Christoph "Sumi" Sumann (19 January 1976) is a former Austrian biathlete.

Life and career

As was the case with many of his fellow biathletes, Sumann switched over from

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

, which he had been doing since childhood. By the mid-1990s had he entered junior ski team of

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and later on progressed to senior level. He was a skillful sprinter at the time. Sumann began as a biathlete in 2000 and would compete in biathlon at the top level for 11 seasons. His first World Cup win came in 2002–03 season and he finished 15th in the World Cup total. In 2006–07 Biathlon World Cup Sumann won the a mass start race and wore the red bib of the leader of the mass start cup up until the last stage of the season, the fact is quite outstanding for Austrians in biathlon despite the fact that he eventually lost it to Ole Einar Bjørndalen, who thus won the mass start world cup that season. His most brilliant season was the 2009–10 Biathlon World Cup. He won two silvers at the

2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXI Olympic Winter Games () and also known as Vancouver 2010 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held from February 12 to 28, 2010 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with ...

in the relay and the pursuit, being runner-up in the World Cup total along with title in the individual cup made him one of the most decorated athletes of that season. The 2010–11 Biathlon World Cup was fraught with hardships for Sumann since he caught intestinal disease in

Östersund Östersund (; ) is an Urban areas in Sweden, urban area (Stad (Sweden), city) in Jämtland in northern Sweden. It is the seat of Östersund Municipality and the capital of Jämtland County. Östersund is located at the shores of Sweden's fifth-larg ...

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in December and he had to combat it throughout the season. However, he came through at the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

when he won a bronze medal in the 20 km individual. Sumann retired from the sport at the end of the 2013–14 season.

Personal life

* Coached by Gösweiner Reinhard at the club Union Sportverein Frojach-Katsch, Sumann is a policeman in his homeland. Besides, he is married and has two children, a daughter Lea and a son Felix.

Biathlon results

All results are sourced from the

International Biathlon Union The International Biathlon Union (IBU; ) is the international governing body of biathlon. Its headquarters were in Salzburg, Austria, until May 2020, when the Federation moved to Anif, on the outskirts of the city. It was rocked by a corruption ...

Olympic Games

''4 medals (2 silver, 2 bronze)'' :''*Mass start was added as an event in 2006, with the mixed relay being added in 2014.''

World Championships

''4 medals (2 silver, 2 bronze)'' :''*During Olympic seasons competitions are only held for those events not included in the Olympic program.'' :''**Mixed relay was added as an event in 2005.''

Individual victories

''6 victories (1 In, 1 Sp, 2 Pu, 2 MS)'' :''*Results are from UIPMB and IBU races which include the

Biathlon World Cup The Biathlon World Cup is a top-level biathlon season-long competition series. It has been held since the winter seasons of 1977–78 for men and 1982–83 for women. The women's seasons until 1986–87 season were called the European Cup, alt ...

Biathlon World Championships The first Biathlon World Championships (BWCH) was held in 1958, with individual and team contests for men. The original team event, Team (time), was held for the last time in 1965, to be replaced in 1966 by the team event, Relay (4 × 7.5 km) ...

and the

Winter Olympic Games The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held in ...

.''

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sumann, Christoph 1976 births Living people Sportspeople from Judenburg Austrian male biathletes Biathletes at the 2002 Winter Olympics Biathletes at the 2006 Winter Olympics Biathletes at the 2010 Winter Olympics Biathletes at the 2014 Winter Olympics Olympic biathletes for Austria Medalists at the 2010 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 2014 Winter Olympics Olympic medalists in biathlon Olympic bronze medalists for Austria Olympic silver medalists for Austria Biathlon World Championships medalists Winter World University Games medalists in cross-country skiing FISU World University Games gold medalists for Austria Competitors at the 1999 Winter Universiade