Ukraine Wins Its First Medal at the 2026 Junior European Biathlon Championships: How It Happened

This is Ukraine's first medal at the Junior Europeans in two years.

Team Ukraine won its first Junior European Biathlon Championships medal in two years, finishing third in the mixed relay held January 22 in Imatra. This medal also marked Ukraine's first mixed-relay medal since 2023.

Earlier, on the championship's first competition day, individual races took place. Among the girls, in particular, two athletes finished in the top 10, while two Ukrainian men finished among the top 20 juniors. The national team started the mixed relay in Finland from second position, with only the Czech team ahead of them.

How the Mixed Relay Went at the 2026 Junior European Championships

• Kseniia Prykhodko represented Ukraine on the first leg. The athlete rode among the leaders on the first lap, then shot clean at the prone stage. At the standing stage, the Ukrainian reached for just one extra round, handing off first, 0.7 seconds ahead of Switzerland, to Viktoriia Khvostenko.
• Through the first part of the second leg, Viktoriia held her position — shooting clean at the first stage, then leading the pack all the way to the standing range. There, though, the biathlete used all three extra rounds, letting Slovenia's Kaserman past. Khvostenko finished her leg 36 seconds behind the leader.
• Ivan Steblyna held second position behind Slovenia's Rui Grosel Šimić, but lost ground on the course — by the handoff, he trailed by over a minute. The Ukrainian also used three extra rounds — two at the prone stage and one at standing.
• Oleksandr Bilanenko anchored for Team Ukraine, fighting for the medals on the final leg against Sweden and the Czech Republic. At the prone stage, the Ukrainian used one extra round, staying in second, but lost ground on the course to Sweden's Nordlander. The final shoot decided everything: Slovenia hit the penalty loop, Sweden shot clean, and Ukraine used one extra round. All three athletes finished within 10 seconds of each other. Bilanenko crossed the line third, bringing Team Ukraine its first medal of the 2026 Junior Europeans.

2026 Junior European Championships in Imatra. Mixed Relay: Results

1. Sweden (0+6) 1:07:40.3

2. Slovenia (1+12) +10.2

3. Ukraine (0+11) +16.6

The 2026 Junior European Biathlon Championships continue with the single mixed relay, where the national team will be represented by Tetiana and Taras Tarasiuk. The single mixed relay starts January 22 at 14:00 Kyiv time.

DeTalks is covering Ukrainian athletes' results at the 2026 Junior European Biathlon Championships. Follow text coverage in the 'Pulse' section and news on the editorial team's Telegram channel.