On February 17 and 18, 2026, on the trails of Antholz-Anterselva, the French biathletes brought home two more gold medals for France. With six Olympic gold medals, the French delegation in Milan-Cortina broke its record set at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. To date, the biathletes have won no fewer than 10 of the French team’s 17 medals!

As a flagship discipline in French sports, biathlon also holds a special place at theUniversité Grenoble Alpes. Legends of French biathlon—Marie Dorin-Habert, Anaïs Chevalier-Bouchet, Anaïs Bescond, and Chloé Chevalier—are all graduates of UGA. Among the 51 UGA students and alumni attending the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics (Learn more), 8 were selected to compete in the biathlon events, including Camille Bened and Fabien Claude.

A historic victory for the men's biathlon relay team

On February 17 at the Antholz-Anterselva venue, the French men’s biathlon team became Olympic champions in the 4 x 7.5 km relay for the first time in its history, finishing ahead of Norway and Sweden. The gold-medal-winning quartet consisted of Eric Perrot, Émilien Jacquelin, Quentin Fillon Maillet, and Fabien Claude, who earned a bachelor’s degree in Sports Science (STAPS) with a specialization in sports training in 2018.
A summary of the race on the France TV website.

Fabien Claude, the first runner and Olympic silver medalist in this same relay in 2022, looks back on the website of the French Olympic and Paralympic Team, on this legendary race: "That’s been our goal for four years now, ever since we were Olympic silver medalists in Beijing. This moment will undoubtedly go down in history. I’m proud because today, this medal means so much to the entire biathlon community. We’re just proud to have our names at the very top of the medal count.".

Olympic Glory for the Fantastic Four

On the day after the men’s relay team won the gold medal, the “Fantastic Four” of the 2026 Winter Games also claimed the Olympic title in the 4 x 7.5 km relay. This was a feat that had not been achieved in 34 years, since the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville.

At the end of a wild race, Camille Bened, Lou Jeanmonnot, Océane Michelon, and Julia Simon came out on top, ahead of Sweden and Norway.
A summary of the race on the France TV website.

Camille Bened, a first-year undergraduate student in Life Sciences majoring in eBio, let her joy burst forth after this achievement: "This is a gold medal we won together, even though my three teammates deserve more credit than I do. I was disappointed with my race, but I gave it everything I had, and winning the medal in the end brings me so much joy (...). Just being at the Games was already a victory for me. When the coaching staff put their trust in me for the relay, I was overjoyed. Today, these are tears of joy.".

Congratulations to the French biathlon team, Camille Bened, and Fabien Claude for their exceptional performances! These two champions have earned the UGA “its” third medal at these Olympic Games, following the silver medal won in the men's cross-country skiing relay.

Congratulations also to Eric Perrot, who was still a student at UGA last year before taking a break to compete in the Olympics (with three medals already under his belt).

Inter’Val: A Program for the Elite of Winter Sports

To balance their studies with competing at the highest international level, Camille Bened and Fabien Claude—like all UGA students and recent graduates participating in the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics—benefit from or have benefited from the Inter’Val system. Established in 2004 to address the significant challenges faced by winter sports athletes, this specialized support program is reserved for athletes competing in the most prestigious international competitions.


Offered in all fields of study, Inter’Val is based on a partnership—unique in France—between the UGA and the National Sports Agency (ANS) and 5 federations: the French Ski Federation (FFS), the French Mountaineering and Climbing Federation (FFME), the French Ice Sports Federation (FFSG), the French Ice Hockey Federation (FFHG) and the French Federation of Sports for People with Disabilities (FFH).

This year, of the 770 high-level student-athletes supported by the UGA in their dual academic and athletic pursuits, 115 are benefiting from the Inter’Val support program. The success of this leading support program is also reflected in the 11 UGA graduates who are continuing their athletic careers at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics while having secured their professional futures.