Biathlon: the day of the first IBU Cup podium for Voldiya Galmace-Paulin
Since the start of the winter, following successful selections in Bessans (Savoie), Montblanc’s Voldiya Galmace-Paulin has been competing on the IBU Cup circuit. At 19, she has put in one solid, convincing performance after another, with three top 10 finishes so far.
At the start of 2025, in Arber (Germany), the biathlete from Villard-sur-Boëge (Haute-Savoie) has gone one step further. Fourth in last Thursday’s sprint, just a whisker away from the podium, she made it onto the podium this Saturday in the second sprint of the week. Third in a race won by her club team-mate Gilonne Guigonnat and marked by a tricolour quadruple, she was understandably smiling as she reflected on her performance.

“It’s really nice to be on the podium, she told Nordic Magazine. In the first sprint, I came fourth and I was already very happy with my race, which was very good even if I was a little frustrated to finish at the foot of the podium. Now I’ve got a bit of revenge by doing a great biathlon, which I’m very happy about.”
Ahead of Sophie Chauveau to reach the podium
In this sprint, Voldiya Galmace-Paulin started for the very first time among the first bibs. “I didn’t have as much information as usual, but the prone shot went really well, at 5/5 and with more or less the same wind as the set-up, she explains. When I stood up, I did a good sequence of shots and I missed the fourth before picking myself up again on the last. I lost a bit of time on that last ball, but at least it was inside.”

A score of 9/10, combined with her fine form on the skis, meant that the native of the Nord region of France finished third. “When I think of this podium, I’m obviously very happy”, she enthuses. To reach the top 3, Voldiya Galmace-Paulin also had to do better than Sophie Chauveau, who took an individual World Cup podium earlier in the winter and finished fourth in this race.
“She’s a very good biathlete, so it’s great to see that I can compete with her in certain races, says the Haut-Savoyard about her. It’s also very interesting and great to have her in the group because she brings a wealth of experience.”
Read also
- IBU Cup d’Arber: Gilonne Guigonnat wins the second sprint ahead of Amandine Mengin, Voldiya Galmace-Paulin, who takes her first podium, and Sophie Chauveau.
- Arber: Jacques Jefferies excellent sixth in the second IBU Cup sprint won by an untouchable Johannes Dale-Skjevdal
- Arber: Amandine Mengin triumphs in the sprint on her IBU Cup debut, Sophie Chauveau on the podium, five Frenchwomen in the top 6
- “I’m completely shocked”: Amandine Mengin, unexpected winner of the IBU Cup sprint in Arber, tells Nordic Magazine
- IBU Cup d’Arber: a stratospheric Johannes Dale-Skjevdal takes the sprint ahead of four other Norwegians, Gaëtan Paturel in the top 10
- The full programme for the IBU Cup in Arber, the fourth stage of the 2024/2025 winter season
- Oscar Lombardot absent, Sophie Chauveau and Gilonne Guigonnat present: eight Frenchmen already selected for the IBU Cup in Arber
- “I hope to return as soon as possible”: affected by compartment syndrome, Oscar Lombardot receives botulic acid injections
- Amandine Mengin, Louise Roguet, Rémi Broutier, Edgar Geny and Jacques Jefferies complete the French squad for the IBU Cup in Arber
- The reaction of 18-year-old Louise Roguet from Haut-Savoie after her first selection for the IBU Cup: “I’m going there without any pressure, with the aim of trying to do the same biathlon as in the French Cup.
- “I’ve made a lot of progress and I’m proud of myself”: this week, Amandine Mengin from Bresse will be taking part in her first IBU Cup in Arber.