Sports

Alaska biathletes clinch spots on U.S. team headed to world championships

Three Alaskans clinched spots Friday on the U.S. team headed to February's Youth/Junior Biathlon World Championships, and a fourth is expected to join them.

Travis Cooper of Kenai, Grace Gilliland of Eagle River and Alex Kilby of Anchorage secured spots on the team with their results at a race series this week in Jericho, Vermont.

A fourth athlete, Helen Wilson of Eagle River, is an alternate to the team, but she's expected to make the trip, said Zach Hall of the Anchorage Biathlon Club.

Cooper, 20, is part of the four-man, three-woman World Junior team, for athletes under 21.

Gilliland, 16, and Kilby, 18, are members of the four-man, four-woman World Youth team, for athletes under 19. One of the qualifying athletes, Lexie Madigan of California, is below the International Biathlon Union's minimum age of 15, so Wilson could replace her on the team.

"U.S. Biathlon is petitioning the IBU to have Lexie be allowed to race, but they're pretty certain that she won't be," Hall said. "In that case, that means Helen, who is just barely old enough, would get an opportunity to get an international race."

If things work out in Wilson's favor, three of the eight athletes on the youth-level team would hail from the Anchorage Biathlon Club.

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"That's more than any other club or region in the U.S.," Hall said. "So we are really excited about that.

"We put a lot of emphasis on developing young athletes, so it's exciting year to have three of those athletes make a national team. We're starting to reach some benefits."

Cooper, a member of the Alaska National Guard, and Kilby, an Arctic Winter Stars skier and South High graduate, both have previous experience at the Youth/Junior world championships. Cooper went last season and Kilby went in 2015.

Cooper turned in a strong performance at the qualifying races this week in Vermont, where athletes contended with wind each day, Hall said.

He made the top-five on all three days — second on Friday, fifth on Thursday and third on Wednesday.

Gilliland's shining moment came Thursday during a blizzard, Hall said. She turned in a stellar shooting effort by hitting 16 of 20 targets to capture fourth place in the pursuit after starting in 13th place. No other woman shot better that day.

A Chugiak High skier who trains with Alaska Pacific University's nordic team, Gilland placed 13th in Wednesday's sprint race and 10th in Friday's sprint.

Wilson, who skis for Eagle River High, claimed third place Friday after placing 14th Thursday and eighth on Wednesday.

In the men's races, Kilby was eighth on both Wednesday and Thursday and had his best result Friday, when he took sixth place.

The only other top-10 result by an Alaskan came from Alyeska Daniels of Fairbanks, who was eighth in the women's sprint race Friday.

The world championships will be held Feb. 22-28 at a site still to be determined. The race series had been awarded to Russia, but because of that country's doping scandal, the IBU will move the championships to another country, Hall said.

Beth Bragg

Beth Bragg wrote about sports and other topics for the ADN for more than 35 years, much of it as sports editor. She retired in October 2021. She's contributing coverage of Alaskans involved in the 2022 Winter Olympics.

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