‘Thought the end had come’: Finnish biathlete survives bear attack

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The Finnish biathlete Erika Jänkä (27) wants to do a normal running training in the forest. But the jog turns into a near-death experience when her path crosses that of two adult brown bears.

In the newspaper “Kuhmolainen” she describes the terrifying encounter: She is jogging through the forest with headphones on, when she sees the wild animals ten meters away. One of the two bears moved aggressively towards them. After the initial shock, Jänkä reacted instinctively correctly and immediately played dead. The bear approaches, probably sniffing at her ankles and feet. Jänkä fears for her life: “I thought the end had come.”

Jänkä shows the location of the bear attack

Almost miraculously, the brown bear stops sniffing and retreats. Jänkä is spared. But the shock runs deep. “The experience of fearing death that you think is certain is something you cannot prepare for,” she writes on her Instagram channel. In a video, she takes her followers to the site of the attack: a normal forest path outside the Finnish town of Kuhmo on the border with Russia. The experience will leave a lasting impression, even if Jänkä survived unscathed.

The fact that the encounter with the brown bear came to a successful conclusion is due to the biathlete’s quick action. She was “speechless, but grateful for the lessons” she learned during her “stays in nature and encounters with animals”.

She is waiting for her breakthrough at the World Cup

Jänkä has only been part of the biathlon World Cup circus since the 2020 season – but her breakthrough has not yet happened. She recently took part in the Olympic Games in Beijing and in the World Championships in Oberhof, where she placed 54th individually. Her best result comes from this year’s season finale in Oslo, where she finished 45th.

Source : Blick