Olga Podchufarova is intending to rejoin the Russian national team after her bid to obtain Slovenian citizenship failed, Russian media reports. The biathlete confirmed the news on Instagram.
“As you know, I spent the last 18 months in Slovenia waiting for permission to compete for the new country. But it turned out in such a way, that I am coming back home to Russia. Neither of the two sides expected this outcome,” the biathlete wrote and explained, that the EU internal laws didn’t allow her to obtain the Slovenian citizenship.
Podchufarova also announced to continue her career.
The 28-year-old athlete won her first World Cup Podium on Pokljuka in 2015 (3rd mass start) and won the sprint event in Anterselva 2016. At the IBU World Championships 2017 in Hochfilzen, she won a bronze medal with the Russian mixed relay.