Andrea Henkel is competing in the Winter Olympics 2010 in Vancouver in the biathlon for Germany.
Andrea Henkel grew up in the former East Germany. Her athletic start came in cross-country skiing at age four, and she soon began tagging along to her older sister Manuela's practices. When she switched to biathlon at age 11, she had trouble with the shooting portion of the sport initially, but she stuck with it. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, she moved to winter sports mecca, Oberhof, to hone her biathlon skills at the sports school there.
At the 2002 Salt Lake Games, Henkel sisters Andrea and Manuela became the first siblings to win relay gold medals at the same Winter Games in different sports. On Feb. 18, Andrea skied the third leg of the 4 x 7.5km relay in biathlon, and three days later, Manuela skied the opening leg of the 4 x 5km relay in cross-country skiing. It was the second gold of the Games for Andrea, who also took home the top prize in the 15km individual.
On the morning of competition, biathletes often practice trigger control with their rifles. Since no ammunition is used, these 'dry-fire training' sessions are normally conducted at home or in the team hotel. At the 2009 World Championships, however, strict South Korean gun control laws moved this session to a special room at the stadium. Before the pursuit race, Henkel accidentally used a spare clip which contained live bullets, firing one bullet through a wall. While damage was limited to that wall and a small shelf on the other side, no one was injured. However, the six-time world champion was disqualified and unable to defend her title from the year before.
In April and May 2009, Henkel enjoyed a pleasant postseason vacation with her boyfriend, U.S. biathlete Tim Burke. The two spent three weeks together, roller skiing in Burke's hometown of Lake Placid, alpine skiing in the Adirondacks, sightseeing in New York City and snorkeling, kayaking and fly-fishing (for the first time) in Puerto Rico.
Andrea Henkel grew up in the former East Germany. Her athletic start came in cross-country skiing at age four, and she soon began tagging along to her older sister Manuela's practices. When she switched to biathlon at age 11, she had trouble with the shooting portion of the sport initially, but she stuck with it. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, she moved to winter sports mecca, Oberhof, to hone her biathlon skills at the sports school there.
At the 2002 Salt Lake Games, Henkel sisters Andrea and Manuela became the first siblings to win relay gold medals at the same Winter Games in different sports. On Feb. 18, Andrea skied the third leg of the 4 x 7.5km relay in biathlon, and three days later, Manuela skied the opening leg of the 4 x 5km relay in cross-country skiing. It was the second gold of the Games for Andrea, who also took home the top prize in the 15km individual.
On the morning of competition, biathletes often practice trigger control with their rifles. Since no ammunition is used, these 'dry-fire training' sessions are normally conducted at home or in the team hotel. At the 2009 World Championships, however, strict South Korean gun control laws moved this session to a special room at the stadium. Before the pursuit race, Henkel accidentally used a spare clip which contained live bullets, firing one bullet through a wall. While damage was limited to that wall and a small shelf on the other side, no one was injured. However, the six-time world champion was disqualified and unable to defend her title from the year before.
In April and May 2009, Henkel enjoyed a pleasant postseason vacation with her boyfriend, U.S. biathlete Tim Burke. The two spent three weeks together, roller skiing in Burke's hometown of Lake Placid, alpine skiing in the Adirondacks, sightseeing in New York City and snorkeling, kayaking and fly-fishing (for the first time) in Puerto Rico.
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