Biathlon
Johannes Thingnes Bø was able to do as he pleased with the biathlon field. The results of this exceptional Norwegian athlete are something out of a fairy tale: nineteen World Cup wins, plus five gold medals, and one each of silver and bronze in the world championships. His extraordinary performances ended up making him the Overall World Cup winner for the fourth time in his career, as well as taking World Cup titles in Sprint and Pursuit. “This season for me was just unbelievable. I was in fantastic skiing form, but you still have to hit those targets. I was able to do that this season like I never have before”, said the amiable elite performer. “A lot of work went into it, and now I’m holding the large crystal globe, which was my goal all year.” With Martin Ponsiluoma of Sweden, Tarjei Boe and Johannes Dale of Norway, then France’s Quentin Fillon Maillet taking places five through eight in the Overall standings, that meant four more Fischer athletes wearing Speedmax skis and boots were among the top ten.
In the women’s biathlon, Denise Herrmann-Wick celebrated the perfect end to her successful career by crowning her list of achievements with a victory in the season’s final sprint to take the small globe in the Sprint World Cup. In the Overall World Cup, the individual champion from Oberhof signed off with a strong fourth place finish. “I always wanted to step away when I was at the top. I started as a sprinter in cross-country and was able to end my career as the top sprinter in the biathlon. That was the crowning glory for it all”, enthused the beaming German star. Her fellow competitors, also under the same brand umbrella, likewise gave an excellent account of themselves: Sweden‘s Hanna Öberg -the most successful Fischer athlete at the world championships- took fourth place; Marketa Davidova of the Czech Republic took ninth, Lisa Theresa Hauser of Austria took tenth, and Lou Jeanmonnot of France finished in eleventh place.
Nordische Kombination
Nordic Combined
Fischer athletes clearly set the pace in the Nordic Combined, with all of the individual victories in the 22l23 World Cup season going to members of the Fischer Race Family. Head and shoulders above the women’s field in each of her starts this season- both in the World Cup and world championships- was the highly decorated Norwegian Gyda Westvold Hansen. Unbeatable, she stood at the top of the podium after each of her starts, and easily secured the large crystal globe as Overall World Cup champion once again. A lone shadow falling over her great success is that the women’s Nordic Combined will not be recognized as an Olympic sport in 2026, though women are proving themselves as excellent performers in the discipline. Prime examples are other Fischer athletes Ida Marie Hagen of Norway, Annika Sieff of Italy, Lisa Hirner of Austria, Yuka and Haruka Kasai of Japan, Jenny Nowak of Germany, and Anju Nakamura of Japan in spots three through nine in the Overall World Cup.
On the men’s side, Norway’s Jarl Magnus Riiber won eight World Cups this season and took gold in each of his four world championship starts. But not even his awesome season-ending spurt as he took four victories in a row, could stop Johannes Lamparter from Austria. The later consistently earned points throughout the season and was ultimately rewarded with the Overall World Cup’s large crystal globe for the first time in his career. Behind him were Jens Luraas Oftebro of Norway and Julian Schmid of Germany. The new Overall World Cup champion was overwhelmed, saying, “It’s just crazy. One of my childhood dreams has been fulfilled. This is definitely the highlight of my career so far.” Jarl Magnus Riiber ended up in fourth place in the Overall World Cup, followed by Estonia’s Kristjan Ilves, Vinzenz Geiger of Germany in seventh, Laurent Muhlethaler of France in eighth, and Ilkka Herola of Finland in ninth, all representing Fischer in the top ten.
Ski Jumping
Three-time Ski Jumping world champion Katharina Althaus of Germany wrapped up her successful season with a strong second place in the Overall World Cup, ahead of Slovenia’s Ema Klinec, Norway’s Anna Odine Strøm, and Germany’s Selina Freitag. Other top ten performers included Norway’s Silje Opseth, Japan’s Yuki Ito, and Slovenia’s Nika Kriznar, who took spots seven through nine in the Overall classification.
Stefan Kraft of Austria used his final flight of the season to secure second place in the Overall World Cup and earned the small crystal globe for his victory in the Ski Flying World Cup as a satisfying finish to his season. “It was a battle of nerves at the end,” gushed the happy winner about his victory. “Winning a small globe is always something unbelievable. At some point you’re running on empty. I’m just happy I could maintain my performance through the end.”
Cross-Country
Johannes Høsflot Klæbo finished up his season with an impressive string of six World Cup victories in a row. Both in sprints and distance events the speedy Norwegian was not be denied, laying down a solid base of performances underpinning a dominating campaign for his fourth Overall World Cup title. He was the season’s fastest sprinter, taking the Sprint World Cup for the fifth time, ahead of France’s Lucas Chanavat and Norway’s Even Northug. Having won the Tour de Ski and being the top world championship medal earner with three golds and two silvers, Norway’s Johannes Høsflot Klæbo understandably had a positive summary of his season: “20 World Cup wins- what an unbelievable feeling. I never would have dared to dream that, especially with the injury at the beginning of the season. I’m really happy and really proud. This was definitely my best season!” His national teammates Didrik Tønseth, Hans Christer Holund, and Erik Valnes in places five, six, and ten are again among the Overall World Cup elite.
On the women’s side, it was four-time medalists Ebba Andersson and Frida Karlsson of Sweden setting the pace at the world championships. Finland’s Kerttu Niskanen was elated over third place in the Overall World Cup, her first end-of-season podium finish. An added bonus was her victory in the Distance World Cup. Following her victory in the Tour de Ski, Frida Karlsson took sixth place in the Overall World Cup, ahead of Germany’s Katharina Hennig in seventh, with Norway’s Heidi Weng completing the top ten.
Ski Marathon
The ski marathon series Ski Classics ended up with a pair of statement podium sweeps featuring Speedmax DP skis and Skiathlon boots from Fischer. Team Engcon’s Ida Dahl beamed as she crossed the finish line in second, winning the climbing competition as well as the Overall title, ahead of Team Eksjöhus skier Magni Smedaas and Vasaloppet winner Emilie Fleten of Team Ramudden. The best Youth category skier, Karolina Hedenström of Lager 157 Ski Team, took fourth place in the Overall, ahead of Astrid Øyre Slind of Team Aker Daehlie, Jenny Larsson of Team Ragde Charge, and Kati Roivas of Team Næringsbanken Stora Enso. The fastest sprinter, Anikken Gjerde Alnes of Team Ragde Charge, placed ninth in the Overall.
Following his Vasaloppet victory and eight further victories this season, the honorary yellow jersey for the Overall title went to the runaway winner, Emil Persson of Lager 157 Ski Team. Andreas Nygaard of Team Ragde Charge and Max Novak of Team Aker Daehlie completed the Fischer podium in the Overall men’s competition, matching the women’s podium. Following them were Kasper Stadaas of Team Ragde Charge in fourth place, and Amund Riege of Team Ramudden in fifth place, who also won the Youth category in the process. Fourteen more Fischer Race Family athletes followed, displaying Fischer’s dominance in Ski Marathon. Even the Sprint results were a Fischer Race Family affair with winner Alfred Buskqvist of Team Ramudden and Johan Hoel of Team Ragde Charge taking the climbing competition.
