The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not timed per se, but depending on the competition, missed shots result in extra distance or time being added to the contestant's total.
The first Biathlon World Championships (BWCH) was held in 1958, with individual and team contests for men. The original team event, Team (time), was held for the last time in 1965, to be replaced in 1966 by the team event, Relay, which we know today. The number of events has grown significantly over the years. Beginning in 1984, women biathletes had their own World Championships, and finally, from 1989, both genders have been participating in joint Biathlon World Championships. In 1978 the development was enhanced by the change from the large army rifle calibre to a small bore rifle, while the range to the target was reduced from 150 to 50 meters.
Magdalena "Magda" Forsberg is a Swedish former cross-country skier and biathlete. She was the dominant female biathlete from 1997 to 2002, when she retired, winning the Biathlon World Cup for six years straight. She is also a six-time world champion, a two-time Olympic bronze medalist, and holds the record for the most World Cup victories in women's biathlon.
Ursula "Uschi" Disl is a German former biathlete.
The International Biathlon Union is the international governing body of biathlon. Its headquarters were in Salzburg, Austria, until May 2020, when the Federation moved to Anif, on the outskirts of the city. It was rocked by a corruption scandal that broke in 2018, concerning the Russians bribing its top two officials. In 2022, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia and Belarus, as invading nations, were suspended from all international biathlon competitions until further notice.
The 42nd Biathlon World Championships were held in Östersund, Sweden from 8 to 17 February 2008. It was the second time Östersund was hosting the Biathlon World Championships, the first being in 1970. It was also 50 years after the first Biathlon World Championships, which were held 1958 in Saalfelden, Austria.
Helena Ekholm is a former Swedish biathlete. She was born in Helgum, Sollefteå Municipality. She is the 2009 world champion in pursuit and the 2011 world champion in individual. She also won the Women's Overall World Cup in the 2008–09 season. In 2009, Ekholm won the Jerring Award.
Eva Korpela is a former Swedish biathlete, world champion and world cup winner.
The 43rd Biathlon World Championships were held in Pyeongchang, South Korea from February 13 to February 22, 2009. It was the first time that the Biathlon World Championships were held in Asia.
Björn Ferry is a former Swedish biathlete and medal winning Olympian. He began competing internationally in World Cup competitions in 2001, but did not win his first international race until the 2007–2008 season. In 2007, he won gold in the mixed relay event at the Biathlon World Championships. The next year, at his third Winter Olympics appearance, he won the gold medal in the pursuit event. He started the event in 8th place as determined by the previous sprint event, but managed to overtake the race leader on the final lap.
The 10th Biathlon World Championships were held in Östersund, Sweden in February 1970.
The 22nd Biathlon World Championships for men were held in 1986 in Oslo, Norway. The 3rd women's world championships were held in Falun, Sweden.
Fredrik Lindström is a Swedish former biathlete from Bredbyn. He made his World Cup debut on 12 December 2008 in Hochfilzen, where he ended up in 47th place.
The 49th Biathlon World Championships was held from 9 to 19 February 2017 in Hochfilzen, Austria. There were a total of 11 competitions: sprint, pursuit, individual, mass start, and relay races for men and women, and mixed relay. All the events during this championships also count for the Biathlon World Cup season.
Täpp Karin Stina Nilsson is a Swedish former biathlete and former cross-country skier. She is a five-time Olympic medalist and the 2018 Olympic champion in the individual sprint. In March 2020 she announced that she would switch to competing in biathlon. In April 2024, she announced her return to cross-country skiing, this time as a long-distance racer.
Nathan Smith is a Canadian biathlete.
The Biathlon World Championships 2019 took place in Östersund, Sweden, from 6 to 17 March 2019.
Linn Persson is a Swedish biathlete. She has competed in the World Cup, and represented Sweden at the 2016 World Championships.
Hans Wilhelm Peppe Femling is a former Swedish biathlete. He has competed in the Biathlon World Cup, and represented Sweden at the Biathlon World Championships 2016. He won an Olympic gold medal as part of the Swedish men's relay team in PyeongChang 2018.
Elvira Karin Öberg is a Swedish biathlete. She is the younger sister of Olympic champion Hanna Öberg. Elvira won three gold medals in the youth category at the 2018 Biathlon Junior World Championships in Otepää; in the 10 km individual, the 3 × 6 km relay and the 6 km sprint respectively. Öberg placed twelfth in the sprint in her Biathlon World Cup debut in Östersund, 1 December 2019. At the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2022 she won the silver medal in the sprint race, following up with a silver in the pursuit.
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