Canada wins three gold medals and a bronze to open Para biathlon World Cup

CANMORE, Alta. – Collin Cameron of Bracebridge, Ont., Natalie Wilkie of Salmon Arm, B.C., and Mark Arendz of Hartsville, P.E.I., all won gold on Thursday to open the Para biathlon World Cup season.

It was a sizzling start for Canada with the Paralympic Winter Games, this season’s main target, set for March 6-15, 2026, in Milano Cortina, Italy.

Cameron, a double silver medallist at the Para cross country skiing World Cup here last week, continued to show he is recovering very-well-thank-you-very-much from a shoulder surgery that kept him on the sidelines last season. He also missed most of the previous season with a sinus infection.

The 37-year-old   showcased his trademark precision and power, taking the men’s 10 kilometre sitting race. His 23-second margin over Aaron Pike of the U.S., was remarkable, especially given that the American shot clean while the Canadian had to complete a penalty loop. Ukraine’s Taras Rad, also returning from a year of recovery, rounded out the podium.

‘’It’s great especially to do it here in Canmore,’’ said Cameron, a six-time Paralympic Games medallist. ‘’It’s nice to come back after being so long out of it. I wasn’t overthinking the race. I just put my head down racing and focused on trying to shoot well.’’

A wily veteran, Cameron is not counting his chickens before they’re hatched.

‘’You have to be realistic about it too. It’s the first race of the season in biathlon. I’ll take the win, but I know there are a lot of exceptional biathlon athletes here and not here in Canmore. I’m keeping grounded. But there’s a lot more left in my body and I’m pushing through those initial walls now.’’

In the women’s standing 10 kilometre, Wilkie a triple silver medallist last week, set the pace, finishing 16 seconds ahead of Ukraine’s Liudmyla Liashenko and 18 seconds ahead of her teammate, Brittany Hudak of Prince Albert, Sask. All three medallists were perfect in the shooting range.

“Starting the season with a win is really reassuring,’ said Wilkie, 24, with seven medals in her first two Paralympic Winter Games. ‘’It gives me a lot of confidence. I knew I could be a contender today. Mid-race, I had a good feeling, but I didn’t get any splits, so I honestly had no idea where I was.’’

With her speed on the trails, Wilkie knew it was her race to lose after perfect shooting.

‘’After the second shooting, I thought, ‘Okay, I’m clean. Now I need to ski fast and give everything I have.’ That was my only focus on the last lap. I’m definitely not in peak form yet. I want to build that toward March for the Paralympic Games.’’

In the men’s standing race, Arendz was the only competitor to shoot clean, winning by well over a minute ahead of Ukraine’s Serhii Romaniuk. The numbers underline Arendz’s sustained excellence: since the start of the 2023/24 season, he has claimed 15 victories in 19 starts.

France’s Paralympic champion Benjamin Daviet completed the podium.

‘’A harsh Canmore trifecta of colder temps, wind and high humidity made for challenging conditions,’’ Arendz wrote on his Instagram page. ‘’Consistent pacing and skiing, and deliberate focus on shooting, and a bit of luck sprinkled in, meant I would take the first victory of the Para biathlon World Cup.’’

Competition continues Saturday with the sprint pursuit and Sunday with the 12.5 kilometre individual.

With files  from the International Biathlon Union