Wow! Just when we thought making the Canadian Olympic 2010 biathlon team was the penultimate goal reached by Brendan Green in this 2009 - 2010 competition season .... Brendan has proceeded to add a few more exciting chapters to this compelling adventure in progress.
Brendan wrapped up the biathlon world cup pre-Olympic schedule with personal bests, 19th and 14th places in Antholz, Italy.
From Brendan's blog:
"From Germany we drove three hours to Antholz, Italy, where World Cup #6 would be taking place four days later. Situated in a mountain valley, Antholz is home to one of my favorite venues on the World Cup circuit. The stadium is awesome, the trails have nice flow, good snow is always a guarantee, the weather is amazing with sun most days, and the cuisine is stellar with four course meals!
The race went awesome. I felt relaxed on my skis and skied at a fast yet comfortable pace that I was able to maintain for the duration of the 20km. In the range I felt focused and confident. The shooting conditions were tricky with inconsistent wind, but I managed to stay assertive while shooting and ended the day in 19th place, my best result ever on the World Cup! Placing in the top 20 was a huge result for me and I proved to myself that I am able to compete and put up a fight with the best athletes when things are going well for me.
...then once on course I lay the hammer down. I knew it was a tight race and that there was a pack of guys in hot pursuit of me. I didn’t want to be leading these guys so I did my best to put a bit of a gap early on in the loop and began to push the pace as much as my body would allow. It hurt like hell but I didn’t care. I was too focused on my skiing to think about the pain. For the rest of the loop I was slowly gaining on a pack ahead of me, and with about 400m to go I was caught by a Russian. We sprinted to the finish and just caught up to the back of the pack that was ahead of us as we lunged at the line. I looked up at the scoreboard to see that I had made up 20 places and finished in 14th!!! By far my best race on the World Cup to date! I also posted the second fastest ski time of the day which was an awesome bonus… 3 seconds off of the lead pace!"
So, while the biathlon world turned its eyes toward Vancouver and the upcoming Olympic games, Brendan and his Canadian relay team mates, Robin Clegg and Marc Andre Bedard were cut loose to jump into the IBU cup racing circuit for a week. The plan was to remain at altitude in Europe and barnstorm competitions in France and Italy - four races in eight days!
If Brendan Green was an unknown going into the sprint race in Maurienne, France that would soon change after the 10 K sprint race, Saturday, February 6 ... Click on the highlights to follow the results and photos from a dream week of racing on the IBU circuit.
Haute Maurienne, France 10 K Sprint Saturday, February 6, 2010
Haute Maurienne, France 12.5 K Pursuit Sunday, February 7, 2010
Martell-Val Martello, Italy 10 K Sprint Friday, February 12, 2010
View on Biathlon World Television
European Press Report Translated:
Press release 12 th February 2010
BRENDAN GREEN: FROM VANCOUVER TO HAMMER
-Nice opening for the IBU-Cup weekend in Val Martello-Italy
-Among men, the German army defeated by Green (CAN)
The IBU Biathlon Cup opened today in Martell (South Tyrol - Italy), in a day Characterized by a blue sky and temperatures around -10 C °. The thrilling biathlon races that opened this weekend in Val Martello were two sprint-events, one for men and one for ladies.
Among men, Brendan Green (CAN) surprised everyone with an incredible performance at the shooting range, avoiding every possible mistake and closing with a good gap on the runner-up Christoph Knie (GER). Maxim Maximov (RUS) completed the podium with his third position, 54''behind Green.
During the last stages of the IBU Cup, Green showed an enhancement of his incredible physical shape and today he was not just fast on the skies, but also steady and perfect on the shooting range, avoiding every possible mistake. The same did Knie, while Maksimov had to ski one penalty lap owing to a mistake made in the shooting.
Today's victory will allow Green to start tomorrow's event with a good pursuit-all advantage on his competition, giving him the possibility To achieve the second victory in a row in the IBU-Cup, right before stepping on a plane that will take him to the Olympics of Vancouver, where he will be one of the men Representing Canada in the Olympic relay.
Italian Press Release Translation:
BRENDAN GREEN: HAMMER IN HEAD, THE HEART OF OLYMPICS
While in his country are about to take the Olympic Games, Brendan Green is off to a great satisfaction in Val Martello (BZ). It is the Canadian winner of the 10km men's sprint, which opened today, the "two days" of biathlon in the locality of Alto Adige, valid as the seventh and penultimate stage of the IBU-Cup, the former European Cup.
IBU Press Release:
Surprise in Martell Sprints
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12.02.2010, Martell  / Luis Mahlknecht/JerryKokesh |
| Canadian takes Men’s Sprint |
| The first competition at IBU Cup 7 in Martell, Italy ended with a small surprise. The Men’s Sprint was won by the young Canadian Brendan Green, 44.3 seconds ahead of Germany’s Christoph Knie. |
The basis for the success of the Canadian was a perfect result at the shooting range in combination with a strong performance on the tracks. Green, who comes from the Northwest Territories in Canada, had already won a bronze medal in the Relay at the IBU Youth and Junior World Championships 2007 here in Martell. “Martell obviously is a good location for me. Also, the low temperatures worked in my favor,” he commented after the competition.
Biathlon Canada Press Release:
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GREEN IS GOLD AT IBU CUP #7 SPRINT
Friday, February 12, 2010
MARTEL, Ita.— Brendan Green finished on the top of the podium at IBU Cup #7 in Martel, Italy on Friday. Green, of Hay River, NT, who had finished fourth in last week's Pursuit, clocked a time of 26:02.5 with perfect shooting in the 10-kilometre men's Sprint. His fourty-four second lead over second place Christoph Knie of Germany, who also shot clean, is a major success as Brendan begins his final preparations to join Canada's Olympic Team for the Men's Relay. Other Canadian finishes on Friday included: 25. Marc-André Bédard, QC., 28:23.1; 34. Tyson Smith, AB, 28:55.7; 51. Nathan Smith, AB, 29:45.0; 58. Patrick Côté, NB, 30:13.7;
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Martel-Val Martello, Italy 12.5 K Pursuit Saturday, February 13, 2010
Racing in France, then Italy, over eight days, in four IBU Cup events has to be as demanding as it gets for a competitive biathlete. Placing 7th, 4th, 4th and 1st in those races puts Brendan up in the stratosphere of IBU Cup racers. When the season's over and Brendan has an opportunity to look back on this time, he surely will have to agree that there was something very special happening during this week, high up in the Alps of Europe. As fans of Brendan and Canadian biathlon, we look forward to seeing continued success but can there be even more exciting times ahead? Go Brendan, go!
Note: JP Leguellec posted a sixth place finish in the 10 K sprint at the Olympics. He'll be racing for a medal in Tuesday's pursuit event. This all bodes well for Canadian biathlon. Go, Canada, go!
