Yuliia Dzhima

Yuliia Valentynivna Dzhyma was born on September 19, 1990, in Kyiv, Ukrainian SSR. She began her biathlon career in Kyiv, the city where she resides. Initially, Yuliia did not display exceptional skiing prowess, leading to some early doubts from coaches regarding her potential as a biathlete. Despite these initial assessments, she showed consistent development and progressed through the junior ranks. In January 2008, she participated in her first international event, the Junior World Championships in Ruhpolding, Germany. Over the subsequent three years, Yuliia was a member of the Ukrainian junior team, achieving notable results, including a bronze medal in the individual race at the 2009 Junior European Championships.

Yuliia Dzhima made her World Cup debut on January 4, 2012, in Oberhof, Germany, competing in a women’s relay where her team placed 8th. Two days later, she finished 34th in her first World Cup sprint race. The 2012–13 season marked significant progress, with one victory and two podium finishes in relay events. Her first individual World Cup podium came in the 2013–14 season, securing second place in a pursuit race in Hochfilzen, Austria. A major career highlight occurred at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, where she earned a gold medal in the women’s 4 × 6 km relay alongside Vita Semerenko, Valentyna Semerenko, and Olena Bilosiuk. She also took a silver medal in the relay at the 2013 World Championships.

Following the 2014 Olympics, Yuliia’s performance saw a resurgence in the 2016–17 season, achieving her highest World Cup rankings and placing within the Top-10 of the general World Cup classification for the first time. During this period, she secured three medals at the 2017 European Championships in Duszniki-Zdrój, Poland, and another silver medal in the relay at the 2017 World Championships. The pre-Olympic 2017–18 season began with two third-place finishes in Östersund, Sweden. She participated in the 2018 Winter Olympics, competing in the individual race where she placed 20th, and finishing 7th in the mixed relay and 11th in the classical relay. Yuliia continued to achieve individual podiums, including a first-place finish in the 15 km individual race at the 2018–19 World Cup in Pokljuka, Slovenia.