It was not the start to the IBU BMW World Cup biathlon season Megan Tandy had been hoping for in Oestersund, Sweden.
After posting a mid-pack result in the women's 15 km individual race on Wednesday, the 28-year-old World Cup veteran from Prince George failed to reach the top 60 result in Saturday's 7.5 km sprint, needed to qualify for the pursuit race on Sunday. Tandy finished 78th in the sprint and in her Facebook post, she was obviously not happy with her performance.
"No one said it would be easy," said Tandy. "It was an altogether very disappointing, tough start to the season. Decent shooting, but the ski speed is far from where it should be.
"Still, I am putting my trust in my training and looking forward to new chances next week."
Marie Dorin Habert of France won the sprint in 20:09.7. Julia Ransom of Penticton shot clean in both rounds and was 38th, 1:54.1 off the pace, Rosanna Crawford of Canmore was 64th and Sarah Beaudry, a 22-year-old Caledonia Nordic Ski Club member from Prince George, placed 97th.
On a windy Wednesday, Tandy placed 53rd in the 15 km individual race, 7:33 off the winning pace of 46:14 set by Germany’s Laura Dahlmeier. Tandy had two misses in her prone shooting rounds, shot clean in her first standing round and missed three in her second standing bout.
"Despite feeling slow skiing, I was still in the mix with decent (13-for-15) shooting on a windy, challenging day....until my final standing bout," wrote Tandy. "It felt like I stood on my lane, struggling to stay on target for an eternity! I missed three of my five final targets, which was the equivalent to game over. 53rd place."
Ransom was the top Canadian sprinter in 42nd place, 6:23.4 off the pace, after five misses. Crawford was 80th with eight penalties. Beaudry dropped out after her third shooting round and finished 95th.
Ransom advanced to the pursuit and finished 58th, 6:36 behind gold-medalist Gabriela Koukalova of the Czech Republic. Scott Gow of Canmore was 47th in the men's pursuit Sunday, 3:34 behind winner Anton Babikov of Russia. Brendan Green of Hay River, NWT was 50th.
Tandy began her week in Sweden on Monday with a disappointing 22nd-place result out of 24 in the mixed relay, teaming up with Ransom, Scott Gow and Green. Crawford and Smith teamed up the same day in the individual relay and placed a respectable seventh.
Tandy's 2015-16 World Cup season came to a premature end last February when she broke her wrist while on a training run the day before the races started in Canmore, Alta. The two-time Olympian is trying to regain the form that led to four top-15 World Cup finishes in 2014-15.
She lives in Germany and has a new sponsor this year, G.K. Software, which has provided her a new Audi car so she to drive to some of her races. The company is based in Schoneck, Germany, near the town of Klingenthal, where Tandy's ex-husband, Illmar Heinicke, and six-year-old son Predo live. She divides her time between Klingenthal (on the Czech Republic border) and Siegsdorf, a town in the Bavarian Alps where she trains.
"Their support will give me the opportunity to train like the best and I'm proud to be able to represent this international, yet local, company," posted Tandy. "Their headquarters are just 10 km away from my 'home away from home' in Germany."
The BMW IBU World Cup tour resumes this week with races in Pokljuka, Slovenia. The men's and women's sprints are on Friday, followed by the pursuits on Saturday and the men's and women's relays on Sunday. Novo Mesto, Czech Republic will host World Cup events, Dec. 12-18.
Matt Neumann, a 27-year-old native of Prince George who now lives in Canmore, has been picked for Canada's IBU Cup team and is now in Ridnaum-Val Ridanna, Italy training for races later this week.
Canada will enter teams Thursday in the single mixed relay and the team mixed relay and Neumann is expected to race that day. He's also entered in Friday's sprint race and will try to crack the top-60 to make the cut for Sunday's pursuit.
The IBU Cup tour will also stop in Obertilliach, Austria, Dec. 14-17.
Emily Dickson, a Caledonia Nordic Ski Club racers from Burns Lake, is also in Europe this week to compete in the IBU Junior Cup. Dickson, 19, who is now based in Canmore, is entered in the women's individual race on Saturday and the sprint on Sunday.
The junior tour will visit Hochfilzen, Austria, Dec. 14-17.
