Biathlon: The unique sport that combines skiing and shooting
Can you take a shot at an apple hanging on a tree while skiing? Imagine how tough that would be to balance on the ice holding a rifle, targeting the apple you want to shoot. If you win, it would definitely be an achievement of sorts. Now, let us tell you that this is a full-fledged official Olympic sport. Known as ‘biathlon’, it is mostly a winter sport, that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. Let us take you to its origin and how it is played.
How did the sport originate?
So where does such an interesting game find its origin? The sport finds its origins in the skiing traditions of Scandinavia, where early inhabitants revered the Norse god Ullr – a God of skiing and archery. Later on, the practice of combining skiing with shooting started as a part of the military training regime for Norwegians. In the 18th century, the Norwegian skiing regiments organised military skiing contests, divided into four classes: shooting at mark while skiing at top speed, a downhill race among trees, a downhill race on big hills without falling, and a long race on flat ground, all while carrying a rifle and military pack. Biathlon (or ‘skiskyting’ in the Norwegian language) developed as a civilian variant of a combination of these over the years.
Evolution of Biathlon
However, it wasn’t until 1924 that the sport became popular and was contested at the Winter Olympic Games. It was then demonstrated in the 1928, 1936 and 1948 Games during which time Norway and Finland were strong competitors. The sport was introduced into the Soviet and Swedish winter sport circuits in mid-1950s and was thoroughly enjoyed by the mass.
But the first Biathlon World Championship was held only in 1958 in Austria, and then in 1960, the sport was finally included in the Olympic Games. However, it was only for men. Women were first allowed in Olympic Biathlon in 1992. To date, northern Europeans dominate the sport, especially athletes from Russia, Finland, Germany and Norway.
How is Biathlon played?
So let us tell you how this game is played. In simple words, a Biathlon competition includes a race in which the participants ski through a cross-country trail. The total distance is divided into two to four shooting rounds, half in the prone position, the other half standing. The athletes carry a rifle and shoot the target from a distance and receive a penalty for each missed target, which varies according to the competition rules.
The contestants earn extra distance or time depending on their shooting performance. The one with the shortest total time to finish the trail wins.
Formats of Biathlon
The sport is played in various formats: Individual, sprint, super sprint, mass start, relay, etc. each having its own rules. For example, Winter Olympics Biathlon includes five events: Individual, sprint, pursuit, relay and mass start competitions. We will tell you a bit about each of them.
Individual race: It is the oldest event of biathlon. The male biathlete runs a distance of 20 km and the female runs over 15 km. The skier has to shoot four targets each in five laps and the shooting positions for the target is prone, standing, prone, standing. If the target is missed then a one-minute penalty is imposed.
Sprint: In this case, a 10 km distance for males and 7.5 km for women is set to be covered in three laps. The biathlete shoots first in the standing position and second time in the prone position. Every time a shot is missed a penalty loop of 150 m is to be skied before the race can be continued.
Pursuit: In this format, the top 60 finishers of the sprint contestants are chosen. The biathlete who secured the best timing in sprint starts the race followed by other candidates accordingly. This race is 12.5 km for males while 10 km for females and is divided into five laps and four shooting bouts. Every time they miss a target a penalty loop of 150 m is imposed before the racer can go along the course.
Relay: Here, there are teams each with four biathletes. They ski 7.5 km (men) or 6 km (women) over three laps, with two shooting rounds of five targets each, one prone, one standing. The first members of all teams begin the race at the same time and after finishing their part, they tag the next team member in the hand-over zone so that he can start his part. If the biathlete misses a shot three chances are given to manually load the bullet and try again. For the fourth time, a penalty loop of 150 m is to be covered.
The mass start: This is the latest event that was included in the 2006 Winter Olympics. In this one, the top 30 biathletes with best scores in the previous four events start the race together - 15 km for males and 12.6 km for females. The event is divided into five laps and four shooting rounds. For each missed target, a penalty loop of 150 m is to be covered.