According to the legend of world biathlon Ole Einar Bjorndalen, Lora Hristova's bronze medal in the 20-kilometer individual start is the biggest surprise so far in the Olympic biathlon competitions at the Winter Games in the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
„The Bulgarian created real madness. This is amazing, incredible. I don't know Lora very well. I know Milena Todorova, but she missed a significant part of the season. And her teammate got on the podium. For me it was a total surprise“, the Norwegian told Bulgarian journalists at the international press center in Antholz-Anterselva.
The 52-year-old Björndalen, who ended his competitive career on April 3, 2018, currently works as an analyst for various media. As an active athlete, he is among the most successful Olympians in history – with 8 gold, 4 silver and 2 bronze medals, as well as a total of 45 world championship awards, 20 of which were gold.
“I didn't know her and I had to look for more information about her. But I will definitely be following her closely now. For me, she was the biggest surprise in biathlon at these Games“, he added.
Björndalen admitted that he feels good in his role as an analyst, although he still misses competitions. “Being an athlete is something unique. I always wanted to compete. But I spent almost 30 years in the sport and had an incredible career. Now I feel good on the other side,“, commented the Norwegian.
He shares the record for the most Olympic titles with his compatriots Marit Bjørgen and Bjorn Delli. They were recently joined by Johannes Klaebo, who won his eighth career gold in the 10-kilometer interval start.
“This is an excellent achievement for him. But times are different. When I participated in my first Olympics in 1994, there were three disciplines, and now there are many more. Klaebo started in six, even seven competitions. So today there are more opportunities to win titles. But he fully deserves it. It is difficult to compare different eras. However, the level in cross-country skiing is extremely high and he is definitely number one. "I think I can improve my record at these Games," said Bjorndalen.