Biathlon

The Biathlon didn't start as a sport, but to the hunters in the Northern part of Europe it was a way of life to put food on the table. The Biathlon is now a sport that requires fast and physically demanding cross-country free technique racing, and the rifle shooting requires accuracy and control. The Biathlon has 10 different competitive events that still require the skiing and shooting like individual start, sprint, relay, and mass start. The events all involve a competitor to race in a course when they come to the 5 targets that are located in a straight line they aim at targets the size as small as a golfball to the size of a grapefruit. If a target is missed, depending on which event they are in, they need to ski another lap or a minute is added to there time for 1 target missed. Again depending which event they're in the winner is determined by the first person who crosses the finish line or the person who has the shortest time.

Some key terms used in the sport Biathlon are the harness, standing, wind flags, and magazine. The harness is a shoulder strap that athletes us to carry their riffles. The shooting position where athletes stand without any support is the standing, the rifle can only come in contact with the athlete's hands, shoulder, cheek, and chest next to the shoulder. Wind flags indicate the wind direction and intensity and the magazine is a device that holds five .22-calibre cartridges for shooting.

Biathletes will train 2 and a half hours at a time up to 13 times a week. Biathletes train for two disciplines. One is marksmanship on the shooting range. The skills of shooting the riffles are unique for every individual. Some athletes have better aim in the prone position while some are more accurate standing. Athletes will focus on the position they need in their training. They mostly focus on their breathing control, relaxation, and ability to focus only on the targets while blocking out everything around them.

The second skill Biathletes require is Nordic skiing, this is when the boot of the heel is not fixed to the ski. Biathletes ski up to 20 km for the men and 15 km for the women. To require this skill they will ski up to 35 km or more in their training sessions.

Sandra Keith is a Biathlon athlete. She is Canadian and has set her sights very high for the olympics in Vancouver. Sandra was a gold medallist for the 2003 European Olympics and had won Canada's first international gold metal since Myriam Bedard's Olympic biathlon gold in 1994.