Para Biathlon & Para Cross-Country Skiing Guide | Multiple Masters Biathlon Champion | Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games Guide Hopeful
From international biathlete to sighted guide, Lynn Maree Cullen has traded the race bib for a headset, stepping into a front‑running role in Australia’s Para Nordic resurgence.
With decades of experience across cross‑country skiing and biathlon, and multiple Masters titles to her name, she now partners with vision‑impaired athlete Taryn Dickens. On the course, they move in sync, relying on trust and clear communication to meet the technical and physical demands of competition at the highest level.
As a Team Partner proudly supporting the next generation of winter Para athletes, Harvey Norman is backing Lynn Maree Cullen on her path from grassroots to the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games.
At-a Glance
Sport: Para Biathlon & Para Cross-Country Skiing (Sighted Guide)
Paralympic Games:
- Milano Cortina 2026 guide hopeful
Career Highlights and Achievements:
- World Biathlon Championships competitor – Four appearances (1990s)
- Shadow Olympic Team member – 1992, 1994, 1998
- Three-time Masters Biathlon champion – 2x gold, 1x silver at Biathlon Masters International Championships, Kontiolahti, Finland (2025)
- Appointed sighted guide to Taryn Dickens – 2024
- Para biathlon program contributor – SSAA Biathlon Wodonga training and range development
From racer to guide
Lynn began competing in 1987, going on to represent Australia at multiple World Biathlon Championships before returning as a Masters athlete and winning across international fields. That race craft – course reading, range rhythm and late‑lap poise – now transfers directly to guiding.
From the lead position, she reads the course in real time, calling gradients, cambers, corners and traffic so Taryn can hold speed, conserve energy and stay focused on skiing – even as fatigue sets in.
Championing inclusion
In Para Nordic’s vision‑impaired classes, guides act as the athlete’s moving reference point and real‑time narrator. On skis, communication is constant – terrain cues, pace checks and overtakes, delivered in concise, repeatable language.
In Para biathlon, guides can’t coach during shooting. The work happens on approach: arriving on time and under control so the athlete can down‑regulate and shoot using the acoustic‑aim system.
Lynn’s role is part pilot, part metronome and teammate in every sense of the word, supporting athlete independence while strengthening pathways with Paralympics Australia, Biathlon Australia and community hubs such as SSAA Biathlon Wodonga.
Building the partnership
They connected in 2024 through Taryn’s father, who was involved with a ski manufacturer supplying her equipment. Their partnership quickly began to take shape. Off‑snow, they worked through roller‑ski turn shapes, braking points and passing protocols. On the range, they practised settled entries and clean exits. On snow, they stacked lap after lap until the calls started to feel like second nature.
What emerged was a calm, predictable rhythm. Lynn sets the line and the tone, while Taryn locks onto the reference and manages effort. When conditions shift – flat light, choppy snow or heavy traffic – their communication loop holds strong and steady.
Taryn Dickens best sums up their partnership: “It’s an individual sport but I do have a team with my guide. We’re a team within a team.”
Source: Paralympics Australia feature, 13 August 2025.
Markers that matter
Recent Masters success in Finland – two golds and a silver, with 78% shooting – reflected Lynn’s technical currency on the range. Those same disciplines, honed through solo competition, now carry into guiding, from efficient pacing and tidy transitions to resilient resets when a lap doesn’t go to plan.
Through the Australian winter, that approach carried into her work with Taryn, showing up as clear gains on the snow. Lines through technical sections became cleaner, merges through traffic smoother and range approaches steadier after hard efforts.
Ben Troy, Chef de Mission, describes their partnership this way: “They support each other, they respect each other and they’re bringing out the best in each other. You can’t ask for more than that.”
Source: Paralympics Australia feature, 13 August 2025.
Eyes on Milano Cortina
Australia is poised to return to Para Nordic representation at the upcoming Paralympic Winter Games. Lynn and Taryn are building toward March with a clear focus on consistency and execution, laying the foundation for strong performances, whether in a Para biathlon sprint or a 10km cross‑country Classic.
If Milan and the Dolomites bring wind, glare or chopped snow, the approach doesn’t change. Their focus remains on controlling the controllables, trusting the system and keeping communication clear.
Across decades in the sport, Lynn Maree Cullen has shifted from Masters podiums to front‑running for a vision‑impaired teammate, showing how experience, communication and care can open doors for others and lift an entire program.
On the road to the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games, she now brings that same intent to her role as a trusted guide. Harvey Norman is proud to support Lynn Maree Cullen, celebrating the next generation of winter Para athletes who continue to push what’s possible.