Mystery Around the Biathlon Shock: 'Completely Surprising'

The national head coach for the men had offered his resignation shortly after the disappointing showing of the men's team at the World Championships.

Former Biathlon World Champion and ARD expert Erik Lesser reacted with great astonishment to the sudden resignation of men’s head coach Uros Velepec. “The news came completely unexpectedly,” Lesser told the news portal t-online.

On Tuesday, the German Ski Association (DSV) announced the departure of Velepec, following a disappointing performance at the World Championships in Lenzerheide where the biathletes managed only a bronze medal in the relay.

Introducing the New Biathlon Head Coach

Tobias Reiter, who recently coached the men in the IBU Cup, will take over as head coach at the upcoming World Cup event in Nove Mesto (March 6-9). He will receive support from discipline coach Jens Filbrich.

“Jens Filbrich and Tobias Reiter are already familiar from a shared IBU Cup season, so the onboarding process should be very quick,” Lesser commented.

However, the 36-year-old does not expect major performance leaps immediately. “I doubt there will be any dramatic changes until the end of the season, except perhaps in the way the team is addressed before races and during training,” Lesser added. “The coming season will be interesting. It remains to be seen how the team prepares and adapts.”

The Reason Behind Velepec’s Resignation

Velepec, who had assumed the role only in 2023, explained that his decision was not spontaneous and was only partly related to the team’s disappointing results at the Championships. “Even though we all had higher expectations in Lenzerheide, overall, we are simply not at the level we had collectively aimed for,” he stated.

He concluded that a new impetus was needed—and perhaps a new way of addressing the athletes—in order to be successful with an eye towards the 2026 Olympic Games. “The earlier the better. I therefore suggested that we make a change now rather than waiting any longer.”