Discontent before the start of the season: “Not fair” and “scandalous”: Rules dispute before the start of the biathlon

The anger over a rule change and the fear of unequal competition among biathletes from all countries have never been as great as before the start of the new season. “In the end, it doesn’t matter what we athletes think,” said Italian overall World Cup winner Lisa Vittozzi. France’s two-time Olympic champion Quentin Fillon Maillet said at Eurosport: “We will have conditions that will not be fair, except in exceptional cases.”

The stars of the scene fear sporting disadvantages before the start of the winter at the weekend in Kontiolahti, Finland, as a result of a reform of the starting group regulations, but the IBU world association is hoping that the measure will create more excitement, especially for millions of television viewers. The idea: If the top athletes start later in the competition, TV fans will stay longer at the race to watch their favorites. More TV time probably brings better marketing opportunities – and perhaps more money.

“I know that a large number of biathletes are against it”

So far, the top 15 in the overall World Cup have usually chosen the first starting group in order to have the best conditions on the freshly prepared route. They are no longer allowed to do that, but only start in positions 45 to 75, in the third group. This creates artificial tension, so to speak, especially if the track conditions deteriorate, the best in the overall ranking could be at a disadvantage. So far, the races have often been decided quickly because towards the end only the weakest people competed. The opportunities for the best to warm up are now becoming more difficult.

The reform was pushed through by the IBU – despite many of the athletes’ concerns. The requests to speak have been correspondingly drastic in recent months. “I know that a large number of biathletes are against it,” said athlete spokesman Sebastian Samuelsson from Sweden: “It’s obviously frustrating.” France’s team boss Stéphane Bouthiaux was even clearer in the “Nordic Magazine”: “We are completely against this new starting group system, which is completely illogical.” It seems “as if they had decided to burden the best with baggage in order to equalize the level of all athletes. I find that completely scandalous.”

World Association: Fear is unfounded

But what does the IBU say about the allegations? Initially, the new system was declared as a test for four weeks of competition in November and December, said media director Christian Winkler of the German Press Agency. The first individual competitions will take place next week from Tuesday. The fear of unfair competition is unfounded because exceptions have also been decided. In exceptional weather situations that lead to extreme track conditions, an alternative system will be used by the decision of the competition jury, said Winkler. Then the top 15 of the current overall standings could start at the beginning of the competition, as in the past.

“The IBU fully understands that the views of athletes and those of a world association that ensures the longer-term sustainability of the sport may differ when it comes to rule changes,” said Winkler. The IBU is confident of “introducing a starting group system that guarantees even better biathlon competitions – with exciting competitions right up to the end and therefore even greater excitement for the fans at home and in the stadiums.” At the same time, fair conditions would be ensured.

Superstar Bö fears loss of fans

At the end of December it should be assessed whether the new system has proven itself. If that doesn’t work, “then we’ll talk to each other and find another solution,” said Winkler in the “Extrarunde” podcast about a possible way out. The attempt is “not arbitrary, but we have identified something where we simply want to become more interesting in terms of the future and habits of a younger generation.”

Superstar Johannes Thingnes Bö from Norway does not believe that this plan will work in the core disciplines of sprint and individual. “The opposite will happen. If people switch to biathlon and don’t see any of the best, they will switch back and we will lose viewers,” the five-time Olympic champion told TV2: “Nobody wants to watch a race for 40 minutes before The top athletes shoot. We also emphasized this aspect to the IBU.”

And he’s not the only one annoyed that these concerns weren’t heard. The German Johannes Kühn, a member of the athletes’ committee, also reported: “We had quite long and quite often meetings with the IBU. But in the end we actually achieved nothing. We wasted a lot of time.” It was “a great shame” that the IBU was not prepared to compromise. “We made a lot of good suggestions,” said Kühn. The attitude of the world association also angered France’s boss Bouthiaux: “I’m angry with the IBU and hope that this is the last time that they make a bad decision.”