For the first time in the history of Kazakh biathlon, the men's national team reached the top 10 at the World Championships
Today in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic, the men's relay race took place. The team representing Kazakhstan consisted of Alexander Mukhin, Vladislav Kireev, Asset Dyussenov, and Nikita Akimov. Alexander Mukhin started first for the team, hitting all targets without misses and handing over the relay to Vladislav Kireev in third place, just +0.9 seconds behind the leader. It is worth noting that he outperformed Legreid by half a minute with his performance.
"I had a feeling that I would hand over the relay in the top five, but in one second with the leader was very surprising for me," the biathlete said after the race.
Vladislav Kireev used three extra bullets on the first lap, but on the second lap, he hit all targets without misses. He handed over the relay with a lag of +40 seconds. "Despite the weather conditions, our skis worked perfectly. We need to mention the work of our service team. We don't lag behind any team in terms of glide," Kireev shared after the competition.
Asset Dusenov continued the race after Kireev, successfully using two extra bullets on the first lap and hitting all targets on the second lap without misses. His lag from the leaders was +2:00.8 in time. Nikita Akimov was the last on the track, hitting all shots without misses on the first lap using three extra bullets. On the second lap, he used 2 extra bullets but still managed to lead the team into the top 10. It is worth noting that this was Akimov's debut at the adult World Championships. Congratulations on a successful debut!
"We are starting to compete with teams such as Norway, Sweden, and Germany. Today we reached the top 10 for the first time. We hope this is just the beginning of our success. Thanks to our fans, thank you all for your faith and support," the athletes thanked.
Thus, the main international competition of the year has ended. Now the biathletes will participate in the remaining stages of the World Cup and IBU Cup. Considering the upcoming Asian Games next year and the 2026 Winter Olympic Games, this result of the national biathlon team is promising for winning medals.
