When Marco Maier returns to Munich for this year’s Loop One Festival, he will do so as the defending champion. But in many ways, he will also return as a different person - not only because of the three medals he won at the Milano Cortina Paralympics, but also because the past year has changed his priorities in life.

Defending champion

A year ago, Maier won the men’s standing para biathlon race at the inaugural Loop One Festival in Munich’s Olympic Park. Since then, the German has experienced both joy and loss in his personal life and won three biathlon medals at the Paralympic Winter Games. Now, with a new season approaching, Maier is looking forward to returning to the place where the previous one began on such a positive note.

“Last year’s race was a really special experience for me. Competing in Munich’s Olympic Park and racing in front of that crowd was incredibly enjoyable. It was simply a fantastic event. I have been looking forward to coming back to the Loop One Festival for weeks. I am excited to see how this year’s race develops and how strong the competition will be. Starting as the defending champion definitely adds a little more pressure than last year,” he said.

Loop One is also different from most events on the para biathlon calendar. Para athletes race alongside the world’s leading able-bodied biathletes, putting the sport in front of a wider audience. For Maier, that opportunity matters.

“I think events like this are very important because they give us the chance to show what para sport has to offer: exciting, high-level competition. By sharing the same stage as the able-bodied athletes, we can also reach people who may not have followed our sport before. I hope that helps awareness of para biathlon continue to grow and brings more people into the sport,” he said.

A different perspective

The past year, however, has been about much more than results. Maier became a father in the summer of 2025. A few months later, in December, his mother died. Those experiences changed the way the 26-year-old views sport and life.

“I still love sport, and I still want to be successful. But I am much more aware now that there is more to life than results and medals. Spending time with my family has become my number one priority,” he added.

That new perspective also shaped the weeks after the Paralympics. After months of preparation focused on one major goal, Maier needed time to step away from sport.

“After such an intense period, and after such a long preparation focused on that one big moment, I needed a few weeks to process everything and switch off. During that time, I spent a lot of time with my family and focused completely on being a father. That helped me create some distance from the sport and then come back to training with fresh energy.”

Three races, three medals

At Milano Cortina 2026, Maier finished on the podium in every para biathlon race he entered. He won bronze in the Sprint, the Individual and the Sprint Pursuit, completing a remarkable three-from-three medal record. His first two medals carried particular emotional significance, as Maier dedicated them to his late mother.

“When I look back at the Paralympics now, the overriding feeling is happiness with what I achieved. To be honest, I did not expect to come home with three podium finishes. Of course, there were races where silver or even gold might have been possible, but the competition was extremely strong, and at this level everything has to come together. To finish on the podium in all three races is something I am very happy about. If someone had offered me three podium finishes before the Games, I would have taken that straight away,” he said.

The Games also gave Maier greater visibility in Germany, although he says everyday life quickly returned to normal.

“What I do feel is a greater sense of responsibility. I see myself in a position to help bring our sport to a wider audience and perhaps inspire people who have not had much exposure to para biathlon before. If my results and my presence can help make the sport more visible and increase interest in it, then that is something I am very happy to contribute to,” he said.

Lucky outfit

The months since the Paralympics have not gone entirely according to plan. Maier had hoped to use the summer to build on his successful winter, but repeated illness disrupted his preparation.

“I kept getting ill, and each time it set me back a little in training. Especially after such an important season, when you are motivated to push on again, that is obviously frustrating. Right now, the main goal is to stay healthy as we head into winter and rebuild my form step by step. I want to get some consistency back into my training and then see where that takes me once the season starts.”

For now, though, the immediate focus is Munich. And if Maier’s performances at the Paralympics were memorable, so too was the outfit in which he produced them. During the Games, warm conditions led him to race in shorts and short sleeves. The look soon became something of a trademark and, eventually, a lucky outfit. There is only one problem ahead of Loop One.

“I have actually donated the original outfit from the Paralympics to the German Sport & Olympic Museum, so maybe it will have its big moment in an exhibition there soon. That means I will have to come up with something new for Loop One. But if the temperatures allow it, I will stay true to my lucky outfit and race in shorts and short sleeves again,” Maier concluded.

The para biathlon races at the Loop One Festival will take place on Saturday, 17 October.

Photos: IBU | Yevenko, IBU | Vanzetta, IBU / Barbieri