Olympic Champion Steps Away From the Rifle
Émilien Jacquelin will not race in biathlon next winter. The 31-year-old Frenchman confirmed on Tuesday, September 22, via a video message posted by the French Ski Federation, that he is choosing professional cycling over biathlon for the 2026-27 season. The International Biathlon Union acknowledged the decision the same day.
"I've decided to continue cycling over the coming months and as a result next winter will not be with the biathlon team," Jacquelin said. "Today's path is different and special but I feel it is in line with what I want to do."
The announcement lands just seven months after Jacquelin anchored the French quartet to gold in the men's relay at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics — the defining achievement of his career to date. It is one of the most significant departures a World Cup biathlon season has seen in recent memory, and it arrives as squads are assembling for November's opening round in Kontiolahti.
A Cycling Career Built Through the Summer
Jacquelin's pivot to the road has been gradual, not sudden. He has been racing professionally for the Decathlon CMA CGM team since summer 2025, competing in La Polynormande and the Tours of Limousin and Britain. In August 2026, he finished 14th in the road race at the Mediterranean Games, a result that, according to reports, reinforced his commitment to stay on the bike through the coming winter.
The Decathlon CMA CGM squad — a mid-tier professional team with French roots — gave Jacquelin the platform to test whether his endurance base, built over thousands of kilometres of biathlon ski training, could translate to sustained competitive cycling. By all accounts, the answer was encouraging enough to justify this season-long commitment.
Biathlon Career Not Over
Jacquelin was explicit that the sabbatical is not a farewell. "My biathlon story is not over," he said. "The goal, as I have always said, remains the 2030 Olympic Games" — a reference to the Alps 2030 Winter Olympics, to be held on French soil.
The framing positions cycling less as a second career and more as a motivational reset. Jacquelin has spoken in the past about needing new competitive challenges to sustain the drive that brought him to Olympic gold and multiple World Championship podiums. Taking an entire winter away from the sport he has competed in since adolescence is, by his own account, the vehicle for that renewal.
BiathlonFrance biathlon: Seven men fight for five World Cup spots in GeiloWhat His Absence Means for France and the World Cup
For the French national team, the practical consequences are immediate. Jacquelin has been the anchor shooter of France's relay unit — the skier who takes the final leg when the race is on the line. Rebuilding that relay structure around his absence falls to coach Stéphane Bouthiaux and the federation's selection committee.
Quentin Fillon Maillet, who returned from injury for the 2026 Olympics, remains the bedrock of the individual lineup. Younger talents from the national championship selection cycle will likely be given extended World Cup opportunities in Jacquelin's place, with relay spots up for grabs from the season opener.
The 2026-27 Biathlon World Cup season begins November 24 in Kontiolahti, Finland. France arrives as defending relay world champions but will face that title defence without their most decorated current athlete.
