The best junior of the 2024/2025 season comes from a country where biathlon is only a sideshow. Matija Legovic from Croatia wins the total score in the IBU Junior Cup, even though he is an individual competitor. But his passion for biathlon is helping him and his sport to grow in his home country.

Matija Legovic went into the 2024/2025 season with one goal: He wanted to win the total score in the IBU Junior Cup. And he succeeded impressively. He skied for the first time at the age of four. Rather unusual for a child from Croatia, but his mother was also a keen cross-country skier and there was no other sports club in his hometown of Brod Moravice.

Matija Legovic quickly realized that cross-country skiing and biathlon suited him particularly well. He switched sports at the age of ten and has been travelling with a rifle on his back ever since. He ran his first international races at the age of 16, as his coaches recognized his talent early on. In December 2023, he was finally able to celebrate his first victory in the IBU Junior Cup in Ridnaun. "For me, a victory is always a very special moment. Everything must be right for you to achieve it, and you can't afford to make a mistake," says the 19-year-old.

In December, he managed to climb to the top of the podium again in the sprint in Goms. This was rather surprising for him: "I'm not the safest shooter and the conditions were tough that day as the wind was blowing strongly. But with just one shooting mistake, I was able to come out on top." This victory is more remarkable because Legovic made a mistake with his ski choice and therefore had bad skis that day.

World Cup debut at the age of 17

He was allowed to compete in the World Cup for the first time in December 2023. "That's a different league. It was a magical experience for me to run alongside all the good athletes. But I can also see the differences. Many teams are on site with wax trucks, lots of coaches and ski technicians. I have a head coach and a shooting coach, plus a ski technician. That makes it very difficult to assert yourself against the other athletes," he says, describing his first experiences. Even though he lacked a training partner at his level, he gained more experience with every start and got better. He was the most consistent athlete in the IBU Junior Cup last season and was delighted to win the crystal globe.

Everything for biathlon

"This means a lot to me. The season was long for me, I competed in the World Cup, IBU Cup and Junior Cup. There were a lot of intense races. I'm more pleased that I was able to achieve my goal of winning the total score in the Junior Cup. But it wasn't a perfect season yet." He is still missing a gold medal at a IBU Junior World Championship. That is his goal for the next few years. And Matija Legovic has already proven that he will do everything in his power to achieve his goals. "The coaches always tell me to switch off from biathlon and think about something else. But I can't do that," he explains with a wink.

Photos: IBU I Danielsson, Authanayou, Deubert