With the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang less than a month away, Rosanna Crawford of Canmore, Alberta came away with a surprise bronze medal in a women’s 15 kilometre individual event in Ruhpolding, Germany on Thursday. For Crawford, it was her first ever World Cup medal and she becomes the third Canadian woman ever to win a World Cup medal in biathlon.
Crawford follows in the footsteps of three-time Olympic medalist and two-time Canadian Olympic gold medalist Myriam Bedard of L’Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec and Zina Kocher of Red Deer, Alberta. Kocher was the last Canadian woman to win a World Cup biathlon medal when she won a bronze medal in a women’s 15 kilometre individual event in Oestersund, Sweden in 2006.
Crawford posted a time of 41 minutes, 50.2 seconds. She reached the podium by 24.7 seconds over Yuliia Dzhima of the Ukraine, who finished in fourth spot with a time of 41 minutes, 45.9 seconds. Dorothea Wierer of Italy won the gold medal with a time of 41 minutes and 29 seconds. Kaisa Makarainen of Finland won the silver medal with a time of 41 minutes, 41. 7 seconds.
Rosanna Crawford’s remarkable success in Germany follows in the footsteps of her sister Chandra, who had one of the most shocking performances by a Canadian athlete in the history of the Olympic Winter Games. Crawford was the shocking gold medalist in women’s sprint at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Turin.She won the gold medal despite being ranked 30th in the women’s overall standings for cross-country skiing in 2005-06.
