“Five out of five” as participants tried biathlon at the World Championships venue

How hard can it be to hit five targets? Participants at the FISU World Forum found out on Wednesday when they tried biathlon at Sweden’s national biathlon arena in Östersund. For many, it was the first time they had ever handled a biathlon rifle.
The activity gave international guests the opportunity to experience one of the sports most closely associated with Östersund, a city that has hosted multiple Biathlon World Cup events and World Championships and is now bidding to stage the 2031 Biathlon World Championships.

One of the newcomers was Marcus Zarb Grech from Malta. Despite having no previous experience, he quickly demonstrated an impressive level of accuracy.

“I hit five out of five,” he says.
The success, however, came after a small adjustment.

“I started shooting right-handed, but realised it was much easier for me to shoot left-handed. This was my first time trying biathlon.”
For Renata Kopczyk, head of the Polish delegation, the experience highlighted what makes the sport so unique.

“It was great fun. But it became much more difficult after we had used the ski ergometer and our heart rates had gone up,” she says.

This combination of physical exertion and precision lies at the heart of biathlon, where athletes must alternate between high-intensity skiing and hitting small targets from a distance of 50 metres.
Among the participants was also Alexey Koryachko Johansen, a former competitive swimmer with Norwegian roots. Despite Norway’s strong biathlon tradition, he has never followed the sport particularly closely.

“I’ve always been more interested in alpine skiing,” he says.

Having retired from competitive swimming, he still occasionally misses the feeling of competing.

“Sometimes I miss the adrenaline rush of competition. I’m still fascinated by elite athletes such as Sarah Sjöström and the level they are able to perform at.”
The visit to the biathlon arena also highlighted the strong links between Östersund, Mid Sweden University and international biathlon development. In 2023, Mid Sweden University became the first university in the world to sign a cooperation agreement with the International Biathlon Union (IBU).

Participants met representatives from the Swedish Biathlon Federation, and during the forum’s opening press conference on Monday, Mid Sweden University was represented by “the biathlon professor” Marko Laaksonen, Professor of Sports Science.“For several years, I have been part of the IBU Academy expert group, contributing to the development of international coach education programmes and opportunities for research funding within biathlon,” says Marko Laaksonen.

For participants at the FISU World Forum, Wednesday’s activity was therefore more than simply a chance to try a new sport. It offered insight into how Östersund combines international competitions with research, education and the development of the future of biathlon. The same arena that welcomed forum participants will host several World Cup events in the coming years, while the city hopes to welcome the world back for another World Championships in 2031.