Season 2018/19 - First international successes and World Cup debut

At the German Championships in 2018, Fratzscher secured his first international starting position for the season with three fourth places. Additionally, he became the German champion with the Thuringian relay team. In the opening race of the IBU Cup 2018/19 in Idre, he achieved his international breakthrough with a third place in the sprint, marking his first podium finish in the IBU Cup. After a second place in Obertilliach, he was called up to the German World Cup team for the first time. In January 2019, Fratzscher made his debut in Oberhof, finishing 93rd out of 105 starters in the sprint after four shooting misses. Upon returning to the IBU Cup, he secured another second place. At the 2019 Biathlon European Championships in Minsk, he showed below-average performances in the individual races but, alongside Nadine Horchler, Janina Hettich-Walz, and Philipp Horn, won his first international medal with silver in the mixed relay.^[3] In the remaining IBU Cup season, he won his first individual race in Martell, achieving a German sweep in the sprint ahead of Philipp Horn and Danilo Riethmüller, and narrowly secured second place in the overall standings with a one-point lead over Aristide Bègue, thanks to several other top-10 finishes. As a result, he qualified for further World Cup appearances at the season finale in Oslo in March 2019. These races went significantly better than in Oberhof: he qualified for the mass start, achieved points in all three races, and secured two top-10 placements.

Season 2019/20 - IBU Cup Overall Victory

At the German Championships in 2019, the Thuringian relay, including Fratzscher, repeated their success from the previous year. In the first race of the IBU Cup 2019/20 season, he secured his second career victory in the sprint in Sjusjøen.^[4] He also reached the podium in the two subsequent races there. At the next IBU Cup stop in Obertilliach, he finished second in the short individual race and won the single mixed relay together with Stefanie Scherer. Fratzscher entered the Christmas break as the clear leader in the overall standings and, like the previous year, was nominated for the World Cup in Oberhof in January, where he finished 86th with four shooting misses. Upon returning to the IBU Cup, he finished second with the German mixed relay in Osrblie. In February in Martell, he achieved three more individual podium finishes and two additional top-10 placements. The European Championships 2020, which were once again moved to Minsk at short notice, did not go as well for Fratzscher, as he failed to win any medals. However, at the subsequent IBU Cup finale at the same venue, he achieved results within the top ten in both sprints. With a 13th place in the final mass start, he defended his lead in the overall standings with just one point ahead of Endre Strømsheim and secured the big crystal globe. Additionally, he won the sprint standings. Consequently, he was nominated for the World Cup in Kontiolahti, where he failed to score points in both the sprint and pursuit. The subsequent season finale in Oslo was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[5]

World Cup

European Championships

5 medals (3 silver, 2 bronze)

More information Year, Individual ...

Year	Individual	Sprint	Pursuit	Mixed Relay
2017 Duszniki Zdroj	33rd	48th	54th	—
2018 Ridnaun	35th	50th	42nd	—
2019 Minsk	40th	38th	24th	Silver
2020 Minsk	—	10th	37th	13th
2022 Arber	33rd	Bronze	Bronze	Silver
2023 Lenzerheide	—	7th	11th	Silver
2024 Brezno-Osrblie	42nd	21st	34th	—

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