Imagine sprinting up 25 flights of stairs and, once at the top, trying to thread a needle five times in a row without once missing the hole. Imagine doing that over and over while competing against a dozen other people, and you have begun to experience the sport of biathlon.

In all biathlon events, athletes have to combine cross-country skiing with small bore rifle shooting from both a standing and prone position. The athletes ski loops of the course, stopping each time to fire a prerequisite number of shots at the target. Participants incur a penalty for missing a target in all events and the athlete with the fastest time wins.

Click here to view information on the venue for this sport at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

“Biathlon” stems from the Greek word for two contests. Today it is the dual sport of cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. Originally it was a tactic of survival rather than a sport. Northern Europeans skied to hunt for food and, later, skied with weapons to defend their countries. The first known biathlon competition took place between two Norwegian and Swedish guard companies in 1767. A century later rifle and ski clubs could be found throughout Norway as recreation began to complement military training.

The Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne and Biathlon was founded in 1948 and worked for the development of both sports in Olympic competition. They instituted annual World Championships for the modern pentathlon in 1949 and for the men’s biathlon in 1958. The biathlon World Championships debuted in Saalfelden, Austria, and is held every year with the exception of Olympic years.

A women’s World Championship has been held every year since 1984.Since 1993, the

sport has been governed by the International Biathlon Union (IBU).

Olympic History

The men's 20km individual event was first introduced onto the Olympic program in 1960 at Squaw Valley, USA. A men's relay was added at Grenoble 1968, and a 10km sprint event at Lake Placid 1980. Women’s biathlon did not make its debut until 1992 with the 7.5km, 15km and relay events. At Lillehammer 1994 the women's 7.5km relay increased from three legs to four. At Salt Lake, the men's 12.5km and women's 10km pursuit events were added for the first time.

Biathlon consists of ten events on the Olympic program, five for men and five for women. The sport features several distinct events across the sprint, pursuit, individual and relay. Competitors get five shots, either prone or standing, in each round of shooting to hit five targets. Target size varies depending on the shooting position - 11.5cm for standing and 4.5cm for prone. The distance between the shooting position and the target is 50 metres.

Sprint (7.5km women / 10km men)

Competitors start at 30-second intervals and stop twice to shoot. There is one prone and then one standing round of shooting with five bullets each time. For each target missed, athletes take a lap around the 150m penalty loop. The top 60 finishers of this competition qualify for the pursuit.

Pursuit (10km women / 12.5km men)

In the pursuit, the 60 competitors start at intervals based on their finishing time in the sprint competition. Competitors have four rounds of shooting - prone, standing, prone, standing - during the course of the event. For each target missed, athletes take a lap around the 150m penalty loop.

Individual (15km women / 20km men)

Competitors start at 30-second intervals and have four rounds of shooting - prone, standing, prone, standing - during the course of the event. For each target missed, one minute is added to their total time.

Relay (4x6km women / 4x7.5km men)

The relay is a fast-paced team event in which four-person teams tackle four legs of 6km and 7.5km for women and men respectively. It begins with a mass start by the first skiers of their respective teams. Each team member has two firing sequences and is allowed three extra bullets (a total of eight) to hit five targets, yet must load the three extra bullets one by one. For each target left standing, competitors ski a lap around the 150m penalty loop. The team whose fourth athlete completes the course first is awarded the gold medal.

Mass start (12.5km women / 15km men)

The best 30 athletes contest the last event on the program, made up of all medallists in the individual, sprint and pursuit events, plus the leading competitor in the World Cup overall points table.

The athletes cover five circuits of 2.5km for women and 3km for men. They stop four times at the firing range, the first two prone, the second two standing, to hit five targets. For each target missed the athlete does a 150m penalty loop. The winner is whichever athlete passes the finishing line first. If a competitor is lapped they must withdraw from the race. The winning time is usually around 35 minutes.

Current Olympic Programme

There are ten biathlon events in this Olympic program. Men and women will compete separately in sprint, pursuit, individual, relay and, for the first time, mass start.

Event	Men	Women
Sprint	10 km	7.5 km
Pursuit	12.5 km	10 km
Mass Start	15 km	12.5 km
Individual	20 km	15 km
Relay	4 x 7.5 km	4 x 6 km

Skis

Competitors use skis which are designed for cross country skiing. These are narrower and shorter than their alpine skiing counterparts. They have upturned tips and taper towards the rear. Choosing the right wax for the snow conditions is imperative.

Boots

There are also special cross country skiing boots which clip into bindings on the ski by the toe only. This leaves the heel free to move. The boots cover the ankle, however are not as rigid as alpine ski boots. Most skiers wear some form of head-gear for protection from the extreme cold.

Rifle

Each skier carries a .22 calibre rifle, weighing between 3.5 and 4.5kg, on their back with a special harness. Biathletes fire at black targets from a shooting “ramp”, made of solidly-packed snow. The targets are electronic and are covered by a white disc if hit. Target diameters are 45mm for the prone position and 115mm for the standing position.

Although all biathlon disciplines combine skiing and marksmanship the sport features several distinct events.

Sprint

During the Sprint competitors stop twice, firing first time prone and second time standing, and must hit all five targets with five bullets. For each target missed they must ski the 150 metre penalty loop. The top 60 finishers of this competition qualify for the Pursuit.

Targets are approx. the size of a tennis ball (standing shot) and a table tennis ball (prone shot)Immediately after a hit is scored, the target is automatically covered by a white indicator disk so competitors know the result from a distance. A penalty is given for each missed shot.

Pursuit

In the Pursuit the competitors start at intervals based on their finish in the Sprint competition.

Competitors stop four times (firing twice prone followed by twice standing) and must hit all five targets with five bullets. For each target missed the athletes take a lap around the 150 metre penalty loop. (This event made its debut at the Salt Lake Games).

Individual

In the Individual event the competitors again stop to fire four times but the penalty for each

missed target is one minute added to their total time. The Relay is a fast-paced team event in which each member of the four-person teams has to race a leg of 7.5 km for men or 6 km for women. The race begins with a mass start of the first skiers of the respective teams.Each team member has two firing sequences each with an extra three bullets (for a total of eight) to hit the targets, but these extra bullets must be loaded one by one. Each target standing requires a lap around the 150 metre penalty loop.

The Mass Start begins with a simultaneous start and there are 5 circuits of 3 km for the men and 5 of 2.5 km for the women to be covered each followed by target shooting. The first two prone, second two standing with every target miss requiring a lap of the 150 metre penalty loop.