Biathlon: “It’s the dream of every child who takes up the sport”, says Marco Barale
Marco Barale, the 21-year-old Italian biathlete, has made a good start to the IBU Cup season, finishing eleventh in the overall standings so far . This Friday, he will be making his first appearance at the highest level in the world at the sprint race in Oberhof (Germany).
“Being called up here is a great joy, it’s the dream of every child who starts out in this sport. Having the opportunity to be here is a great satisfaction,” he enthused to Fondo Italia.
The Transalpine is not setting himself any specific targets and will be trying to do his best in his first World Cup weekend. “I don’t want to set myself too many expectations because this is the World Cup and there are a lot of very strong athletes. I’ve only just arrived and I don’t think I’ll be able to challenge for the top places. I want to do what I’ve been doing since December and give it my best shot,” says Marco Barale.
He will try to make the most of this week to progress and learn from the elite of international biathlon. “Being at the hotel with everyone is a good thing for me. It’s a time to learn a lot and I hope to absorb as much as possible over the next few days.”
To help him integrate, he can count on his former junior coach and current shooting coach for the Italian team, Fabio Cianciana: “Being here with Fabio [Cianciana] and other former team-mates makes everything easier for me, and I’m happy about that.”
Read also
- Oberhof: the start list for the men’s sprint
- The names of the twelve Italians selected for the Oberhof World Cup: Lisa Vittozzi still absent, firsts for Marco Barale and Ilaria Scattolo
