Clare Egan placed herself on the brink of a top 6 result before having trouble in the last shooting stage of the Individual competition at Biathlon World Championships in Pokljuka, Slovenia. 

In the Individual competition, athletes shoot 4 times, alternating between prone and standing position. For each missed shot, 1 minute is added to the racer’s total time. In the women’s race athletes ski 3km loops before and after each shooting stage. 

After a speedy first loop, Clare closed all her prone targets and claimed 17th place. Susan also accomplished a clean first shooting stage and exited the range in 29th. Competition on the second loop was very close, adding to the inherent importance of shooting in this race format. 

In the first standing stage, Clare cleaned, and Susan made one mistake. Egan advanced to 10th place and Susan stayed stable in 29th. In the third shooting, both GRP biathletes hit all 5 targets, with Egan moving up to 6th place and Dunklee climbing to 32nd. 

Entering the decisive final shooting stage, Egan was poised in 5thand Dunklee was sitting 36th. After hitting the first two targets, Egan began to struggle and missed her final 3 shots, dropping her back to 38th place. Susan faced similar difficulty, hitting one standing target but leaving 4 unscathed. 

Both Susan and Clare fought hard through the last 3km circuit. Egan ended the race ranked 39th, and Dunklee concluded the competition in 77th. 

Up next for the GRP biathlon duo are two relay races. Starters for the Single Mixed Relay (Feb. 18th) and Women’s Relay (Feb.20th) will be finalized by the Team USA coaches on the eve of each competition.      

Thanks to back to back top 30 results in the Sprint and Pursuit, Susan Dunklee has earned a place in the February 21st Mass Start. 

For full event replays, detailed results and race reports from IBU World Championships visit www.biathlonworld.com