Julia Simon is out making a name for herself in more ways than one during the 2026 Winter Olympics.
On Wednesday, the French biathlon athlete claimed gold in the women’s 15km individual event with a time of 41:15.6 and just missing one target.
It’s her second gold medal of the Milan Cortina Games — the first being in the mixed team biathlon event on Sunday with teammate Lou Jeanmonnot. Despite missing two targets, Jeanmonnot won silver in 42:08.7 on Wednesday, and Bulgaria’s Lora Hristova followed to secure bronze (42:20.1).
Simon’s final lap, combined with her accurate aim and the bonus of a double miss by Franziska Preuß during the fourth and final shoot to drop the German from first to ninth place, gave her the title over Jeanmonnot.
It’s been a victorious few days for Simon, who, months before the Olympics, was in the middle of a fraud scandal.
In October, the 29-year-old Albertville native was given a three-month suspended jail sentence for theft and credit card fraud after she admitted to stealing the credit cards of her teammate, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet, and an unnamed French team staff member.
She spent a total of $2,300 in online purchases.
“I can’t explain it. I don’t remember doing it. I can’t make sense of it,” she said during the hearing in Albertville to a local French paper.
It initially seemed like Simon’s participation in the Winter Olympics was unlikely. However, the French Skiing Federation instead fined her $34,600, with 15,000 euros suspended, and structured the suspension in a way that she could continue to compete.
The decision took effect on Nov. 7, which made Simon eligible to compete on the World Cup circuit leading up to the Olympic Games themselves.
Before the 2026 Games, Simon had a silver medal in the mixed relay event at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. She has also claimed 10 world titles in her career and finished third overall in the Biathlon World Cup in 2025.
