The International Biathlon Union (IBU) will elect its new president at its congress, From September 17th to 20th, in Berchtesgaden (Germany)The campaign hasn't officially launched yet, but preparations are underway behind the scenes. The legendary Ole Einar Bjørndalen has been approached to run.
« Many national federations have contacted me to find out if I was interested " the Norwegian, six-time winner of the overall World Cup title, told the media DagbladetThese requests came from " European countries, but not Eastern European countries This is an important detail because Bjørndalen is married to another biathlon legend, the Belarusian Darya Domracheva, and some Russian officials would welcome his candidacy in order to lift the restrictions in place since 2022.
The Norwegian has not yet announced anything, but he has expressed his desire to " to develop biathlon in the best possible direction and maximize its potential and value at the international level The Slovenian Tim Farcnik, member of the executive committeeHe too is mentioned as a candidate to succeed Olle Dahlin. There is no doubt that a candidacy from Bjørndalen would change things given his status: he counts 14 Olympic medals (including eight gold) and twenty world championship titles to his name. Now 52 years old, he ended his athletic career in 2018. He was also a member of the IOC Athletes' Commission.
