Vincent Jay

Vincent Jay was born on 18 May 1985 in Saint-Martin-de-Belleville, France. He is a retired biathlete. Jay made his World Cup debut on 23 March 2006. During the 2008-2009 season he achieved his first victory in the 20 km Individual in Vancouver. The next season, on 14 February 2010 surprisingly Jay won his second World Cup victory in the 10 km sprint again in Vancouver. The World Cup tour took place there to test the Olympic race tracks for the upcoming Games in 2010. At those very same Winter Olympic Games, Vincent Jay became a sensation. While everyone was focused on his teammates, the Fourcade brothers who were expected to collect most of the medals, the modest and shy, Vincent Jay won the 10 km sprint which happened during awfully hard weather conditions. However the heavy snow that covered rapidly the stadium was not a problem for Jay. In the following race, the 12.5 km pursuit, Jay won the bronze medal. He shared the podium with the winner Björn Ferry and the silver medalist Christoph Sumann. Jay finished twice 10th in the 20 km Individual event and the 15 km mass start. He came 5th in the relay. After the Olympics, Vincent Jay won many relays on the World Cup tour alongside his teammates Vincent Defrasne, Simon Fourcade and Martin Fourcade. He was an invaluable member of the French National team until the very sudden end of his young sporting career. At the 2011 World Championships, Jay showed a sudden drop in his form. He placed 19th in the Individual, 45th in the sprint, 56th in the pursuit and 12th in the relay. Next year in Ruhpolding, where the World Championships took place, Jay participated in only one event - the Individual where placed 29th. He announced his retirement from the sport because of disappointing results in December 2012. However during his last race in Hochfilzen, Jay helped the French relay to achieve the 2nd position on the podium. After the competition, his fellow teammates put up a banner saying: Merci Vincent. Yes, indeed, thank you Vincent for all the emotions and unforgettable moments you left in biathlon history. After his retirement, Jay was appointed as the director of the Sports Club of Val d'Isere in July 2014. In June the same year he married the former Alpine skier and compatriot, Marie Marchand-Arvier.