According to Ville Kotikummu, Suvi Minkkinen should be able to develop her skiing speed by 20–30 seconds. That would open up big opportunities.
At the Biathlon World Championships on Wednesday, we saw the best Finnish performance of the Games so far, when Suvi Minkkinen finished eighth in the normal distance with his zero shooting. This is Finland’s best ranking in individual trips to the prestigious championships since the 2017 World Championships.
Minkkinen’s shooting certainty in Germany’s Oberhof dazzled. In addition to the Finn, only Sweden, who came in second, were able to shoot zero Linn Persson and fourth place Italy Samuel Comola.
– Excellent performance from Suvi. He has been able to shoot well for several years. Now he got a perfect shooting performance. Even the last shooting was well-paced, Urheilu’s expert Ville Kotikumpu praises.
Minkkinen is competing today in the shooting weighted doubles relay Olli Hiidensalo with.
The shooting percentage of the 28-year-old athlete was 92 last season. Of Minkkinen’s 250 shots, 230 hit the goal.
Also this season, the sure-footed performance on the bench has continued. Minkkinen’s shooting percentage is 90.4. He is close to the top shooters.
Minkkinen achieved his best World Cup ranking (15th) at the beginning of this season. Kotikumpu, who knows the athlete well, says that Minkkinen is one of those biathletes who have learned to shoot reasonably quickly.
– Summer was already at the 2018 Olympics. He could shoot well even then. In the first races, the ability to withstand pressure and the routine were not at such a hard level that you would get the best result.
– This season there have been good days one after the other. There will be no major collapses during the season. There is stability and certainty, Kotikumpu adds.
Kotikumpu says that Minkkinen has the ability to shoot quickly.
– He is able to quickly take aim at the spot and is able to produce a high-quality trigger that usually produces a hit. Let’s talk about a reaction shooter. Of course, rapid shooting has its risks. If it doesn’t go well, it can be a really big disappointment, like by Dorothea Wierer we saw each other yesterday.
Hard work at the Oberhof
How could Minkkinen establish himself in the top 10–15?
– The skiing speed is clear. It acts as a brake on fast journeys. When you’re ranked 20–30 on fast trips, it’s not very easy to get into the top ten, Kotikumpu says.
A new leap requires the basics.
– It’s hard work in terms of physics and skiing technique. You have to raise your physical condition by one step in order to be able to ski a short distance 20–30 seconds faster. In turn, it would open up great opportunities for the chase, where you could get to the top positions.
The normal route was really tough. Minkkinen was four minutes behind the fastest skier.
– Heavy terrain and hard hills are not Suvi’s strengths, Kotikumpu reminds.
Minkkinen is participating in the World Cup joint start race to be contested this weekend. In addition to that, he works hard in the mixed relay and the normal relay.
– Suvi will have a heavy load, because she skis all the competitions here. It will be interesting to see how Suvi’s fitness base is sufficient for the mass, where he could be in good places. There, of course, he gets a good pees benefit.
If Minkkinen has enough motivation, according to Kotikummu, he has opportunities to rise to a new level by, for example, the 2026 Winter Olympics.
– He has the opportunity to develop his physical side and quickly reach the top 10-20. After that, we could see him in the top ten in the chase. If there is a chance for the top ten, it is possible to be on the podium one day.
Mixed relay of the Biathlon World Championships at 16:00 on TV2 and Areena.