Laura Dahlmeier


Laura Dahlmeier is a retired German biathlete. Dahlmeier started in her first world cup races in the 2012/13 season. In 2014, she participated in the Winter Olympics in Sochi. She won a record of five gold medals at the World Championships of 2017. In 2018 she became the first woman to win the biathlon sprint and pursuit in the same Olympics. During her career she has won a total of two golds and one bronze at the Olympics, seven gold medals, three silver medals and five bronze medals at World Championships, one overall World Cup and two discipline World Cup titles. Dahlmeier announced her retirement from competition in May 2019, at the age of 25. In October 2019, she released a children's book.

Career

At the 2013 Biathlon Junior World Championships in Obertilliach, Austria, Dahlmeier took three gold medals in the individual, sprint and relay, as well as a silver in the pursuit. Following this, she was selected for the German team in the women's relay at the 2013 Biathlon World Championships: racing in the third leg, she shot clean and overcame a 38 second deficit to hand over with Germany in the lead. Dahlmeier completed her first full World Cup campaign the following season: she enjoyed further success in World Cup relays, however she was unable to secure a solo podium finish, and did not make an impact at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
Dahlmeier's start to her 2014–15 season was delayed due to injury, and she made her World Cup season debut at Pokljuka in December 2014. Two months later she took her first World Cup win in Nové Město na Moravě, following which she took another six podiums, including a second win, and her first two senior World Championship medals, a silver in the pursuit and a gold in the women's relay. In 2015–16 she took five World Cup wins, and at the World Championships in Oslo she took her first solo gold medal in the pursuit along with a silver in the mass start and bronzes in the sprint, individual and women's relay.
Dahlmeier enjoyed her best season in 2016–17, winning the overall World Cup and winning five golds and a silver at the World Championships in Hochfilzen, Austria, missing out on a sixth gold by four seconds in the sprint to Gabriela Koukalová. The following season Dahlmeier's focus was on the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang: at the Games she became the second German woman to take the Olympic gold in the sprint, shooting clean as one of only three competitors to hit all targets in windy conditions, before doubling up with a second title in the pursuit and additionally taking a bronze in the individual.
Dahlmeier's 2018–19 season was disrupted by illness, however she took a World Cup race win at Antholz in January 2019 before going on to take two bronzes at the 2019 World Championships in Östersund in the sprint and the pursuit. After the end of the season, in May 2019 she announced her retirement from competition, stating that she no longer feels the 100% passion necessary for professional biathlon.
On 18 October 2019, she released the children's book Die Klima Gang: Laura Dahlmeier und Freunde im Einsatz für die Natur, which she co-authored.

Biathlon results

All results are sourced from the International Biathlon Union. On 17 May 2019, she announced her retirement from biathlon.

Olympic Games

3 medals
EventIndividualSprintPursuitRelay
2014 Sochi13th46th30th—11thDSQ
2018 PyeongchangBronzeGoldGold16th8th4th

World Championships

14 medals
EventIndividualSprintPursuitRelaySingle mixed Relay
2013 Nové Město————5th—rowspan="4"
2015 Kontiolahti6th4thSilver7thGold—-
2016 OsloBronzeBronzeGoldSilverBronze—-
2017 HochfilzenGoldSilverGoldGoldGoldGold-
2019 Östersund4thBronzeBronze6th4th——

Junior World Championships

European Youth Olympic Winter Festival

World Cup

Individual victories

No.SeasonDateLocationDisciplineLevel
1 2014/155 February 2015 Nové Město, Czech Republic7.5 km SprintWorld Cup
2 2014/1517 March 2015 Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia12.5 km Mass startWorld Cup
3 2015/1612 December 2015 Hochfilzen, Austria10 km PursuitWorld Cup
4 2015/1619 December 2015 Pokljuka, Slovenia10 km PursuitWorld Cup
5 2015/169 January 2016 Ruhpolding, Germany10 km PursuitWorld Cup
6 2015/1610 January 2016 Ruhpolding, Germany12.5 km Mass StartWorld Cup
7 2015/166 March 2016 Holmenkollen, Norway10 km PursuitWorld Championships
8 2016/1730 November 2016 Östersund, Sweden15 km IndividualWorld Cup
9 2016/179 December 2016 Pokljuka, Slovenia7.5 km SprintWorld Cup
10 2016/1710 December 2016 Pokljuka, Slovenia10 km PursuitWorld Cup
11 2016/1719 January 2017 Antholz, Italy15 km IndividualWorld Cup
12 2016/1712 February 2017 Hochfilzen, Austria10 km PursuitWorld Championships
13 2016/1715 February 2017 Hochfilzen, Austria15 km IndividualWorld Championships
14 2016/1719 February 2017 Hochfilzen, Austria12.5 km Mass StartWorld Championships
15 2016/172 March 2017 Pyeongchang, South Korea7.5 km SprintWorld Cup
16 2016/174 March 2017 Pyeongchang, South Korea10 km PursuitWorld Cup
17 2016/1711 March 2017 Kontiolahti, Finland10 km PursuitWorld Cup
18 2017/1816 December 2017 Annecy, France10 km PursuitWorld Cup
19 2017/1820 January 2018 Antholz, Italy10 km PursuitWorld Cup
20 2017/1810 February 2018 Pyeongchang, South Korea7.5 km SprintWinter Olympic Games
21 2017/1812 February 2018 Pyeongchang, South Korea10 km PursuitWinter Olympic Games
22 2018/1927 January 2019 Antholz-Anterselva, Italy12.5 km Mass StartWorld Cup

Relay victories

Overall record