Laura Dahlmeier

Laura Dahlmeier was one of the world’s best biathletes ever. She earned two Olympic gold medals at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics in the 7.5 km sprint and the 10 km pursuit events. She also added a bronze medal over 15 km. She also participated in the 2014 Sochi Winter Games but could not win a medal. Her best year was 2017 when she obtained five gold medals at the World Championships. In total, she earned seven gold, three silver, and five bronze medals. Consequently, she was named Sportswomen of the Year in Germany in 2017 after also winning the Overall World Cup that season including the individual and the pursuit world cups. In total, Dahlmeier won 20 single World Cup races and 13 relay World Cup races. In addition to biathlon, she also participated in several mountain runs. She retired after the 2018/19 season to start to devote herself primarily to her passion for mountaineering.

Dahlmeier was awarded numerous honors, especially as she was a very pleasant, friendly, helpful and nature-loving person. She became European Youth Sportswoman in 2011, was World Youth Sportswoman in 2013, became German Skiing Sport Woman in 2017, received the Bavarian sport prize in 2017, became honorary citizen of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 2018, and was made a German legend of sport in 2019.

In 2023, Dahlmeier became a state-certified mountain and ski guide. In the summer of 2017, she climbed the Alpamayo (5,947 m) in the Peruvian Cordillera Blanca via the southwest flank, which has ice passages up to 80° steep. In 2019, she climbed the highest mountain in Iran, the Damawand. That same year, she also climbed the American Direct, an 1,100 m high granite wall in the west face of the Petit Dru in the Mont Blanc group. The ascent of Mont Blanc via the Brouillard Pillar with the Huber brothers in 2021 was captured in a video. The pillar is located on the south side of Mont Blanc and is difficult to access. The upper part of the 800 m high route, first climbed by Chris Bonington in 1963, is known for its brittleness. In 2024, Laura Dahlmeier climbed the 6,814 m high Ama Dablam in Nepal in three days, accompanied only by a cameraman.

From the end of June 2025, Dahlmeier was in the Karakoram Mountains in Pakistan and successfully climbed the Great Trango Tower (6,287 m). On 28 July 2025, around noon, she was descending from the summit of Laila Peak in Alpine style with her climbing partner Marina Krauss when she was hit by a rockfall at an altitude of about 5,700 meters. Although Krauss immediately called for help, a rescue helicopter did not reach the remote accident site until the next morning. During the flight over the area, it was determined that the athlete was “at least seriously injured” and that there were “no signs of life.” The rescue operation was coordinated by an international team including experienced alpinists such as Thomas Huber. On 30 July her management announced her death and fixed her day of death as 28 July 2025. Dahlmeier had a will that stated, if she were severely injured while climbing, no-one should risk their life to recover her and that her body should remain on the mountain.