember: Johansen, Arnekleiv, Knotten, and anchor Kirkeeide won the last test before Antholz 2026 in Ruhpolding.

A stomach bug has been affecting Team Germany, sidelining fast Janina Hettich-Walz for the Sprint. Vanessa Voigt and Franziska Preuss will need to be at their best, hoping Julia Tannheimer avoids penalty loops, while the fourth member—be it Anna Weidel, Selina Grotian, or Hettich-Walz—has a perfect day if Germany wants to contend for medals. The same goes for Italy: Vittozzi is flying, Dorothea Wierer is in great shape, but will Michaela Carrara and Hannah Auchentaller steady their rifles when Olympic medals are at stake?

Men: France vs Norway for gold, bronze fight more open

Quentin Fillon Maillet, Eric Perrot, and Emilien Jacquelin are all in splendid form in Antholz and are strong medal contenders. Their only worry is the shooting of their opening leg athlete, Fabien Claude, who hit just 60% of the targets. They will face the mighty Norwegians, most likely represented by Johan-Olav Botn, Sturla Holm Laegreid, Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen, and Johannes Dale-Skjevdal.

Ponsiluoma and Sebastian Samuelsson will need calm performances from Jesper Nelin and Viktor Brandt and—as we saw at the World Championships in Nove Mesto na Morave 2024—they can go for broke if a window of opportunity opens.

Germany (Philipp Nawrath, Philipp Horn, Justus Strelow, and David Zobel) and Finland (Olli Hidensalo, Tero Seppala, Tuomas Harjula, and Otto Invenius) have an outside chance.

Photos: IBU/Vianney Thibaut, Ola Wizor, Nordic Focus