Wright needs to do everything possible before January 15 to prove to the New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) he is worthy of selection for the Beijing Winter Olympics, which begin in February.
Wright’s parents Scott and Alison are dual New Zealand/United States citizens, making their son eligible for US selection.
US biathlon team head coach Armin Auchentaller said Wright would be second or third ranked in the US team and would have been guaranteed a spot in the US team for the Beijing Winter Olympics if he had been available.
"We’re watching Campbell Wright every single race knowing he has the American passport," Auchentaller said.
Biathlon, a combination of cross-country skiing and rifle shooting, is a national sport in Norway and is popular throughout Europe.
Wright (19) is regarded by some, including his Italian coach Luca Bormolini, as possibly the most promising biathlete to emerge on the world scene since Ole Einar Bjorndalen, known as the "king of biathlon", who won 13 Winter Olympic medals — eight gold, four silver and one bronze — between 1998 and 2014.
Wright is only the second teenager behind Bjorndalen in the sport’s history to win Biathlon World Cup points, and his potential has been recognised in Norway where he has featured on national television.
He is based in Livigno in Italy with Bormolini, who has coached him for the past five years, and whose brother Thomas Bormolini is the Italian biathlon champion.
In his bid for selection, Wright has competed in Biathlon World Cup events in Hochfilzen in Austria and Le Grand-Bornand in France this month; he was aiming to prove to the NZOC that he has the form to achieve a top-16 finish at the Olympics — the benchmark to qualify.
He competes on the European biathlon circuit with family funding, ski sponsorship from Rossignol and coaching support from Bormolini against corporately sponsored and nationally backed European teams with full-time support teams for coaching, physiotherapy, transport and accommodation logistics and even ski waxing.
Bormolini said the other teams were kind to the lone Kiwi, offering rides to events and assistance with his ski waxing.
Wright’s European, Japanese and American rivals were in awe of what he had achieved for his age and what he could achieve in future, he said.
Biathlon is almost unknown in New Zealand — there are only about 10 registered biathletes, who mainly train and compete at the Snow Farm.
Wright is a familiar face in Wanaka as he trains on the roads on roller skis in the off-season.
Bormolini said Wright was the most focused and determined biathlete he had ever coached and if he got the opportunity to compete for New Zealand in Beijing in February it would stand him in good stead for future Winter Olympics.
Father Scott Wright said his son was putting New Zealand on the biathlon world map with his performances.
"It’s hard to overestimate how big a deal biathlon is in Europe and the international spotlight that will be shone on New Zealand if Campbell is able to compete at Beijing and future Olympic Games."
A medal at Beijing was unlikely, but not out of the question, he said.
Mr Wright said his son wanted to compete for the country of his birth, but the US had seen his potential and was eyeing him up for the future if he was not selected for New Zealand.
