ANTHOLZ-ANTERSELVA, Italy — Canada’s biathlon team opened its Olympic Winter Games campaign Sunday with a 17th-place finish in the mixed relay, a performance highlighted by a strong opening leg from veteran Adam Runnalls and valuable Olympic debuts for three first-time competitors.
Racing in front of tens of thousands of spectators at the scenic Antholz-Anterselva biathlon venue, the Canadian quartet posted a combined time of 1:08:37.1 in the 4 x 6-kilometre mixed relay. The event marked the first Olympic appearance for Jasper Fleming of Squamish, B.C., Pascale Paradis of Calgary, and Nadia Moser of Whitehorse, all competing alongside Runnalls, the lone two-time Olympian on the eight-member Canadian biathlon squad.
The mixed relay features a mass start, with each athlete completing a 6-kilometre leg before tagging the next teammate. Biathletes fire five shots at each shooting bout, with up to three spare rounds available if targets remain standing. Any unhit targets after the spares result in a 150-metre penalty loop, adding precious seconds to overall time.
Runnalls, 27, set the tone early with a composed and competitive opening leg, blending strong skiing with clean shooting in both prone and standing positions. He briefly hovered among the top 10, keeping pace with the world’s elite and giving Canada a solid platform.
“I think I was able to set a good example for our group. I have a lot of confidence in this team,” said Runnalls. “We are definitely a young team, but we have potential and there is lots of racing left. We just need to have confidence in ourselves.”
The experienced campaigner drew on familiarity with the Italian venue, often regarded as one of the most challenging stops on the biathlon circuit due to its altitude and demanding course profile.
“It was a tight race. This is my favourite place in the world to compete, so it feels good right now,” said Runnalls, who has gained attention this season for knitting during downtime, a mental health exercise introduced by coach Helene Jorgensen. “The Olympics just feels good. The adrenaline kicked in this morning and helped me out. I think I did a decent job preparing and getting my mind right.”
Runnalls credited Canada’s preparation for handling the thin mountain air. “I’m happy to hit all of my targets today,” added Runnalls. “Everyone is saying how hard it was. I felt it in the lungs, but I think we did a good job with our altitude prep.”
He handed off to 20-year-old Fleming, the youngest member of the team, who experienced the intensity of Olympic competition for the first time. Fleming skied strongly but ran into trouble on the shooting range, ultimately skiing one penalty loop after failing to clear all targets with his spare rounds.
“Adam set me up really well. The first lap I had a good tow from the U.S., and I think all-in-all I was feeling pretty good today, but on the range I was a bit flustered, and then the last shot on prone I just couldn’t hold it together, and then fell apart on the spares,” said Fleming. “I took a little too long on the shots and maybe overworked today. I felt strong on the skiing, but it was tough today.”
Paradis, 23, took over for the first of the women’s legs and worked her way through the field. While she relied on all three spares in both shooting bouts, she avoided penalty loops and kept Canada in contention.
“It was very exciting. It was also a little nerve-wracking for sure. Even though it is similar to a World Cup, it still feels very different,” said Paradis. “I was breathing hard in my first shooting and not quite in my normal zone. It feels good to get one race done, and it was so fun to have it be a relay to start things off.”
Moser, 28, anchored the team, using one spare in prone and two in standing to clear her targets and bring Canada to the finish line.
At the front of the race, six teams broke away early. France claimed the first gold medal of the Games at the biathlon venue in 1:04:15.5, followed by Italy’s silver-medal performance in 1:04:41.3. Germany secured bronze in 1:05:20.8.
Canada’s biathletes will be back in action Tuesday when competition resumes with the men’s 20-kilometre individual event.
