Young athletes strongly represented – Here is Finland’s team for the biathlon World Cup season opener

The Finnish Biathlon Association has named 10 athletes (5 men, 5 women) for the first two competition periods of the Biathlon World Cup, which begins at the end of November. The World Cup season starts with nearly two weeks of competition in Östersund, Sweden, from 29 Nov to 7 Dec. After that, the World Cup continues in Hochfilzen, Austria, on 12–14 December 2025.

In addition to Finland’s familiar top names, several young athletes who performed well at last weekend’s Kontiolahti Grand Prix earned a place at the season-opening competitions. The women competing in Östersund and Hochfilzen are Inka Hämäläinen, Noora Kaisa Keränen, Venla Lehtonen, Sonja Leinamo and Suvi Minkkinen.

For the men, Finland will be represented by Tuomas Harjula, Olli Hiidensalo, Kalle Loukkaanhuhta, Turkka Nieminen and Tero Seppälä.

In addition to the World Cup, three IBU Cup events will be held in December. Representing Finland in these will be: among the women, Saga Hurskainen, Sofia Joronen, Erika Jänkä, Heidi Kuuttinen and Rebecca Sandnäs, and among the men, Arttu Heikkinen, Jimi Klemettinen, Vili Kotikumpu, Santtu Panttila and Jaakko Ranta.

Finland’s team for the World Cup races in Östersund and Hochfilzen

• Östersund, Sweden, 29 Nov – 7 Dec 2025
• Hochfilzen, Austria, 12–14 Dec 2025

Finland’s team for the December IBU Cup

• Obertilliach, Austria, 4–7 Dec 2025
• Ridnaun, Italy, 11–14 Dec 2025
• Lenzerheide, Switzerland, 17–20 Dec 2025