Five days have gone by so fast! Today was our second race and the first of three 7.5k Sprints. The third one will happen this upcoming week during the next race venue; IBU Junior Open European Championships. The girls are getting very familiar with this same race course. The awesome part is that we will know it like the back of our hands by the end of this trip!

Our zero was a little wet and rainy, but thankfully it cleared up once again before the start and we raced under dry conditions! It was a little windier than the prior days, especially during the standing stage. Again, I commend the boys for racing in worst of today’s conditions.

I’m having so much fun competing with other female athletes from around the world who are just as passionate as I am about this crazy sport. For me, this has been one of the best parts of the trip. I am looking forward to meeting more people and getting to know them before I leave!

I think it’s amazing that people are able to come and watch from the stands outside, or sit comfortably inside a beautiful building while they dine.

Each of us was given our own tote to keep our belongings dry while we raced. The volunteers would grab each of them from the start spot and bring them over to the finish area after each athlete started.

For me, today’s race was all I could hope for! I’m so grateful to have had a chance to compete on a world stage this 23/24 season. I am happy to be in a new country where biathlon is widely popular and celebrated. I’m enjoying every moment of racing and training at this venue and simply being here in Poland!

Tonight for dinner I tried celery cream soup with white chocolate. The best way to describe it would be that it is similar to tomato soup, but instead of tomatoes, it’s celery, and for the sweetness it is white chocolate.

Tomorrow we will do the same race once again! It is rare to get a second chance to do the exact same biathlon race over again the next day. This is one quick and effective way to learn from mistakes, or nail down the things that went well! So far we’ve been very lucky with the weather conditions. I’m crossing my fingers for the same to happen once again tomorrow!

Thanks everyone who is reading my updates and cheering for me. Your support means a great deal to me!