Biathlon: Winter adventures on cross-country skis and with a small-bore rifle – Discover new experiences!

One of the commonly accepted definitions of biathlon is that it is a sport where you ski, shoot a rifle and usually a Norwegian competitor wins. We can say that this is somewhat true, because Scandinaviais where biathlon originated. In the Czech Republic, the centre of biathlon is the town of Letohrad and the Šedivský lom complex, and of course the Vysočina Arena in Nové Město na Moravě. This is where the World Cup and World Championships in biathlon are held. The first Biathlon World Championships were held here in 2013, with further editions taking place in 2024 and 2026.

Biathlon: enjoyment or survival?

Cross-country skiing combined with rifle shooting, which combines physical fitness, mental resilience and good concentration, has its historical roots in the skiing traditions of Scandinavia. The first inhabitants of this area worshipped the Norse god Ullr, who was the god of skiing and hunting. Southern Europe also claims its share in the development of biathlon, as skiing and hunting with weapons were already practised five thousand years ago in the mountainous regions of the ancient Roman and Greek provinces.

Let’s leave aside the fact that at that time it was more about survival than sport and return to the snowy north, where the Norwegian army organised skiing competitions as early as the 18th century. New disciplines called target shooting while skiing at maximum speed or downhill skiing between trees? Although it sounds strange, when we use modern names, we come back to terms such as downhill, biathlon or slalom.

Biathlon: two sports in one

According to former biathlon representative Ondřej Moravec, biathlon is becoming very attractive to spectators thanks to the combination of two sports in one. Competitors move on skis, but at the same time they must be proficient in shooting, both lying down and standing up, at targets 50 metres away. If a competitor fails to hit the target, they must complete penalty laps, which can significantly change the order of competitors in the competition. This sport is therefore always exciting and tense, which spectators find very entertaining. “I am amazed at how competitors have recently been pushing the limits of risk when shooting,” says Moravec. “If you look at footage from the 1998 Nagano Olympics, they used to shoot standing up in a minute, and now they can easily do it in 16 seconds.”

The first military patrol run, a discipline that was later renamed biathlon, took place in Germany in 1902. In 1924, this military run was first introduced as an exhibition discipline during the Winter Olympics. Spectators were able to watch it in the following years, but it was officially included among the Olympic sports in 1954. Since then, biathlon has continued to evolve and has never been dropped from the Olympic programme.

Although biathlon is based on classic skiing, it is not part of the World Championships in classic skiing disciplines. Instead, it has its own World Championships in biathlon, which takes place separately with its own competitions, whether individual time trials, pursuit races, mass starts or relay races.

Czech biathletes at the Winter Olympic Games

Biathlon was first contested at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, USA, in the form of a men’s endurance race. With its growing popularity, the programme gradually expanded: a relay competition was added at the 1968 Games in Grenoble, the sprint was introduced at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, women competed for the first time, at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, the pursuit race was included, at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, the mass start race was added, and finally, at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the mixed relay made its debut. Today, there are six basic disciplines at the Winter Olympics.
Czech biathlon has made a significant impact on the Olympic scene in recent decades. One of the first successes was at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, where Ivan Masařík managed to take fourth place in the endurance race. We can talk about a real breakthrough when biathlon became a phenomenon in Czechia at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Medals were won by Gabriela Soukalová, Ondřej Moravec, Veronika Vítková and Jaroslav Soukup; after the Russian relay team was disqualified for doping, the Czech women’s team, consisting of Eva Puskarčíková, Gabriela Soukalová, Jitka Landová and Veronika Vítková, won bronze medals.

At the 2018 Winter Olympics, Czech biathletes won two medals: Michal Krčmář won silver in the sprint and Veronika Vítková won bronze, also in the sprint. Unfortunately, Czech biathletes did not win any medals in Beijing in 2022, but at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, Tereza Voborníková won bronze in the final mass start race. These successes clearly show that biathlon is one of the most successful and most interesting winter sports for spectators in modern Czech history.

How biathlon has evolved over time

Although biathlon began as a separate discipline, today it is a separate sport with many different disciplines. The Czech Biathlon Union has about 2,500 active members and is part of the International Biathlon Union and the Czech Olympic Committee.

• • 1958: The first Biathlon World Championships were held in Saalfelden, Austria. Only 25 men from seven different countries took part in the competition.

• • 1960: The University of Defence in Brno organised the first biathlon competition in the then Czechoslovakia in the Jeseníky Mountains on Praděd. Czech biathlon was a pioneer in the involvement of women: in our country, women competed alongside men from the very beginning.

• • 1967: The first national championships in winter and summer biathlon were held in the former Czechoslovakia.

• • 1977: The Biathlon World Cup, a prestigious biathlon competition, began in the 1977/1978 winter season. The women’s section was added in the 1982/1983 season.

• • 1981: The first international biathlon competition for women was held in Jáchymov.

• • 1990: Jiřina Adamičková-Pelcová (*1969) dominated the overall World Cup standings for the 1989/1990 season.

• • 1992: Women competed in biathlon for the first time at the Winter Olympics in Albertville.

• • 2003: In 2003, Czech biathlon brought home three medals from the World Championships, including one gold. Kateřina Holubcová (*1976) won the endurance race in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia.

• • 2004: Biathlon was broadcast on Czech Television for the first time during a live broadcast from the World Championships in Oberhof, Germany.

• • 2016: Gabriela Soukalová (*1989) became the overall champion in the 2015/2016 World Cup season.

• • If you are looking for more information about biathlon, we recommend visiting the Kudy z nudy website, where you will find a special sports calendar and a calendar of upcoming events.