USA luger Matthew Greiner loves nothing more than hurtling down an icy track at speeds of up to 130 kilometres per hour. His mother, however, feels rather differently.

The final day of biathlon at the Lausanne 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games provided plenty of plot twists as Italy sprang a late surprise on the dominant Russian team.

A day off proved to be the perfect tonic for Alena Mokhova (RUS) as she won the women’s 6km sprint and cemented herself as queen of biathlon at the Lausanne 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games.

Marcin Zawol delivered Poland’s first medal of the Lausanne 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games when he became a surprise winner in the biathlon men’s 7.5km sprint.

Every sport needs a poster boy or girl and thanks to Swiss twins Thomas and Robin Bussard ski mountaineering has got two for one.

She had swapped her spikes for warmer high tops, her sprint suit for a thick down jacket. But British sprinter and Team Galaxy athlete Dina Asher-Smith remained in her element as she shared her athletic journey at the Youth Olympic Village on Sunday.

France’s biathletes gave their home crowd plenty to cheer about at the Les Tuffes Nordic Centre on Sunday, winning the single mixed relay gold in commanding fashion.

There will be four events at the Les Tuffes venue in Prémanon between 11 and 15 January: the individual, the sprint, the individual mixed relay and the team mixed relay. Johanna Puff is one of the eight biathletes in the German team, which will consist of four men and four women. Number one in her age category in her country, she is hoping to do well in all the events and if possible win medals.

The Winter Youth Olympic Games (YOG) Lausanne 2020 is sure to be unforgettable for the 1,872 young men and women competing on the snow and ice over the coming days, however for the select few athletes chosen to be their country’s flagbearers at Thursday’s spectacular Opening Ceremony, the YOG experience has already been extra special.