As a teardrop rolled down her cheek, biathlete Zina Kocher’s silver medal at the IBU Cup 7 this past weekend in Canmore had deep meaning as a personal feat for the three-time Olympian.
“It feels amazing. I have tears because I had to work all year to try to get this and finally, I finally put it together,” said Kocher at the women’s sprint finish line on Sunday (March 1).
The speedy Canadian finished with a time of 20:16.5, shooting 9/10 on the 7.5 kilometre course. Germany’s Karolin Horchler turned in the golden race with flawless shooting and clocking 19:58.7, while France’s Marine Bolliet took bronze.
In what was probably the toughest year of her life, 32-year-old Kocher struggled through her biathlon season and didn’t make the cut for Canada’s world cup and world championship team.
“There is definitely a huge fire inside of me that’s like, ‘get it together for God’s sake,’ ” Kocher said.
“I’ve had a bit of a struggle this whole season. I’ve wanted to prove to myself that I am better than what I have done for the rest of the season, but at the same time, I wanted to finish this season off positively and I think that was more important to me and I put everything I could into racing well for these IBU Cups.”
With added nerves going into the weekend due to not competing since January, Kocher was less than pleased with her 19th-place finish on Saturday, where she shot 6/10. But an inspiring silver-medal performance by teammate Emma Lunder helped carry the Canadian’s drive into the next day.
Before the race on Sunday, Kocher and coach Richard Boruta had a short chat to break down the race into three intervals and had a “play zone and a think zone,” she said. With a one-track mind focused on the course, Kocher quickly dismissed any thoughts about the podium and was much more relaxed.
The silver medal “definitely shows to me that I do have the fire still in me,” she said, and with next year’s IBU World Cup in Canmore, Kocher would like to compete on the world stage in front of friends and family. But she is at a crossroads on where her future in the sport is headed.
“I’m still very undecided at what I will do, but definitely it would be really enjoyable to be able to be in the world cup here at home,” she said.
Kocher moved to Canmore 15 years ago from Red Deer, and has been a staple on the Canadian scene since.
After winning silver on Saturday, Vernon, B.C.’s Lunder was the second fastest Canadian on Sunday, finishing 16th. Erin Yungblut was 17th, Melanie Schultz 29th, Claude Godbout 30th and Leilani Tam Von Burg was 33rd.
Biathlon Canada High Performance Director Chris Lindsay said it was fantastic to have met their goal of winning two medals at IBU Cup 7 and he thinks it’s wonderful to have Kocher as a long-time great role model in the women’s program.
Kocher said when she was younger the women’s program wasn’t strong at all, but she’s watched and grown with it over the years.
“It’s just so exciting for me as an older athlete, as I’m finishing my career, to see all these young ones coming up and being so strong, much stronger than when I was their age,” Kocher said.
This Friday and Saturday (March 6-7) starting at 10 a.m. IBU Cup 8 biathletes are set to compete in sprints and a mixed relay at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
