Campbell Wright became the fifth American to win an individual medal in World Biathlon Championships history, taking silver in Saturday’s 10km sprint in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.

Wright, a 22-year-old who was born and raised in New Zealand to parents who were born in the U.S., took runner-up to Norwegian Johannes Thingnes Bø.

“I think this is what every kid dreams of, and I still consider myself a bit of a kid, and I was still dreaming of this,” said Wright, who grew up skiing at the Snow Farm near his birthplace of Wanaka and began biathlon in 2016. “I was expecting this maybe in my career in my late 20s, 30s.”

Bø, a 31-year-old who plans to retire after this season, earned his 21st career world championships gold medal to break his tie with retired countryman Ole Einar Bjørndalen for the most in biathlon history.

Bø shot clean and prevailed by 27.7 seconds over Wright, who also shot clean to beat Frenchman Quentin Fillon Maillet, who had one penalty in prone shooting, for silver by 9.3 seconds.

Wright became the youngest American biathlete to win an individual world championships medal. The previous individual medalists were Josh Thompson (silver, 1987), Tim Burke (silver, 2013), Lowell Bailey (gold, 2017) and Susan Dunklee (silver, 2017 and 2020).

The U.S.’ first podium in World Biathlon Championships history came in the women’s relay in 1984, a bronze.

The U.S. has never won an Olympic medal in biathlon.

By finishing in the top six, Wright is now in position to be the first biathlete to qualify for the 2026 U.S. Olympic team, should no other Americans finish in the top six of the remaining individual events at worlds.

Wright placed 32nd and 75th in two 2022 Olympic events while competing for New Zealand as the only teenage male biathlete at those Games.

Wright, a dual citizen and offseason barista while competing for New Zealand, then moved to Lake Placid, New York, and switched representation to the U.S. in 2023. He cited increased access to financial resources and equipment.

Wright has progressed while representing the U.S., placing 11th, 12th, 18th and 20th in four individual events at the 2024 World Championships. This past Dec. 6, he placed fourth in the second World Cup race of the season.