In August, Norway’s biathlon coach Siegfried Mazet announced that he will step down after the 2026 Olympics. Now he opens up about the decision, the tears, the era with the Bø brothers, and what comes next.

Norway’s biathlon national team coach for almost ten years, Siegfried Mazet, is currently at a training camp with the elite squad in Lavazé, northern Italy. From the outside, everything looks normal.

“We are fully into the build-up to the season. We have already done some really tough sessions where we push the heart rate and work on solving different challenges on the shooting range,” the shooting coach told Fondo Italia.

However, Mazet has also reflected on the emotions that followed the Bø brothers’ retirement, the decision to quit, and the thoughts behind the process.

“The first period and the first two camps without the Bø brothers felt very strange. But now we have found a new rhythm in the team and built routines that work well, and we’re looking forward,” he said.

“It’s like we said, you close one chapter and start a new one.”

It was in early August, the day before the biathlon competitions at the Blink Festival in Sandnes, that the 47-year-old dropped the news. The Frenchman, a cornerstone of the Norwegian team for nine years, will leave after the coming Olympic winter.

Also Read: Mazet to step down after 2026 Olympics

A very special era

For Mazet, the time with the Bø brothers was unique. So, in January, when Johannes Thingnes Bø announced he would retire after the season, tears rolled.

“Yes, it was very special. Nobody on the team knew anything. After breakfast that day, he pulled us aside and said, ‘I have something I need to tell you.’ That’s when he told us, and it was a surprise for everyone,” Mazet said about that Saturday morning in Ruhpolding.

“Then it hits you what is about to happen. It was very emotional for me. When I came to Norway, it was the two of them and Emil Hegle Svendsen who helped me feel at home in the team. Johannes always cared a lot about me, Tarjei too, of course. I had a very unique relationship with them,” Mazet said.

The week after, Tarjei Bø shared the same decision.

“This era of my life, together with them as their coach, was something very special. It has been enjoyable, very good, and it has always been like that in the Norwegian team,” Mazet reflected.

Also Read – Bø: “I’ll lie on the sofa and get fat”

Why is he leaving Norway?

Until now, Mazet had not said much about why he would step down in March. Now he lifts the veil on the thoughts and feelings behind the decision.

“First of all, in elite sports, it’s very rare for people to stay in the same position for 20 years. Either you resign before that, or you disappear when the association or a new generation comes in and wants change,” he said.

“But for me, I need new challenges. After this season, I will have been here for ten years. I want to feel the pressure of starting something new again. That’s why I left France ten years ago, and that’s why I’m leaving here now,” Mazet explained.

“I like being a coach, and I like the process of building a team and reaching goals, but then comes a point where I feel I’ve done my job. And I think I’ve done my job for Norway now. The conclusion is that I could have stayed longer, several years, without problems. But four years from now, in my case, I would have to go anyway.”

Important to be transparent

After making his decision, Mazet informed the Norwegian Biathlon Association that the 2026 Olympic season would be his last.

“The reason I said it now, before the season, was to be honest with the association. I didn’t want to go through the whole winter and wait until the end of the season, like most others do,” he explained.

The association’s reaction was precisely what Mazet had hoped for.

“They said, ‘Now that you’ve told us, it’s important to go public. You know that when more than three people know a secret, it’s no longer a secret.’ So August, September, or November? We might as well say it now,” Mazet said.

Revealing it early was important to him.

“It makes it more transparent for the athletes. Now they know this is the last season, and that we need to make the most of it. That is especially true for those who have been on the team for a long time. We know we’ll share the good experiences. And this way, the association also has plenty of time to find a new coach.”

Also Read: Norway begins search for next biathlon national team coach

Tempted by more Olympics

What Mazet will do after the Olympic season is yet to be decided. But he has hinted that he would like to move back to France and possibly work with the French national team ahead of the 2030 Olympics on home soil in the Alps.

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