Para biathlon: Benjamin Daviet on the track this week at the 2026 Paralympic Games site
Over the last two days, Bornandin Benjamin Daviet has been competing in the para biathlon world cup in Val di Fiemme (Italy). At the Tesero venue, which will host the Paralympic Games next winter, the French legend placed fourth in the sprint pursuit on Wednesday and eighth in the sprint on Thursday.
“I’m very happy with my sprint pursuit because I’m shooting well and I’m not far behind on the skis, he told Nordic Magazine. In the sprint, it started well and then I made a mistake in the second shot. I then tried to go a bit hard and I paid for it on the hill, which meant I farted a bit on the last lap.”
Beyond the results, Benjamin Daviet was able to test the track at Milan/Cortina 2026.
“It’s a very difficult course with very little time for recovery. Immediately after leaving the shooting range, there’s a very long bump. At the top, there’s a rising flat where you have to take a lot of steps in one go, he explains. If you go too fast over the hump, you pay dearly at the top. It’s a tough track and we already know that we’re going to need strong legs at the Games! We know what we’re going to have to work on to be good next year.”
Off to Pokljuka this Friday to prepare for the World Championships
With the para biathlon world championships taking place next week in Pokljuka (Slovenia) and the para cross-country skiing championships the following week in Toblach (Italy), the Haut-Savoyard says he “feels better” than he did in December. After his para-rowing season, during which he reached the final of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, Benjamin Daviet is indeed finding his rhythm again on skis.
“I don’t need much more to get out in front, he says. It bodes well for the future and I’m clearly aiming for medals at the World Championships. We know that winning the individual biathlon title is going to be complicated, but it’s still biathlon, a sport where anything can happen and where you have to be good at the right moment.”
In order to prepare himself as well as possible for this event, Benjamin Daviet will skip the para-cross-country skiing World Cup in Italy this weekend and head straight to Pokljuka. “I’m going with Nanass [Anaïs Bescond, the French team’s shooting coach, editor’s note] to get my bearings in shooting and on the track,” he concludes.
- “I’m going back totally motivated”: after his break from para-rowing, punctuated by his participation in Paris 2024, Bornandin Benjamin Daviet is about to start his winter of para-Nordic skiing.
- Val di Fiemme: Benjamin Daviet fourth in the sprint pursuit, Karl Tabouret tenth
- Val di Fiemme: Benjamin Daviet, Karl Tabouret and Chloé Pinto in the top 10 sprints
