Biathlon : “I know what I want and I’m moving towards it,” says Vitalii Mandzyn
Ukrainian Vitalii Mandzyn is coming off his first full season on the World Cup circuit, with 21 of the 25 races contested. In his first race of the winter, the 22-year-old biathlete took fourth place in the individual short race at Kontiolahti (Finland), kicking off his season with his first podium finish at the highest world level in the relay at Nove Mesto (Czech Republic).
When he finished fourth in his first individual race of the winter, Vitalii Mandzyn could hardly believe it. “ I asked myself: is this really happening to me? he recalls to biathlonworld. The real challenge was to accept that this result wasn’t down to luck, but to hard work.
Since then, he has moved forward with greater confidence. “ The hardest part was realising that I really could compete with the best […] You get an appetite over time. You want more, and you want it to be better. This season has been a big step forward for me.”
A diligent worker, the latest 31st overall in the World Cup is proud of his high standards. Ever since I was a child, I’ve always wanted to do well, even in the smallest details,” he explains. At school, my teachers would tell my mother that the others were following me. I didn’t realise it, but I always wanted to be the best. That motivation never went away, it just changed.
But biathlon, a sport of delicate balance, does not forgive slumps. After a promising start to the season in Kontiolahti (Finland), the fall in Hochfilzen (Austria) – 33rd in the sprint and 45th in the pursuit – was brutal. “Nothing worked any more. The relay, with two penalty laps, was a very difficult moment. I found it hard to understand why what had worked a week before had collapsed.
In these moments, he draws strength from his family and his faith: “My parents help me enormously. They accept me as I am. And my faith sustains me, through the good times and the bad […] No champion has had a career without failures. What counts is trying again and again. Maybe a hundred times, maybe a thousand. But if you stop trying, everything loses its meaning […] I know what I want and I’m moving towards that goal.”
The silver medallist in the relay at the World Junior Championships inOtepää (Estonia) in 2024 will be one of the spearheads of the young Ukrainian team next winter, with Milan/Cortina 2026 as the highlight.
Read also
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- Biathlon: Ukraine bets on youth for the Milan/Cortina 2026 Olympic Games
- Biathlon | Ukraine’s Vitalii Mandzyn, sensation of the individual short with his fourth place: “I hope this is just the beginning”.
- Biathlon | Nove Mesto: Ukraine, third in the men’s relay, back on the podium 5 years after the last one
