Paul Schommer gets off the mat, develops into an Olympian in biathlon

BEIJING — Once, wrestling was his sport. Paul Schommer shared that common thread with his father, Raymond, who had been a high school wrestler himself.

When Raymond Schommer died in a car accident, his son — then a freshman in high school— lost his desire to go back to the mat. But Paul soon found a new passion, just when he needed it most.

"My brother Philip started a cross-country skiing club at our high school in Appleton, Wisconsin,'' Paul said. "I tried it out, and I really enjoyed it. It was an escape for me.''

What began as an escape evolved into something much more. Skiing led to racing. Racing led Schommer to the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, where he competed for the Nordic ski team under coach Chad Salmela.

Eventually, Salmela guided Schommer toward another sport — biathlon — that would bring him all the way to the Beijing Olympics. Schommer has competed in two individual races so far, placing 35^th in the 20-kilometer and 74^th in the 10km sprint. He also was part of the U.S. mixed relay team, whose seventh-place finish tied its best ever at a Winter Games. He will race in men's 4x7.5km relay on Tuesday (3 a.m. Minnesota time) along with two other biathletes with Minnesota ties: St. Paul's Jake Brown and Marine on St. Croix's Leif Nordgren.

When Salmela suggested he give biathlon a try, Schommer was intrigued, if a little hesitant. He thought the sport was only for athletes with "superhuman abilities.''

Then again, Schommer once thought the same thing about the Olympics. He can laugh about that now that he's at the Winter Games for the first time.

"I don't think I ever said I wanted to be an Olympian,'' said Schommer, 29. "I grew up wanting to be a state champion in wrestling. That was a reasonable goal.

"But the idea of the Olympics? That was on another planet. This is not something I would have ever expected.''

Cross-country skiing brought Schommer back to sports during a difficult period in his life. Around the time of his father's death, Schommer developed an eating disorder. He walked away from athletics at age 15, with no intention of returning.

His brother encouraged him to join the cross-country ski club he helped start at Kimberly High School. At first, it was just a fun, healthy activity. By Schommer's senior year, he was ready to race, and good enough to think about skiing in college.

At St. Scholastica, Schommer raced in three NCAA championship meets, placing eighth in the men's 20k freestyle in 2014. Though he had limited experience with shooting, Salmela saw a biathlete in the making.

"He was a really focused guy,'' Salmela said. "I could see he really wanted to prove himself in a sport. He had some disappointments in his youth, but he had that champion's sense about him.''

Schommer said his first biathlon competition, in 2014 at Mt. Itasca, was a humbling experience. It also made him want to try another.

Though he fell in love with the sport, Schommer said his first year competing was so difficult that he wasn't sure he would be good enough to reach the elite level. But something Salmela said stuck with him, fueling him during the tough days.

"Chad was the first coach in my life that really believed in my ability, maybe even before I did,'' Schommer said. "That kind of jump-started me.

"When someone sits you down and says, 'You have the ability to do something great,' you have to say, 'Yes. Let's do it.' You know there's going to be a lot of work ahead, but it's so empowering to hear that.''

By the 2016-17 season, Schommer was competing in World Cups — the highest level of biathlon — and made the U.S. team for the world championships. But his first shot at making the Olympic team ended in disappointment. He battled illness during the trials for the 2018 Winter Games and ended up one place short.

Schommer found himself motivated rather than discouraged. After four more years of work, he and Jake Brown of St. Paul became the first two men named to the U.S. biathlon team for Beijing. Schommer earned his spot with a 22^nd-place finish at a World Cup 20km, then topped that personal best with a ninth-place finish at another World Cup 20km in January, the highest U.S. men's result in nearly two years.

Salmela said Schommer still has room to grow. Now that he knows what is possible, Schommer is ready to see how far he can go.

"I'm really thankful I stuck with it, and I've been able to see some success through hard work,'' he said. "It's still extremely difficult. But it's so rewarding.''