Biography

Born on 9 November 1987 in Eno, Finland, Mari Laukkanen is a professional biathlete. Her first year in biathlon was 1998 and she became a member of the Finnish National team in 2005. Laukkanen has been coached by Marko Laaksonen and Heikki Pusa. At the 2007 World Championships in Antholz-Anterselva she started in only two events - the sprint where ended up 43rd and the relay that placed 12th. One year later, at the Championships in Östersund, Laukannen took part in all disciplines except the mass start because on a World Cup level, she was off the Top 30 biathletes in the overall. She finished 47th in the Individual, 34th in the sprint, 33rd in the pursuit and 15th with the relay. In Pyeongchang's World Championships in 2009, Laukkanen didn't do well either. She positioned 55th in the sprint, 47th in the pursuit and again 15th in the relay. Nevertheless, Mari Laukkanen was chosen to join the team at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. She participated only in the Individual when took 43rd place and the sprint - 68th place.

During the 2011-2012 season, Laukkanen had few good finishes. Came 14th in the pursuit in Holmenkollen, 15th in the sprint in Ruhpolding and 19th in the sprint in Kontiolahti. The World Championships in Khanty-Mansyisk in 2011 weren't successful. Laukkanen finished 41st in the Individual, 29th in sprint, didn't finish the pursuit race because was closed with one lap and 10th place in the relay. However the season concluded for her at number 36 in the overall. That's the best performance Laukkanen showed. In the 2012-2013 season she made a good 10th position in the sprint in Ruhpolding and one year later finally Laukkanen got on the podium. She finished 3rd in the sprint in Kontiolahti and shared her joy with the winner of the race, her teammate, compatriot and friend Kaisa Mäkäräinen. In 2013-2014 Laukkanen also positioned 9th in the sprint in Pokljuka and 19th in the same discipline in Antholz-Anterselva. But that season was an Olympic one. Everyone was focused on the Games scheduled for February 2014 in Sochi. Laukkanen's performance was a complete disaster. She participated in one event - the sprint where ended up at 36th place.

Obviously such results can bring anyone down. So Laukkanen got it together after Sochi and during the 2014-2015 season showed progress. She finished twice 5th in the sprints in Oberhof and Ruhpolding, 11th in the sprint in Pokljuka and 16th in the sprint in at the World Championships in Kontiolahti. That result was her best one Laukkanen ever made in World Championships. At the end Mari Laukkanen made 36th place in the overall, for the second time in her career. The next season 2015-2016 she achieved only one good score - 16th place in the sprint in Ruhpolding. The World Championships in 2016 in Holmenkollen weren't productive nor successful. She finished 52nd in the sprint, 45th in the pursuit and 18th in the relay.

In 2015 Mari Laukkanen married Mikko Virtanen. She speaks English, graduated from the University of Joensuu and resides in Thalgau, Austria.

- IMDb mini biography by: Lara Cain