Athlete Bios
Biathlon
Wilhelm a 6-time Olympic medallist
Last Updated: Friday, February 5, 2010 | 1:40 PM ET
New York Times for CBC Sports
Kati Wilhelm shoots during a training session in Oberhof, Germany, on Jan. 5, 2010. (Jens-Ulrich Koch/Getty Images)With her six Olympic medals and bright red hair that has earned her the nickname Little Red Riding Hood, Kati Wilhelm is a celebrity in Germany, where biathlon is so popular that it is broadcast live on national television.
Wilhelm, who was born in 1976 and grew up in what was then East Germany, began her athletic career as a cross-country skier and competed in the sport at the 1998 Nagano Games. In 1999, after a disappointing season in cross-country, she attended the Military World Games and watched a biathlon training session. As she explains on her website, she immediately caught the "biathlon virus."
By 2001, it was clear that Wilhelm had made the right decision. Wilhelm won gold at the world championships in the sprint event. She repeated the feat at the 2002 Salt Lake Games, taking home gold in sprint, a silver in the 10-kilometre pursuit, and helped her team win a gold in relay. In 2006, Wilhelm carried the German flag at the Turin Games and went on to win gold in the 10-kilometre pursuit and two silvers. She holds the Olympic record for career gold medals in women's biathlon.
Wilhelm suffered through some disappointing seasons after Turin but rebounded in the 2008-09 season, winning two golds and two silvers at the world championships in Pyeongchang, South Korea. In 2009, two of Wilhelm's fiercest competitors - Albina Akhatova and Yekaterina Iourieva of Russia - were barred from the sport for two years after the International Biathlon Union announced they had tested positive for a banned blood-boosting drug.
Like many German biathletes, Wilhelm is in the German military. Wilhelm has said she plans to retire after the Vancouver Olympics. Since 2006, she has been taking courses in international management, although she says she is not sure what she wants to do after leaving biathlon.
