Redman, who is in his second year as a member of the US Biathlon Team, toppled 17 of the 20 targets in the Men's 20k. He combined this with the fifth fastest ski time over the tough Soldier Hollow Olympic Biathlon course. Redman's time of 55:17, which includes 1 minute for each missed target, put him 9.9 seconds of second place finisher, Dan Campbell of Hastings, MN. Finishing third was Dan Westover of Jericho, VT, 21 seconds behind Redman. All of the top 3 finishers had only 3 penalties on a day that saw some of the top competitors miss more than 5 targets.

1998 Olympian Jay Hakkinen, of Kasilof, AK and Jeremy Teela, of Anchorage, AK had 5 and 7 penalties, respectively. This was offset by the 3rd and 1st fastest ski times in the competition. After the race, Redman commented, " This is just the beginning of the trials. Tomorrow is a new day. But I did better than I expected and am very pleased to have won."

Even more surprising than Redman was the win by Lanny Barnes of the US Junior National Team. Barnes top previous finish in a major championship was in the 2001 European Championships, where she placed 7th in the 10k Pursuit and 10th in the 7.5K sprint. She and her twin sister, Tracy, who placed 9th today, have been training with Junior National Coach, Cory Salmela for the past two years. The Barnes sisters are part of the upcoming US Junior program.

Following Barnes was the top-ranked US woman for the past 3 seasons, Rachel Steer, of Anchorage, AK. Barnes recorded only 2 shooting penalties and finished in 54:30, while Steer had 4, finishing 23 seconds back. Barnes' offset Steer's faster ski time with better shooting. 1998 Olympian Kara Salmela, of Duluth, MN placed 3rd, with 6 penalties, 56 seconds behind the junior athlete. Andrea Nahrgang of Wayzata, MN, closely followed her another 15 seconds back.

In both the mens and women's competitions, shooting was the main factor in these races where each missed target is a 1 minute penalty. The top 5 ski times in the men's competitions and 3 of the top 5 for the women were recorded by members of the US National Team, coached by Algis Shalna. With the upcoming competitions, 2 sprints and a pursuit, fast skiing will play a larger role in the final results.

The second competition of these 4-race Trials will be held Sunday December 30. The competitions will be a 10K Sprint for men and a 7.5K Sprint for women. a 150 meter penalty loop will be required for each missed target in these 10 shot events.

The US Olympic Biathlon Team of 4 men and 4 women will be announced at the conclusion of the Trials on January 3.

The US Biathlon Team Competes under the auspices of the US Biathlon Association, the National Governing Body for the Olympic Sport of Biathlon. LL Bean, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, Federal Cartridge, and Exel Ski Poles sponsor the US Biathlon Team.