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INTERNATIONAL PARALYMPIC COMMITTEE
a female Para Nordic skier

Anja Wicker

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Germany
Nordic Skiing
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Anja Wicker was enjoying the best years of her career after winning her maiden Winter Paralympic title at Sochi 2014. She ended as the Biathlon World Cup overall winner twice and also took gold in the women’s biathlon individual sitting at the 2017 World Championships in Finsterau, Germany.

But unfortunately for her, the German Nordic skier performed way below expectations at the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games, leaving PyeongChang, South Korea, without any medal.

Topping the Worlds podium on home soil in 2017 is one of the highlights in her career. Spurred on by her crowd, Wicker won her first world title. She also sealed double silver in the biathlon short and middle distance events.

The German could, therefore, bounced back after a disappointing performance at the 2015 World Championships in Cable, USA, where she left without a medal.

Wicker took up Nordic skiing in 2006 at the tender age of 15 and has barely looked back since.

With her father as her personal coach, the Paralympic champion has shone. But with role models such as multiple-Paralympic medallist Andrea Eskau on the team, it is not hard to see where Wicker gets her motivation from.

Wicker dabbles in cross-country skiing but it is biathlon where her real talent lies. She is a multiple World Cup podium finisher and every season watches her flag raised on more than one occasion.

Her first World Championships podium came in 2013 when Wicker grabbed silver in the biathlon sprint. Clearly she was preparing herself for something bigger, as just a year later Wicker climbed onto the top step of the podium at her first Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

Biography

Impairment information

Type of Impairment
Spinal Cord Injuries
Origin of Impairment
Congenital
Classification
LW10.5

Further personal information

Residence
Stuttgart, GER
Occupation
Student
Languages
English, German
Higher education
Sports Management - University of Tubingen: Germany

Sport specific information

When and where did you begin this sport?
She took up Para Nordic skiing in 2006 in Freiburg, Germany.
Why this sport?
A friend encouraged her to get involved in the sport. "I tried a lot of sports and liked cross-country skiing the most. I love endurance sports, and this challenges me the most."
Club / Team
MTV Stuttgart: Germany
Name of coach
Ralf Rombach [national], GER

International debut

Year
2009
Competing for
Germany

General interest

Hobbies
Sport, spending time with friends, travel, shopping, reading, supporting German football team VfB Stuttgart and Spanish football team FC Barcelona. (anja-wicker.de, 01 Oct 2015)
Memorable sporting achievement
Claiming a gold medal and a silver medal at the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi. (Athlete, 08 Mar 2018)
Most influential person in career
Her father Volker. (Athlete, 13 Mar 2014)
Injuries
She injured her arms ahead of the 2019 World Championships but was still able to compete at the event in Prince George, BC, Canada. (drs.org, 17 Feb 2019)
Sporting philosophy / motto
"No risk, no fun." (Athlete, 13 Mar 2014)
Awards and honours
In 2014 she received the Silbernes Lorbeerblatt [Silver Laurel Leaf] in Germany. (bundespraesident.de, 05 May 2014)
Other sports
She represented Germany in cross-country skiing and biathlon at the Paralympic Winter Games in 2014 and 2018. She has also competed in handcycling at international level. (SportsDeskOnline, 05 Mar 2019; proactiv-gmbh.de, 19 Oct 2012)
Impairment
She has caudal regression syndrome, a condition that affects the development of the lower spine. (proactiv-gmbh.de, 19 Oct 2012)
Other information
FURTHER EDUCATION
She has studied sport management at SRH Riedlingen in Germany. (anja-wicker.de, 01 Oct 2015)

Results

Unit Date Rank
IPC Nordic Skiing World Championships Solleftea (Solleftea, Sweden)
Event Medal Unit Date Rank
Women's Sprint - Classic Sitting Final 2013-02-25 4
Women's Long Distance - Classic Sitting Final 2013-02-26 6
Women's Short Distance Sitting Final 2013-02-28 2
Women's Middle Distance Sitting Final 2013-03-01 8
Women's Long Distance Sitting Final 2013-03-03 4
Women's Middle Distance - Classic Sitting Final 2013-03-05 10
Paralympic Winter Games 2014 (Sochi, Russia)
Event Medal Unit Date Rank
Women's 6 km Sitting Final Round 2014-03-08 6
Women's 12 km Sitting Final Round 2014-03-09 8
Women's 10 km Sitting Final Round 2014-03-11 1
Women's 1 km Sprint Sitting Qualification 2014-03-12 15
Women's 12.5 km Sitting Final Round 2014-03-14 2
Women's 5 km Sitting Final Round 2014-03-16 9
2015 IPC Nordic Skiing World Championships Cable (Cable, United States of America)
Event Medal Unit Date Rank
Women's Short Distance Sitting Race 1 2015-01-24 9
Women's Middle Distance Sitting Race 1 2015-01-27 8
Women's Sprint - Classic Sitting Race 1 2015-01-28 9
Women's Long Distance Sitting Race 1 2015-01-30 4
Women's Middle Distance - Classic Sitting Race 1 2015-01-31 13
2017 IPC Nordic skiing World Championships Finsterau, GER (Finsterau, Germany)
Event Medal Unit Date Rank
Women's Middle Distance Sitting Final 2017-02-11 2
Women's Sprint - Free Style Sitting Final 2017-02-12 6
Women's Long Distance Sitting Final 2017-02-14 1
Women's Long Distance - Classic Sitting Final 2017-02-16 7
Women's Sprint Sitting Final 2017-02-18 2
Women's Middle Distance - Free Style Sitting Final 2017-02-19 9
Pyeongchang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games (Pyeongchang, South Korea)
Event Medal Unit Date Rank
Women's 6km Sitting Final 2018-03-10 9
Women's 10km Sitting Final 2018-03-13 8
Women's 1.1km Sprint Sitting Final 2018-03-14 12
Women's 12.5km Sitting Final 2018-03-16 9
Women's 5km Sitting Final 2018-03-17 16
Prince George 2019 World Para Nordic Skiing Championships (Prince George, Canada)
Event Medal Unit Date Rank
Women's Middle Distance Sitting Final 2019-02-16 4
Women's Middle Distance - Free Style Sitting Final 2019-02-17 5
Women's Sprint Sitting Final 2019-02-20 4
Women's Long Distance Sitting Final 2019-02-21 4