Ricco Groß (also spelled Gross, born 22 August 1970) is a former German biathlete.[1] He is one of the most successful biathletes of all time at the Winter Olympics and the World Championships.[citation needed]
He has been married to his wife Kathrin since 1994 and they have three sons: Marco (born 1995), Simon (b. 1998), and Gabriel (b. 2004). He is a Hauptfeldwebel (Sergeant First Class) in the German Bundeswehr..[citation needed]
Groß started out as a cross-country skier but switched to biathlon at the age of 13. He made his World Cup debut at the age of 20.[2] His first club was the SG Dynamo Klingenthal until 1991. In the Biathlon World Cup of 1997/1998, he came second in the overall competition. In the biathlon competition at the 1992, 1994, and 1998 Winter Olympics, he won gold medals as part of the men's 4 × 7.5 km relay team. At the 2002 Winter Olympics in the 4 × 7.5 km relay for men the German team won silver and at the 12.5 km pursuit for men, he won bronze for himself. He took a total of eight Olympic medals during his career, including four relay golds.[3]
In the Biathlon World Championships sprint (10 km) he won bronze in 1995, and silver in 2003 and 2004. In 1999, 2003, and 2004, he won gold in the pursuit (12.5 km). In the individual (20 km), he won gold in 1997, silver in 1999, and bronze in 2003 and 2005. He took a total of nine World Championship titles.[4] Groß took a total of 53 individual podium finishes in World Cup competition, including nine race wins.[3]
After retiring from competition Groß settled in Ruhpolding. He has worked as a commentator on biathlon for German television and was appointed as coach of the German women's biathlon team in 2010.[2] He was subsequently announced as senior trainer for the German IBU Cup team in April 2014.[5] In August 2015 he became a senior coach for the Russian men's biathlon squad, agreeing a contract up to the 2017-18 season.[3] In this role he guided the team to the 2016-17 relay World Cup title. In May 2018, Groß was announced as head coach for the Austrian men's biathlon team.[4]
All results are sourced from the International Biathlon Union.[6]
8 medals (4 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze)
| Event | Individual | Sprint | Pursuit | Mass start | Relay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1992 Albertville
|
— | Silver | — | — | Gold |
 1994 Lillehammer
|
— | Silver | — | — | Gold |
 1998 Nagano
|
6th | 17th | — | — | Gold |
 2002 Salt Lake City
|
4th | 4th | Bronze | — | Silver |
 2006 Turin
|
11th | 6th | 12th | — | Gold |
20 medals (9 gold, 5 silver, 6 bronze)
| Event | Individual | Sprint | Pursuit | Mass start | Team | Relay | Mixed relay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1991 Lahti
|
— | 16th | — | — | 4th | Gold | — |
 1993 Borovets
|
6th | 64th | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1995 Antholz-Anterselva
|
55th | Bronze | — | — | 14th | Gold | — |
 1996 Ruhpolding
|
9th | 12th | — | — | 6th | Silver | — |
 1997 Brezno-Osrblie
|
Gold | 34th | 26th | — | — | Gold | — |
 1998 Pokljuka
|
— | — | 7th | — | Silver | — | — |
| 1999 Kontiolahti
|
Silver | 6th | Gold | 8th | — | 4th | — |
| 2000 Oslo Holmenkollen
|
9th | 7th | 18th | 6th | — | Bronze | — |
| 2001 Pokljuka
|
7th | 27th | 14th | 4th | — | 12th | — |
| 2002 Oslo Holmenkollen
|
— | — | — | 11th | — | — | — |
 2003 Khanty-Mansiysk
|
Bronze | Silver | Gold | 22nd | — | Gold | — |
| 2004 Oberhof
|
4th | Silver | Gold | 29th | — | Gold | — |
 2005 Hochfilzen
|
Bronze | 7th | 6th | 7th | — | 6th | Bronze |
| 2006 Pokljuka
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | 10th |
| 2007 Antholz-Anterselva
|
9th | — | — | — | — | Bronze | — |
9 victories (3 In, 1 Sp, 4 Pu, 1 MS)
| Season | Date | Location | Discipline | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996–97 2 victories (2 In) |
9 January 1997 | Ruhpolding |
20 km individual | Biathlon World Cup |
| 7 February 1997 | Brezno-Osrblie |
20 km individual | Biathlon World Championships | |
| 1997–98 1 victory (1 In) |
3 March 1998 | Pokljuka |
20 km individual | Biathlon World Cup |
| 1998–99 1 victory (1 Pu) |
13 February 1999 | Kontiolahti |
12.5 km pursuit | Biathlon World Championships |
| 1999–2000 2 victories (1 Sp, 1 MS) |
12 January 2000 | Ruhpolding |
15 km mass start | Biathlon World Cup |
| 15 January 2000 | Ruhpolding |
10 km sprint | Biathlon World Cup | |
| 2002–03 1 victory (1 Pu) |
16 March 2003 | Khanty-Mansiysk |
12.5 km pursuit | Biathlon World Championships |
| 2003–04 1 victory (1 Pu) |
8 February 2004 | Oberhof |
12.5 km pursuit | Biathlon World Championships |
| 2005–06 1 victory (1 Pu) |
20 January 2006 | Antholz-Anterselva |
12.5 km pursuit | Biathlon World Cup |
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|---|---|
 Aleksandr Elizarov, Ivan Biakov, Alexander Tikhonov, Nikolay Kruglov (URS) Vladimir Alikin, Alexander Tikhonov, Vladimir Barnashov, Anatoly Alyabyev (URS) Dmitry Vasilyev, Juri Kashkarov, Algimantas Šalna, Sergei Bulygin (URS) Dmitry Vasilyev, Sergei Tchepikov, Alexandr Popov, Valeriy Medvedtsev (URS) Ricco Groß, Jens Steinigen, Mark Kirchner, Fritz Fischer (GER) Ricco Groß, Frank Luck, Mark Kirchner, Sven Fischer (GER) Ricco Groß, Peter Sendel, Sven Fischer, Frank Luck (GER) Halvard Hanevold, Frode Andresen, Egil Gjelland, Ole Einar Bjørndalen (NOR) Ricco Groß, Michael Rösch, Sven Fischer, Michael Greis (GER) Halvard Hanevold, Tarjei Bø, Emil Hegle Svendsen, Ole Einar Bjørndalen (NOR) Peppe Femling, Jesper Nelin, Sebastian Samuelsson, Fredrik Lindström (SWE) Sturla Holm Lægreid, Tarjei Bø, Johannes Thingnes Bø, Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen (NOR) |
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 Vladimir Melanin Kalevi Huuskonen Vladimir Melanin Vladimir Melanin Olav Jordet Jon Istad Viktor Mamatov Alexander Tikhonov Alexander Tikhonov Dieter Speer Alexander Tikhonov Juhani Suutarinen Heikki Ikola Heikki Ikola Odd Lirhus Klaus Siebert Heikki Ikola Frank Ullrich Frank Ullrich Juri Kashkarov Valeriy Medvedtsev Frank-Peter Roetsch Eirik Kvalfoss Valeriy Medvedtsev Mark Kirchner Andreas Zingerle Tomasz Sikora Sergei Tarasov Ricco Groß Sven Fischer Wolfgang Rottmann Paavo Puurunen Halvard Hanevold Raphaël Poirée Roman Dostál Raphaël Poirée Emil Hegle Svendsen Ole Einar Bjørndalen Tarjei Bø Jakov Fak Martin Fourcade Martin Fourcade Martin Fourcade Lowell Bailey Arnd Peiffer Martin Fourcade Sturla Holm Lægreid Johannes Thingnes Bø Johannes Thingnes Bø |
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Vladimir Drachev Ricco Groß Frank Luck Pavel Rostovtsev Ricco Groß Ricco Groß Ole Einar Bjørndalen Ole Einar Bjørndalen Ole Einar Bjørndalen Ole Einar Bjørndalen Martin Fourcade Martin Fourcade Emil Hegle Svendsen Erik Lesser Martin Fourcade Martin Fourcade Dmytro Pidruchnyi Émilien Jacquelin Émilien Jacquelin Johannes Thingnes Bø Johannes Thingnes Bø |
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(Ola Wærhaug, Olav Jordet, Jon Istad, Ragnar Tveiten) (Alexander Tikhonov, Viktor Mamatov, Vladimir Gundartsev, Rinnat Safin) (Alexander Tikhonov, Rinnat Safin, Alexander Ushakov, Viktor Mamatov) (Alexander Tikhonov, Nikolay Muzhytov, Rinnat Safin, Viktor Mamatov) (Gennady Kovalyev, Rinnat Safin, Juri Kolmakov, Alexander Tikhonov) (Alexander Ushakov, Alexander Tikhonov, Juri Kolmakov, Nikolay Kruglov) (Henrik Flöjt, Simo Halonen, Juhani Suutarinen, Heikki Ikola) (Aleksandr Elizarov, Alexander Ushakov, Nikolay Kruglov, Alexander Tikhonov) (Manfred Beer, Klaus Siebert, Frank Ullrich, Eberhard Rösch) (Manfred Beer, Klaus Siebert, Frank Ullrich, Eberhard Rösch) (Mathias Jung, Matthias Jacob, Frank Ullrich, Eberhard Rösch) (Mathias Jung, Matthias Jacob, Frank Ullrich, Bernd Hellmich) (Sergei Bulygin, Algimantas Šalna, Juri Kashkarov, Petr Miloradov) (Juri Kashkarov, Algimantas Šalna, Andrei Zenkov, Sergei Bulygin) (Dmitry Vasilyev, Juri Kashkarov, Valeriy Medvedtsev, Sergei Bulygin) (Jürgen Wirth, Frank-Peter Roetsch, Matthias Jacob, André Sehmisch) (Frank Luck, André Sehmisch, Frank-Peter Roetsch, Birk Anders) (Pieralberto Carrara, Wilfried Pallhuber, Johann Passler, Andreas Zingerle) (Ricco Groß, Frank Luck, Mark Kirchner, Fritz Fischer) (Wilfried Pallhuber, Johann Passler, Pieralberto Carrara, Andreas Zingerle) (Ricco Groß, Mark Kirchner, Frank Luck, Sven Fischer) (Viktor Maigourov, Vladimir Drachev, Sergei Tarasov, Aleksey Kobelev) (Ricco Groß, Peter Sendel, Sven Fischer, Frank Luck) (Alexei Aidarov, Petr Ivashko, Vadim Sashurin, Oleg Ryzhenkov) (Viktor Maigourov, Sergei Rozhkov, Vladimir Drachev, Pavel Rostovtsev) (Gilles Marguet, Vincent Defrasne, Julien Robert, Raphaël Poirée) (Peter Sendel, Sven Fischer, Ricco Groß, Frank Luck) (Frank Luck, Ricco Groß, Sven Fischer, Michael Greis) (Halvard Hanevold, Stian Eckhoff, Egil Gjelland, Ole Einar Bjørndalen) (Ivan Tcherezov, Maxim Chudov, Dmitri Yaroshenko, Nikolay Kruglov Jr.) (Ivan Tcherezov, Nikolay Kruglov Jr., Dmitri Yaroshenko, Maxim Chudov) (Emil Hegle Svendsen, Lars Berger, Halvard Hanevold, Ole Einar Bjørndalen) (Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Alexander Os, Emil Hegle Svendsen, Tarjei Bø) (Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Rune Brattsveen, Tarjei Bø, Emil Hegle Svendsen) (Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Henrik L'Abée-Lund, Tarjei Bø, Emil Hegle Svendsen) (Erik Lesser, Daniel Böhm, Arnd Peiffer, Simon Schempp) (Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Tarjei Bø, Johannes Thingnes Bø, Emil Hegle Svendsen) (Alexey Volkov, Maxim Tsvetkov, Anton Babikov, Anton Shipulin) (Lars Helge Birkeland, Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen, Tarjei Bø, Johannes Thingnes Bø) (Émilien Jacquelin, Martin Fourcade, Simon Desthieux, Quentin Fillon Maillet) (Sturla Holm Lægreid, Tarjei Bø, Johannes Thingnes Bø, Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen) (Antonin Guigonnat, Fabien Claude, Émilien Jacquelin, Quentin Fillon Maillet) (Viktor Brandt, Jesper Nelin, Martin Ponsiluoma, Sebastian Samuelsson) |
