Biathlon world championships
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The Biathlon World Championships are organized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) in the years without the Olympic Winter Games . The title fights usually take place over two weeks in February or March. The world championships are organized as part of the biathlon world cup , which is why world cup points are also awarded at the competitions.
qualification
In order to be approved by the IBU for the World Championships, the athletes need corresponding qualification points, which they receive in races in the World and IBU Cup and which are awarded independently of points for the World and IBU Cup ratings.
The filling of the starting and quota places for the world championships is made by the national associations. For German starters, the DSV requires a result in a World Cup race under the TOP 8 or two races under the TOP 15 as a basis for a nomination.
Starting odds
The number of athletes who are eligible to start per nation differs from the quota regulation in the World Cup , but, like this, is regulated by the placement in the nations ranking of the previous year. The respective defending champions in sprint, pursuit, individual and mass start races of the previous year receive a personal right to start for the respective discipline outside the quota regulation. This regulation always refers to the title fights of the previous season, regardless of whether it is a World Championship or Olympic Games.
In addition, the ten best placed athletes on the qualification points list acquire a starting quota of up to two places for their nation, provided that it is not among the top 30 in the nation ranking.
| Placement in the Nations Cup | 1-15 | 16-25 | 26-30 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of starting places | 4th | 3 | 2 |
Sprint race
The pursuit world champion of the previous year also receives a personal right to start in the sprint race. However, if a nation provides sprint and pursuit world champions, then the quota of this nation only increases by one and not two additional starting places.
Mass start
While in the World Cup the 25 best athletes in the current World Cup standings have a right to start in the mass start, at World Championships only the best 15. The field is filled with the medal winners from previous races who are not yet allowed to start due to their placement in the World Cup. The remaining starting places will be awarded to the other athletes with the highest points in the title fights. A maximum of four athletes per nation are allowed to take part in the mass start. There are only exceptions for the medal winners, they are always entitled to start. In addition, the world champion or Olympic gold medal winner of the previous year receives a personal right to start in the mass start, which is not counted towards the contingent of the national association. The basis for this is that the athlete has not yet qualified by winning a medal, placing in the top 15 in the World Cup or corresponding results in the previous World Championship races.
Competitions
Disciplines
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With individual, sprint, pursuit, mass start, relay, mixed relay and single mixed relay, the current world championship program consists of seven disciplines. The individual race has been part of the program since the first biathlon world championship in 1958 . Until 1965 , medals were only awarded for this discipline, as the relay race was not an official part of the Biathlon World Championships. From 1958 to 1963 it was only a team evaluation of the four (1958) or the three best (1959–1963) athletes of each nation from the individual competition over 20 km. The time was calculated by adding the individual times of the individual athletes. In 1965 a relay race over 3 × 7.5 km was held for the first time. In 1966 the relay race was officially introduced with the current route length of 4 × 7.5 km.
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The sprint was first held at world championships in 1974 and thus represented the second individual discipline alongside the individual. The program has been continuously expanded since the late 1980s . In 1989 the team competition was added, but it was canceled again in 1998 . The pursuit race has been an integral part of world championships since 1997, the mass start since 1999. At the 2007 world championships , the mixed relay (also: mixed relay ) was integrated into the competition program for the first time. This competition was held in 2005 and 2006 as an independent mixed relay world championship. A separate title fight also took place in the 2010 Olympic year , as the discipline was not yet included in the program of the Winter Olympic Games . In the mixed relay, two women start over 6 km, then two men over 7.5 km. The single mixed season (also: simple mixed season ) was held for the first time in 2019 .
Rating
In years with the Olympic Winter Games , world champions were only determined in those competitions that were not part of the Olympic program. With the exception of the 1992 events, these events were counted as official world championships by the IBU. In contrast to the Nordic or Alpine ski competitions, the Olympic champions are not considered world champions until 1980. This was most recently the case at the 2010 Biathlon Mixed Relay World Championship , which was held as part of the World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk , Russia .
In contrast to many other winter sports, the results of the world championships also count towards the biathlon world cup , so that the athletes receive world cup points for their placements.
Previous world championships
Official world championships
The biathlon world championships have been held every year since 1958 that there are no Winter Olympics. From 1958 to 1983 the world championships were only for men. From 1984 to 1988 separate world championships were held for women, which were held separately from those for men in other locations. Since 1989 men and women have held joint world championships. With the 2019 World Championships in Östersund , 51 world championships have been held so far. The women's world championships are not included in this count.
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| year | Venue (s) |
|---|---|
| 1983 |
 Antholz
|
| 1984 |
 Chamonix (women)
|
| 1985 |
 Egg am Etzel (women)
|
 Ruhpolding (men)
|
|
| 1986 |
 Falun (women)
|
 Oslo (men)
|
|
| 1987 |
 Lahti (women)
|
 Lake Placid (men)
|
|
| 1988 |
Chamonix (women)
|
| 1989 |
 Feistritz on the Drau
|
| 1990 |
 Minsk / Oslo / Kontiolahti
|
| 1991 |
Lahti
|
| 1992 |
.svg){kind=small} Novosibirsk
|
| 1993 |
 Borovets
|
| 1994 |
 Canmore
|
| 1995 |
Antholz
|
| 1996 |
 Ruhpolding
|
| 1997 |
 Osrblie
|
| 1998 |
 Pokljuka / Hochfilzen
|
| 1999 |
Kontiolahti / Oslo
|
Mixed Relay World Championships
See: Biathlon Mixed Relay World Championships
Venues
In total, biathlon world championships have taken place in 18 different countries. Switzerland and France only hosted the women's world championships.
The most frequent venue for world championships is the Italian city of Antholz, which hosted four regular world championships as well as the non-Olympic sprint competition in 1976. The Norwegian city of Oslo was also the venue for five different world championships, although in 1990, 1999 and 2000 it only hosted a part of the competitions and in 2002 only the non-Olympic mass start competition.
| place | country | number | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Altenberg |
 GDR
|
1 | 1967 |
| Antholz |
Italy
|
6th | 1975, 1976 OL , 1983, 1995, 2007, 2020 |
| Borovets |
Bulgaria
|
1 | 1993 |
| Canmore |
Canada
|
1 | 1994 OL |
| Khanty-Mansiysk |
 Russia
|
4th | 2003, 2005 MR , 2010 MR / OL , 2011 |
| Chamonix |
France
|
2 | 1984 FR , 1988 FR |
| Courmayeur |
Italy
|
1 | 1959 |
| Egg am Etzel |
Switzerland
|
1 | 1985 FR |
| Elverum |
Norway
|
1 | 1965 |
| Falun |
Sweden
|
1 | 1986 FR |
| Feistritz on the Drau |
Austria
|
1 | 1989 |
| Garmisch-Partenkirchen |
BR Germany
|
1 | 1966 |
| Hämeenlinna |
Finland
|
2 | 1962, 1971 |
| Hochfilzen |
Austria
|
4th | 1978, 1998 OL , 2005, 2017 |
| Lahti |
Finland
|
4th | 1981, 1987 FR , 1991, 2000 ER |
| Lake Placid |
United States
|
2 | 1973, 1987 |
| Lillehammer ( Vingrom ) |
Norway
|
1 | 1977 |
| Kontiolahti |
Finland
|
3 | 1990 ER , 1999, 2015 |
| Minsk |
Soviet Union
|
3 | 1974, 1982, 1990 |
| Nové Město na Moravě |
 Czech Republic
|
1 | 2013 |
| Novosibirsk |
Russia
|
1 | 1992 OL |
| Oberhof |
Germany
|
1 | 2004 |
| Oslo |
Norway
|
6th | 1986, 1990 ER , 1999 ER , 2000, 2002 OL , 2016 |
| Osrblie |
Slovakia
|
1 | 1997 |
| Ostersund |
Sweden
|
3 | 1970, 2008, 2019 |
| Pokljuka |
Slovenia
|
3 | 1998 OL , 2001, 2006 MR / OL |
| Pyeongchang |
 South Korea
|
1 | 2009 |
| Ruhpolding |
Germany
|
4th | 1979, 1985, 1996, 2012 |
| Saalfelden |
Austria
|
1 | 1958 |
| Seefeld in Tyrol |
Austria
|
1 | 1963 |
| Umeå |
Sweden
|
1 | 1961 |
| Zakopane |
 Poland
|
1 | 1969 |
Notes:
ER substitute organizer for competitions that could not be held at the original venue
FR Women's World Championships
MR Mixed Relay World Championships
OL Olympic year, only non-Olympic competitions were held
The most successful athletes
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The most successful participant in world championships is Ole Einar Bjørndalen with 20 gold medals, 14 silver medals and 11 bronze medals. He is followed by Emil Hegle Svendsen (12-6-3), Martin Fourcade (11-10-4), Frank Luck (11-5-4) and Alexander Tichonow (11-4-1). As in the Olympic Games, Ole Einar Bjørndalen is the most successful participant in individual disciplines at the World Championships, winning a total of eleven gold, six silver and nine bronze medals. In addition, the Norwegian is the most successful athlete based on the total number of medals won. With a total of 45 medals, he is ahead of the French Martin Fourcade with 25 medals, his compatriot Svendsen with 21 medals and the three Germans Ricco Groß , Frank Luck and Sven Fischer , who each achieved 20 medals. Bjørndalen, Fourcade and Svendsen are the only athletes to have won a gold medal in each individual discipline (individual, sprint, pursuit, mass start).
The most successful participant in world championships is the German Magdalena Neuner with twelve gold medals, four silver medals and one bronze medal, followed by the Russian Jelena Golowina (10-1-1). She is followed by the German athletes Petra Behle (9-2-2), Uschi Disl (8-8-3) and Andrea Henkel (8-6-2) as well as the two Norwegians Tora Berger (8-5-5) and Liv Grete Poirée (8-3-2). With six gold medals and two silver medals, Neuner is also the most successful biathlete in the evaluation of the individual disciplines. The most successful athlete in terms of the total number of medals won is Uschi Disl with a total of 19 medals, as was the case at the Olympic Games. She is followed by the Norwegian Tora Berger (18 medals), Alena Subrylawa (17 medals), who started for Ukraine and Belarus, and the Germans Magdalena Neuner (17 medals) and Andrea Henkel (16 medals). Henkel and Marie Dorin-Habert from France were the only athletes to win a gold medal in each individual discipline (individual, sprint, pursuit, mass start).
Eternal medal table
After 50 world championships: as of 2020
| rank | country |
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Germany (thereof GDR ) (thereof BR Germany )
|
84 (19) (2) |
64 (12) (4) |
53 (10) (7) |
203 (41) (13) |
| 2 |
Norway
|
76 | 69 | 62 | 208 |
| 3 |
Russia (of which Soviet Union ) (of which United Team ) 
|
73 (44) (1) |
71 (29) (1) |
49 (21) (0) |
193 (94) (2) |
| 4th |
France
|
35 | 35 | 36 | 106 |
| 5 |
Sweden
|
13 | 12 | 23 | 48 |
| 6th |
Finland
|
10 | 10 | 16 | 36 |
| 7th |
Italy
|
10 | 8th | 13 | 33 |
| 8th |
 Ukraine
|
7th | 10 | 21st | 38 |
| 9 |
 Belarus
|
6th | 9 | 13 | 28 |
| 10 |
Czech Republic (of which Czechoslovakia ) 
|
5 (0) |
7 (1) |
12 (3) |
24 (4) |
| 11 |
Austria
|
2 | 5 | 11 | 18th |
| 12 |
Slovenia
|
2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| 13 |
Poland
|
1 | 6th | 7th | 14th |
| 14th |
United States
|
1 | 4th | 1 | 6th |
| 15th |
Canada
|
1 | 2 | 1 | 4th |
| 15th |
Slovakia
|
1 | 2 | 1 | 4th |
| 17th |
Bulgaria
|
0 | 4th | 4th | 8th |
| 18th |
 China
|
0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 19th |
 Romania
|
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 20th |
 Latvia
|
0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 21st |
 Estonia
|
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Croatia
|
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
See also
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Sebastian Würz, World Cup final spurt: The Biathlon Formcheck in: Eurosport online, last accessed on February 6, 2012.
- ↑ a b c IBU event and competition rules
Saalfelden 1958 | Courmayeur 1959 | Umeå 1961 | Hämeenlinna 1962 | Seefeld 1963 | Elverum 1965 | Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1966 | Altenberg 1967 | Zakopane 1969 | Östersund 1970 | Hämeenlinna 1971 | Lake Placid 1973 | Minsk 1974 | Antholz 1975 | Antholz 1976 | Vingrom 1977 | Hochfilzen 1978 | Ruhpolding 1979 | Lahti 1981 | Minsk 1982 | Antholz 1983 | Chamonix 1984 | Egg am Etzel / Ruhpolding 1985 | Falun / Oslo 1986 | Lahti / Lake Placid 1987 | Chamonix 1988 | Feistritz an der Drau 1989 | Minsk / Oslo / Kontiolahti 1990 | Lahti 1991 | Novosibirsk 1992 | Borovets 1993 | Canmore 1994 | Antholz 1995 | Ruhpolding 1996 | Brezno-Osrblie 1997 | Pokljuka / Hochfilzen 1998 | Kontiolahti / Oslo 1999 | Oslo / Lahti 2000 | Pokljuka 2001 | Oslo 2002 | Khanty-Mansiysk 2003 | Oberhof 2004 | Hochfilzen 2005 | Antholz 2007 | Östersund 2008 | Pyeongchang 2009 | Khanty-Mansiysk 2011 | Ruhpolding 2012 | Nové Město na Moravě 2013 | Kontiolahti 2015 | Oslo 2016 | Hochfilzen 2017 | Östersund 2019 | Antholz 2020 | Pokljuka 2021 | Oberhof 2023
Mixed Relay World Championships :
Khanty-Mansiysk 2005 |
Pokljuka 2006 |
Khanty-Mansiysk 2010