After the disastrous 2025/26 season, the national team is set for radical changes
The Ukrainian women’s biathlon team, which had one of the worst seasons in its history, has parted ways with head coach Nikolai Zots. He will be replaced by a legendary Ukrainian biathlete with experience in successful performances at the highest level of competition.
This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing Biathlonnews.
Also read: The Olympics showed that the time for reform has come. How the old sports system will change
The end of Zots’ tenure
Nikolai Zots is concluding his three-year tenure with the women’s team. The last season became a point of no return: the Ukrainians were unable to compete for high positions in the World Cup, and the best individual result of the season remained Alexandra Merkushina’s 14th place. The president of the Ukrainian Biathlon Federation, Ivan Krulko, confirmed that the team needs a new face and a change in approaches.
Priority candidate
The main and priority candidate for the head coach position is a true legend of domestic biathlon, five-time world championship medalist Oksana Khvostenko.
The 48-year-old specialist has led the junior national team for a long time. Under her guidance, last season the team won Small Crystal Globes for victories in the Nations Cup and relay races at the women’s Junior IBU Cup.
Now, the head of the national federation, Ivan Krulko, has proposed that she lead the senior team. A final decision has not yet been made, but the option with Khvostenko is the priority. The official announcement of the appointment is expected after the coaching council meeting in mid-April.
Who is Oksana Khvostenko
A native of Chernihiv, she is one of the most successful Ukrainian biathletes of the 2000s and a long-time leader of the women’s national team.
She is a five-time world championship medalist: she earned silver and bronze in relays, as well as individual awards in the sprint and pursuit events.
Khvostenko was considered one of the best shooters of her time. In the 2006/07 season, she achieved the highest accuracy rate among all female biathletes in the world – 89.7%.
However, towards the end of her career in 2011, the athlete found herself at the center of a doping scandal. After the World Championship in Khanty-Mansiysk, her sample tested positive for ephedrine. As a result, the Ukrainian women’s relay team was stripped of their silver medal, and Oksana herself was banned for one year, after which she officially retired from competition.
Earlier, we reported that legends of Ukrainian biathlon have officially ended their careers.
