Maren Kirkeeide and Isak Leknes Frey finished the season wearing the blue bib in Oslo-Holmenkollen, securing the U23 titles. While Kirkeeide starred at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, Frey had to dig deep to retain his place on the World Cup team, with teammates winning and reaching the podium almost daily. The Norwegian youngsters reflect on their season in a short fireside chat.

BIATHLONWORLD: If you had to describe your U23-winning season in three words - or in three emojis, what would they be?

MAREN KIRKEEIDE: Exciting, fun, amazing.

ISAK FREY: Fun, a learning process, and experience gathering.

BW: What was your favourite moment of the season — on or off the tracks?

MK: The whole Olympic experience was extraordinary. Not just the competitions and winning medals, but also having fun at the hotel and doing things outside the venue.

IF: Achieving my first career podium with third place in the Ruhpolding Sprint was very important to me. Seeing that I can challenge the very best when I perform at a high level was really satisfying. And I shared the podium with Sebastian Samuelsson and Tommaso Giacomel.

BW: Which teammate or competitor pushed you the most this season, and how did it help you improve?

MK: I would say all my teammates. We help each other in every possible way and push each other to be better.

IF: I have spent a few years with Johan-Olav Botn on the B team, competing in the IBU Cup, and we trained together a lot. He always pushed me, and he is still ahead of me. Johan-Olav showed me how to train with the utmost dedication, and he is now an Olympic champion while I am the U23 Score winner. It is also thanks to him that I won this trophy.

BW: Maren, you became an Olympic champion in Antholz 2026. What has the success of such magnitude taken out of you/has affected you?

MK: It made me really happy, as it showed me that you can achieve your goals and that hard work pays off if you know why you are doing it.

BW: Isak, you now know the full extend of difference between being the Boss in the IBU Cup and fighting with the best-of-the best in the World Cup. How would you describe the difference?

IF: The difference is quite big, bigger than I expected. What struck me the most was how fast the top 30 athletes ski and shoot. At the beginning, I needed time to adapt to the fact that I have to push much harder in every lap than I was used to in the IBU Cup. It became easier as the weeks went by, but it is still very much a daily learning experience.