Multisport: Young Wanaka biathlete excels

Rookie Wanaka biathlete Olivia Thomson celebrated her 14th birthday yesterday somewhere over the Indian Ocean, as she flew to Europe to take up a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The year nine Mt Aspiring College pupil is a crack shot with the rifle and that drew the attention of International Biathlon Union (IBU) coach Janez Vodiear, who was at the Snow Farm this winter to run a training camp.

Vodiear has invited Olivia, the New Zealand Nordic Sports Development Association 2009 rookie of the year, to European IBU training camps this year.

The IBU is keen to support the development of the sport in New Zealand, so agreed to assist Olivia and her father, Phil Thomson, attend camps in Italy and Austria.

Biathlon combines target-shooting with cross-country skiing and is a fledgling sport in New Zealand.

In Europe, it is the second-most popular spectator sport and its followers will practise it anywhere - on wheels, on man-made snow, even at night.

Sarah Murphy, who holds dual Canadian-New Zealand citizenship, is New Zealand's best-known biathlete and is competing internationally with the goal of qualifying for February's Winter Olympics in Canada.

Olivia is still building her cross-country skiing, but her smallbore rifle talents are beyond dispute - she won the Wanaka Smallbore Rifle Club's novice trophy this year and has cards showing several perfect 10.1 scores.

She has family pedigree to boot.

Olivia's late grandparents Ellen and Bill Thomson of Heriot were well regarded competition shooters in their day.

Olivia will be the only New Zealander and the youngest athlete at the IBU training camps, which cater for competitive athletes up to the age of 25.

She feels the experience will be a real learning curve, but she is pleased promising young Australian athlete Gabby Cigina (15), who she met this winter, will also be there.

"I am pretty excited and nervous. But pretty proud to be going. My goals will be to just do my best and probably to say hello to somebody in Italian," she said.

Olivia wanted to thank her Wanaka coaches Ernie Malushnig, Craig Still, Grant and Nadine Cagney and Leon Greibel from Blenheim, and Snow Farm owners John and Mary Lee, the Nordic sports group and her parents.