Some History
The sport of biathlon has its origins in the ancient hunting practices of northern Europeans. Nowadays the biathlon is a combination of cross - country skiing and rifle shooting. It has been part of the Olympic program since 1960.
Biathlon in Russia
The development of modern biathlon in Russia began at the start of the 20th century. Competitions that combined cross-country skiing and rifle marksmanship were popular in the Red Army in the 1920s and 30s. Athletes would ski 50 km in full military gear and complete several shooting stages. The Spartakiad of the Peoples of the Soviet Union — a sporting event similar to the Olympics and held every four years — was instrumental in promoting biathlon in the USSR.
The first Soviet Olympic biathlon champion in the 20km race was Vladimir Melanin at the 1964 Innsbruck Games. Prior to that, Vladimir Melanin was three - time world champion at this distance.
In 1992, women’s biathlon was included in the program for the XVI Olympic Winter Games in Albertville, France. Russian biathlete Anfisa Reztsova was crowned the first female biathlon champion when she won gold at these games in the 7.5 km sprint event.
The Russian, CIS and USSR biathlon teams have won a total of 18 gold medals at the Olympic Games, including eight in the relay events.
Biathlon today
To date, the Olympic Winter Games program has five biathlon events for men and five for women: individual race, sprint, pursuit, mass start race and relay; and there is also the mixed relay.
Individual Competitions
Competitors start at 30 - second intervals and ski five loops, interspersed with four bouts of shooting (prone — standing — prone — standing). For each missed target, a one-minute penalty is added to the competitor’s time. The competitor with the fastest time, including penalties, is the winner. Men ski five laps of a 4 - kilometer loop for a total 20 kilometers. Women ski five laps of a 3-kilometer loop for a total of 15 kilometers.
Sprint Competitions
Competitors start at 30 - second intervals and ski three loops, interspersed with two bouts of shooting (prone — standing). For each missed target, the athlete must ski a 150-meter penalty loop immediately after shooting. The competitor with the fastest time is the winner.
Men ski three laps of a 3.3-kilometer loop for a total of 10 kilometers. Women ski three laps of a 2.5-kilometer loop for a total of 7.5 kilometers.
Pursuit Competitions
With a total of 60 athletes per gender participating in the pursuit competition, the start order and intervals are based on the results of the sprint competition. The winner of the sprint competition starts first with the remaining competitors following in the order and time they finished behind the winner in the sprint competition.
Competitors ski five loops, interspersed with four bouts of shooting (prone — prone — standing — standing). For each missed target, the athlete must ski a 150-meter penalty loop immediately after shooting. The first competitor to cross the finish line is the winner. If competitors are lapped in the competition, they must withdraw before the following shooting. Men ski five laps of a 2.5-kilometer loop for a total of 12.5 kilometers. Women ski five laps of a 2-kilometer loop for a total of 10 kilometers.
Relay Competitions
There are four members per team. Lead racers of all the teams start simultaneously. Each team member skis three loops, interspersed with two bouts of shooting (prone — standing) at five targets. Any team member who misses a target may use up to three spare rounds which must be loaded individually, by hand, after the five rounds have been shot. If there are still misses after eight rounds, the team member must then ski a 150-meter penalty loop for each missed target. The following relay team members start in the handover zone where the arriving athlete has to touch by hand the starting athlete. The team whose final skier is the first to cross the finish line is the winner, subject to any penalties for rule violations or other time adjustments.
Each male team member skis three laps of a 2.5-kilometer loop for a total of 7.5 kilometers. Each female team member skis three laps of a 2-kilometer loop for a total of 6 kilometers.
Mixed Relay Competitions
A Mixed Relay team consists of 2 women and 2 men. The two female team members ski a distance of 6 km and the two male team members ski a distance of 7.5 km with 2 bouts of shooting — same as in Relay competitions. Mixed Relay competitions start simultaneously with the first member of each team. The following relay team members start in the handover zone where the arriving competitor has to touch by hand the starting competitor. The race starting order in mixed relay is female, female, male, male.
Mass Start Competitions
The total number of athletes participating in the mass start is 30 per gender — all starting simultaneously. Competitors ski five loops, interspersed with four bouts of shooting (prone — prone — standing — standing). For each missed target, the athlete must ski a 150-meter penalty loop immediately after shooting. The first competitor to cross the finish line is the winner. If competitors are lapped in the competition, they must withdraw before the following shooting.
Men ski five laps of a 3-kilometer loop for a total of 15 kilometers. Women ski five laps of a 2.5-kilometer loop for a total of 12.5 kilometers.
Equipment
Any kind of ski technique is permitted in the biathlon. However, only skis and ski poles may be used.
- Ski boots, for standing steadily on skis and controlling movement.
- Ski poles made of modern materials such as carbon fiber. Their length cannot exceed the height of the athlete using them.
- Sports rifle for the biathlete, 5.6mm caliber. Carried by the athletes on their back using special straps with the barrel facing up.
- Special suit — racing suit, which helps to maintain a stable body temperature and reduces wind resistance.
- Skis, minimum length should be 4cm less than the height of the athlete. To increase glide, various special waxes are applied to the skis.