The 12.5km Individual races opened the second IBU Para Biathlon World Cup of the season, delivering a memorable first day in Notschrei. Fans at the Schwarzwald Nordic-Center witnessed Oksana Masters’ triumphant return, a Chinese podium sweep in the men’s sitting category, a Canadian double win in the standing races, and a stunning debut victory by Simona Bubenickova.

The first-ever IBU Para Biathlon World Cup in Notschrei unfolded in challenging conditions, with heavy snowfall, fog, and strong gusts of wind playing a decisive role — particularly on the shooting range. The conditions clearly suited the Chinese athletes in the men’s sitting category, who dominated the race and secured all three podium places. Zixu Liu claimed victory ahead of Tao Wang, with Zhongwu Mao completing the sweep.

In the women’s sitting competition, Oksana Masters celebrated her first victory since returning from a year-long break following a serious injury. Despite three shooting misses, the American Paralympic multi-medalist was the fastest on the course and secured victory by 29 seconds over Anja Wicker, who shot more accurately. Third place went to Yilin Shan of China, who marked her World Cup debut with a podium finish.

The standing categories once again belonged to Canada, just as they had a month earlier in Canmore. Mark Arendz and Natalie Wilkie both secured their fourth consecutive victories of the season. Wilkie faced a challenging race of her own making: after starting 15 seconds late, she received a 30-second penalty. Following flawless shooting, she still managed to edge Zhiqing Zhao by six seconds, with Brittany Hudak rounding out the podium. In the men’s race, Benjamin Daviet came close to victory, but after nineteen consecutive hits, a miss on his final shot dropped him to second place, less than half a minute behind Arendz. Junbao Wu of China finished third.

The highlight of the day was undoubtedly the World Cup debut of Simona Bubenickova. The 17-year-old from the Czech Republic, competing in the vision impaired category, already holds a Para Cross-Country Skiing World Championship title but is only beginning her biathlon journey. Her start could hardly have been more impressive. Having begun training just six months ago, Bubenickova achieved 95% shooting accuracy and claimed victory by 39 seconds over Yue Wang. Johanna Recktenwald, winner of the previous three 12.5km races, finished third, more than three minutes behind the young Czech.

With the Ukrainian team absent, the host nation celebrated success in the men’s category as Nico Messinger delivered a dominant performance. The 31-year-old, who trains daily in Notschrei, shot a perfect 20 out of 20 to secure victory by three and a half minutes over fellow German Lennart Volkert. Shuang Yu of China finished third, while overall World Cup leader Anthony Chalencon placed fourth.

Friday is a rest day, with competition resuming on Saturday with the Sprint Pursuit in Notschrei, followed by the Sprint on Sunday.

Photos: Reichert | IBU