Johannes Thingnes Bö, the most successful biathlete in history, bids farewell to his home crowd in Oslo on Sunday. The hands-on superstar now wants to devote himself to his family.
24.03.2025, 14:41
24.03.2025, 15:26
SDA
On the last day of the World Championships in Lenzerheide, Johannes Thingnes Bö was already on his farewell tour in February. The Norwegian had won his 43rd World Championship medal (!) in the mass start race, a bronze, and shook countless hands and was available for photos. From helpers, officials, even the odd media representative. The 31-year-old biathlon superstar is no aloof egomaniac, but a serial winner you can touch.
However, Lenzerheide was only the prelude to Holmenkollen. On Sunday afternoon, the careers of the two Bö brothers came to an end in the Nordic Mecca of Oslo. Johannes' five years older brother Tarjei, himself a three-time Olympic champion, twelve-time world champion and overall World Cup winner in 2011, also skied his last race.
The tears of the fans
Tears, laughter and red flags with white and blue crosses: Thousands of Norwegians made a pilgrimage to the local mountain to cheer on their idols one last time. They didn't come to see Johannes Bö's best race - he finished seventh in the last mass start of his career with four misses. Rather, it was a day of celebration for both brothers. After the race was over, Johannes and Tarjei appeared in fur coats in the colors of the Norwegian flag and with a crown on their heads.
It was an extraordinary staging for Johannes and hardly his own idea. "It's the perfect ending. We always knew that we wanted to end our career here at Holmenkollen," he explained in his usual calm manner, with the modesty he had always shown throughout his career. Some spectators could not hold back tears during the 45-minute ceremony.
Opera arias and then Abba hits, the two brothers got on their skis one last time for a final dance and crossed the finish line together for the last time. At the edge of the cross-country ski run, the following could be read: "Thank you Johannes and Tarjei, you made the biathlon a 'BöAthlon' and the podium a 'Bödium'", or "Ich LieBö Dich".
Thanks to the brother
In order to devote himself to his family, especially his two children, Johannes Thingnes Bö tearfully announced in mid-January that he would retire from the sport after the season at his home race at Holmenkollen, although he had always set the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina as his horizon.
It is no coincidence that Johannes shared the spotlight with Tarjei on Sunday. Johannes, the fourth of five siblings, owes a lot to his older brother, as he says himself. When he was 13 years old, he saw him win gold at the Junior World Championships. "He showed that it is possible," said the younger Bö on the day he announced his retirement. In Norway, the brothers are sometimes compared to Ingebrigtsen in athletics: The older one clears the way, and the younger one follows him, learns from his mistakes and eventually surpasses him.
Praise from the predecessor
At the World Championships in February, Johannes Bö outdid his compatriot and previous record holder Ole Einar Björndalen with his gold medals 21 to 23, 12 of which were in individual competitions (20, 11 of which were individual). "I'm happy for him, he's a legend and I think it will be a while before we see other athletes like him," said his predecessor in tribute.
Bö would probably have added to his palmarès at the Olympic Games. The fact that he puts the well-being of his wife, his five-year-old boy and his one-and-a-half-year-old daughter above his sporting ambitions suits the Norwegian redhead.
