Long Successful Career

Fak and Simon Eder are the only men who competed in the 2002 IBU Junior World Championships still in the World Cup today. Fak’s long career morphed from those championships where he missed 11 shots in the youth individual, using a rifle he shared with his brother to two Olympic medals, two IBU World Championship title, and 88% on the range last year.

Looking back 20 years ago, the 37-year-old admitted, “I never thought about a long career back then, I was just focused on the next season, the training I had to do and the races. The end of my career is coming; that is a scary thought, but I do not think about it. I just need to be focused on what is coming.”

“I like Shooting”

Shooting has always been Fak’s calling card: shooting clean when he won Olympic Sprint Bronze and Individual Silver in 2010 and 2018, respectively. After years of shooting range consistency, he’s not changed his approach. “I shoot both quality and quantity because I like shooting. It is always a challenge. You need to push yourself in these things, so when it gets complicated, you will have more confidence.”

Still things can go very wrong. “Last year I had a record five penalty loops in the relay, but I lost count and did six, thinking an extra 17 seconds is better than a 2-minute penalty! It was strange that I could not hit one shot. The next day I went to the range, zeroed my rifle and needed ten clicks left and five up.”

Today, more than ever, he thinks the key to the podium is, “fast and accurate shooting. Other than some Norwegians, not many people can get to the podium with a missed shot.”

Children, Family Life, and Illness

Fak is self-motivated, an underlying force, his three children add to that motivation. “I had much of my success before children. They have seen some of my bad races and I would like them to see both sides. I would like them to see if you do your thing every day and are consistent, you can also make good results.”

Balancing family life and biathlon simply is, “Quite tough; a lot of the time, it is not the training but the recovery. You do not always get the time to properly recover. Some days, I come from morning training, eat, rest a bit, and do not sit for 5 minutes in the afternoon and then get in some recovery training.”

Illness and major injuries like frost-bitten fingers have plagued Fak’s career, “This year seems to be easier. I’ve gotten all of these childhood diseases like chickenpox. Every year, it was something: viruses that come and go. The doctors told me when you train a little bit more, your immune system goes down and the virus catches you. In the Olympic year, 10 days before the season when I was feeling really good, I got foot and mouth disease, a child disease and could not come back all season (resulting in 50th place, his lowest-ever Total Score result).”