Natalie Wilkie Wins 2nd Gold at Milano-Cortina Paralympics: Biathlon Pursuit Victory
VAL DI FIEMME, Italy – Natalie Wilkie of Salmon Arm, British Columbia, continued her dominant run at the Milano-Cortina Paralympic Winter Games, securing her second biathlon gold medal on in the women’s standing sprint pursuit. The victory marks her fourth medal of the Games, further solidifying her status as a leading force in Para Nordic skiing.
Wilkie completed the race in , flawlessly hitting all ten targets with her air rifle across the two shooting stages. Her performance left Ukrainian silver medallist Iryna Bui trailing by , while Ukraine’s Oleksandra Kononova claimed bronze in .
Brittany Hudak of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, finished ninth with a time of .
The sprint pursuit event, a relatively new addition to the Paralympic program, presented a unique challenge for Wilkie. “This was the race I was most unsure about actually, just due to the fact that in the sprint pursuit things can change, and so quickly too,” she explained. “I was the fourth starter out [in the final]. I came third in the qualifier today with 10 seconds to make up. Watching my competitors come out of the start area, I knew that it was going to be a tough race this afternoon.”
Wilkie’s success is particularly noteworthy given her previous struggles with the sprint pursuit format. “I’ve struggled so much with this race format,” she admitted. “When it was introduced in 2023 I absolutely hated it, and for the last couple of years I’ve tried to avoid it and not do this race. Simply because I’m not a fast shooter and this race doesn’t favour sluggish shooters like me.”
However, through dedicated training and guidance from her coach, Wilkie has overcome these challenges. “Over the last two years my coach forced me to start doing more sprint pursuits just so that I could get better at them, and it’s definitely paid off because on a day like today I was able to keep my focus and shoot clean and win the gold medal.”
The 25-year-classic Wilkie, who served as one of Canada’s flag-bearers at the opening ceremony, now boasts a remarkable 11 Paralympic medals. She previously secured silver in the sprint biathlon on , followed by gold in the individual biathlon on , and bronze in Tuesday’s cross-country sprint classic.
Wilkie’s commitment to bringing joy to her performances is evident in her pre-race ritual of applying glitter to her face. For Friday’s biathlon finale, she chose gold glitter, hoping to manifest a winning result. “I put it on this morning because I was really hoping for the gold. I knew it was going to be a special win if I got it,” she said. “But the glitter, whatever the colour, is really just there to remind me to have fun and find joy in the process, and bring out the little kid in me.”
“Little Natalie would be so amazed to see me at the Paralympics today, winning the gold medal in an event that I never thought I would.”
Canada’s medal count now stands at 11 through seven days of competition in Italy, comprising two gold, three silver, and six bronze medals. The Canadian Nordic skiing team has contributed seven of those medals, with four coming in biathlon and three in cross-country skiing.
Wilkie’s impressive performance places her within reach of becoming Canada’s most decorated female Winter Paralympian. She is currently scheduled to compete in the 20km interval start free cross-country race on . She is eligible for the 4×2.5km cross-country relays on , potentially allowing her to equal Lana Spreeman’s record of 13 medals.
In other Canadian results, Mark Arendz of Hartsville, Prince Edward Island, finished fourth in the men’s standing sprint pursuit, narrowly missing the podium by . China’s Cai Jaiyun won gold in a close finish, edging out Ukraine’s Grygorii Vovchynskyi by just . Derek Zaplotinsky of Smoky Lake, Alberta, placed 20th in the men’s sitting sprint pursuit.