The 7th stage of World Cup Biathlon took place on Thursday, February 7th, and Friday February 8th. Due to cold temperatures on Thursday, it was decided to introduce (for the first time ever in biathlon history) Short Individual Races 15 km for men, and 12.5 km for women (instead of 20km and 15km relatively).
Most of the athletes used a special tape on their faces that meant to protect them from the frost bites. Some chose their national colors, others were not that picky about it, but some, like Meinen Suzanna (on the first photo below) from Switzerland decided to have some fun with it.
Boe and Christiansen from Norway became 1st and second relatively, and Alexander Loginov from Russia got 3rd in the individual race on Thursday. Women`s podium was shared between Eckhoff from Norway (1st place), Davidova from Czech Republic (2nd), and Vitozzi from Italy (3rd).
Initially, the relay race was scheduled for Saturday, but Saturday temperatures expected to be below -25, and it was moved to Friday. According to IBU Rules "Biathlon competitions must not be started, if the air temperature is colder than minus 20 degrees Celsius measured at the coldest part of the site (range or course), 1.5 m above ground". Thankfully, Friday was not so cold, and we had to enjoy the great relay races. Men podium was shared by team Norway, France, and Russia. Germany, Norway, and Italy were the best of all women teams.
Despite cold, many fans attended to cheer for their favorites on the stadium and along the side of a track. Everyone had fan and enjoyed the event.
The Saturday races were rescheduled for Sunday at first, and then, unfortunately, cancelled due to the same reason of cold weather.
Overall, the event is a must see for those who missed it this year, and I hope that the Biathlon World Cup will be back soon, so we can enjoy the spirit of competition once again.