Beautiful sunshine, a light frost and a fast course - that is how Jakuszyce welcomed the athletes for the 7.5km Sprint races. It marks the final IBU Para Biathlon World Cup of the season and one of the last opportunities to compete before the Paralympic Games.

The largest category in the field, the men’s sitting, was the first to take to the course and delivered a thrilling contest decided by fractions of a second. Despite skiing a penalty loop, Taras Rad claimed his first victory since December 2024, edging a flawless Joshua Sweeney by just 1.5 seconds. The battle for third place was even tighter, with Eui Hyun Shin securing his first podium finish of the season, narrowly holding off former overall World Cup leader Aaron Pike.

In the women’s sitting category, Kendall Gretsch suffered her second biathlon defeat in the past two years, this time conceding victory to teammate Oksana Masters. The two finished just 13 seconds apart. Masters, continuing her return to top form after injury, was clearly the faster skier and secured the win despite skiing one additional penalty loop. Yunji Kim, the youngest athlete in the field, finished third, more than a minute behind the winner.

An unusual situation unfolded in the men’s standing category. Serhii Romaniuk initially recorded the fastest time but was soon disqualified for receiving prohibited assistance on the shooting range. As a result, Karl Tabouret was declared the winner. The 22-year-old Frenchman celebrated the first World Cup victory of his career, finishing four seconds ahead of Serafym Drahun and 20 seconds clear of Grygorii Vovcinsky.

In the women’s standing race, Natalie Wilkie controlled the competition from start to finish. The overall World Cup leader shot clean and never relinquished the lead, though the margins remained close. Iryna Bui finished 14 seconds behind, with Sydney Peterson a further four seconds back - both securing their first World Cup podium finishes of the season.

One of the closest races in para biathlon history followed in the men’s VI category, traditionally dominated by Team Ukraine. Maksym Murashkovskyi emerged victorious, with Oleksandr Kazik second and Iaroslav Reshetynskyi third - all three separated by just 2.7 seconds. In the women’s VI race, the balance of power continued to shift. After months of German dominance, the Czech team came out on top. Simona Bubencikova claimed a convincing victory, building a margin of more than one minute over Johanna Recktenwald, despite skiing one penalty loop. Carina Edlingerova completed the podium after skiing two penalty loops.

Following a rest day on Saturday, the Sprint Pursuit will take place, before Sunday’s Individual races bring the competition to a close and decide the Crystal Globe winners for the 2025/26 season.

Photos: Wlaźlak | IBU