Shooting for the Stars

U.S. World Cup Nordic and Biathlon Skier Luci Anderson’s Story

 I recently had the pleasure of interviewing World Cup Nordic and Biathlon skier Luci Anderson while she was competing at the Spring Swix Cup SuperTour Nordic Finals in Lake Placid, NY. A few days prior, she had won the 10 km freestyle Individual race. It was great to hear her voice and connect over the phone about the 2024/25 World Cup races she had just returned from in Europe. 

I coached Luci from 7th grade at Plymouth Middle School through 12th grade at Armstrong High School. She was good friends with my daughter Leah Senner, who also raced for Armstrong Nordic and trained with Luci on the Loppet Nordic Racing ski club. The Anderson family had a strong presence at Armstrong, with her older sister Dottie and younger brother Roger also racing on the team simultaneously.

Loppet Nordic Sport Head Coach Piotr Bednarski coached Luci throughout high school. He shared, “The first time Luci’s skiing stood out was at the 2017 Senior Nationals in Soldier Hollow. As a young U16 competitor, she was chill and mentally relaxed competing against older and more experienced college and professional racers, which allowed her to qualify for the Junior Scandinavian trip in Trondheim. She qualified for the U23 2022 World Juniors event in Oslo, Norway, during her junior year in college.”

“Many biathletes get mentally stuck if they have a bad race result. Luci has the gift of moving on to the next race and not allowing a bad race result to trigger her for upcoming events. This ability to remain mentally focused and relaxed will greatly benefit her racing in Biathlon, which often produces varied results in shooting,” shared Piotr.

Following high school, she competed collegiately for five seasons at the University of New Hampshire, where she placed All-American in the 10km skate event at the 2024 NCAA Championships (Steamboat, CO). Luci received a degree in Biomedical Engineering with a minor in Spanish. In her 5th year at UNH, she completed a Master’s in Molecular Biotechnology.

Following five years of racing in college, Luci started training with Team Birkie out of Minneapolis and traveling to multiple U.S. Biathlon camps around the country.

Luci attended a biathlon training camp in June of 2024, and since then, she has been on the fast track to success. She placed 7th in the sprint race at the Biathlon Summer Nationals in Jericho, VT.

This past October at the U.S. Biathlon Fall Festival & IBU/World Cup Rollerski Trials in Midway, Utah, she qualified in 7th place in the sprint and 12th in the mass start race event, earning her a spot on the U.S. Biathlon team.

In November, she attended a preseason camp with all the World Cup athletes in Voukatti, Finland, where she quickly learned the ropes of biathlon training. 

Her first 2024 IBU Cup event was held in Idre Fjäll, Sweden. Luci placed 33rd in the sprint and 21st in pursuit race. Luci was then invited to compete in the 2024 World Cup Biathlon races held in Hochfilzen, Austria. Luci shared, “I placed 20th overall in my ski time and 94th in the sprint, which gave me confidence that my skiing was fast enough to be competitive.” Shooting in biathlon can take years to perfect, but I was ready for the challenge”. 

Luci’s biathlon training combines 1-2 hour ski training sessions, including some distance and shorter sprint loops, integrated with shooting at the range. Shooting precisely in biathlon events requires intense mental focus and the ability to zone out the cheering fans.

 While coaching Luci in high school, I noticed that she was never one to get worked up or nervous about a race. She was as cool as a cucumber. Half of racing is mental focus, positive thinking, and relaxing your body and mind. Luci displayed all these qualities before and during high school and Junior National events. 

“I usually do not get worked up about races, but it can be stressful with all the fans cheering you on while shooting. It has taken a bit of getting used to,” shared Luci.

Following her race in Austria, Luci returned to her home in Minneapolis for Christmas and then headed to U.S. Cross-Country Nationals in Anchorage, Alaska. Luci said, “I won the skate qualifier sprint and did well in all the other events. I was surprised at my results, but felt strong.”

U.S. Nationals to World Cup Nordic Racing

Switching gears from biathlon to Nordic racing, Luci earned a spot to race in the second period of the World Cup Nordic races in France and Switzerland. In January, Luci placed 22nd overall in the 10 km skate race in her first Nordic World Cup event in Les Rousses, France. Finland’s star skier, Kerttu Niskanen (ranked 3rd overall in the world), started thirty seconds behind Luci in the 10 km skate event. “When Niskanen caught up to me, I was so excited to be able to draft her for about a kilometer,” said Luci.

“ I was very nervous racing in my first World Cup Nordic events. I had no expectations and tried to focus on my own race. I was getting split times from the coaches on how fast I was skiing, which fueled me to push forward even stronger. I was in awe of being able to ski race with all these incredible World Cup racers I grew up watching regularly as a teenage athlete,” shared Luci.

Following her races in France, Luci qualified 26th in the sprint World Cup race in Engadin, Switzerland. Luci shared, “ It was my first time qualifying for a World Cup sprint heat, and I learned how to press the buttons for which heat I wanted to be in. We did not have sprint races in college racing, so my only sprinting experience was at Nationals. I learned quickly about race strategies in World Cup sprint events. The women in my heat were going slow and would suddenly speed up to escape everyone.”

Following the sprint event, Luci competed in her first 20 km point-to-point mass start skate World Cup event. The race started in St. Moritz, Switzerland, where a Snow Polo World Cup Championship event was simultaneously taking place. 

“It was wild skiing across the lakes with all these fast women. For the first time, I realized how hard the World Cup competitors push in these 20 km race events. It is a completely different level from college racing,” said Luci.

World Cup Biathlon Races

In early February, Luci was able to rest for a few weeks before competing in the Biathlon World Championship events held in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. “I was skiing fast and shooting pretty well, which helped me place 56th in the sprint and 49th in the pursuit race. These results helped increase my confidence and allowed me to believe I belonged on the World Cup race circuit.  

“There were so many fans compared to the World Cup cross-country races. Biathlon fans are a different breed. It’s like going to a NASCAR race,” shared Luci.

Following the World Championships, Luci flew to Oberhöf, Germany, to get a customized rifle stock (the part of the gun you hold) made to fit perfectly to her body and hands. “We went into this man’s workshop, and he made the rifle stock out of a wooden block. He makes rifle stocks for all the German World Cup team members,” shared Luci.

The next World Cup was in Nové Mesto, Czech Republic. The races were held in the evening under the lights. “This was my worst race of the season, both in the individual, mass start, and relay. “I did not know how to fuel for races that started at 7 p.m. On top of this, I was tired and burned out from all the other prior races,” said Luci.

In March, the World Cup races were held in Pokljuka, Slovenia. The ski area was by a gorgeous lake, and the ski conditions were extremely warm with slush and water.

I finished my biathlon race season at the Oslo World Cup races. My entire family came to watch, which was very special. The Oslo World Cup Biathlon attracted thousands of spectators due to the famous Norwegian Biathlon skiers, the Boe Brothers, who won the relay and skied their final races before retiring on home soil. 

Going into the Olympic year, Luci will focus on biathlon. She will continue to train with Team Birkie in Minneapolis and with the U.S. Biathlon Team at various training camps in Lake Placid.

As her former coach, I can’t express how proud I am of Luci’s accomplishments this past year. Her willingness to change gears and jump into the sport of biathlon demonstrates her desire to work hard and adapt to new training methods. I admire her humble spirit and positive attitude, which will benefit her future endeavors.

I look forward to watching Luci compete next ski season. Could you make sure to follow her 2025/26 Biathlon race season? The International Biathlon Union (IBU) provides FREE live streaming of all World Cup events. Watch live on Eurovision Sport HERE. You can also support Luci by donating to Team Birkie.

Kim Rudd, Owner of Endurance Adventures