Shooting + cross-country skiing = watch this ish.
In Russia, the sport's popularity has been growing since full-length world cup biathlon events started airing on TV in 2003. What's the secret of biathlon's popularity in Russia?
Biathlon combines cross country skiing with rifle shooting! What the What?
Biathlon is all about multitasking. The sport's greatest champions combine stealth skiing with steadfast shooting. It's incredible to watch someone like Martin Fourcade -- the winner of two most recent Overall World Cups -- ski 5 kilometers at top speed and then shoot the lights out at the shooting range looking very much like a man of steel. Yet with all his accolades, Fourcade has never won an Olympic gold medal and his performance in Sochi will be a defining moment in the 25-year-old biathlete's career.
youtube.com / Via Indie the Multitasking Cat
It's real-deal shooting.
Each biathlete carries a small bore rifle, weighing at least 7.7 lbs. A biathlon rifle is a .22 caliber rifle, with mechanical sights, five shot magazines, and a form of bolt action. No optical sights are allowed. The target range shooting distance is 50 meters (160 ft). There are five circular targets to be hit in each shooting round.
youtube.com / Via Olympic Biathlon 2010
It's a ferocious race.
"For what Russian does not love a fast ride," asks Nikolai Gogol in The Dead Souls. Biathlon is a thrill to watch.
Though the sport is not at all popular in the U.S., lots in its history happened on American soil. In 1960, biathlon debuted as an Olympic Sport in Squaw Valley, California. The marquee 10 km (6.2 mi) sprint race was added at the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. Then the incredible, one-of-a-kind pursuit race (12.5 km for men and 10 km for women) got its start in Salt Lake City in 2002.
youtube.com / Via EuroSport; Svedsen upstages Fourcade
