Winter Olympics Biathlon

U.S. Navy photo by Journalist 1st Class Preston Keres World Class Athlete Spc. Jeremy Teela takes aim in the range during the men's 20km individual biathlon event at Soldier hollow in Midway, Utah during the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, Feb. 11, 2002.

Teela finished with a personal best of two missed targets, which led him to 14th place, the highest American finish.

U.S. Navy photo by Journalist 1st Class Preston Keres. Spc. Andrea Nahrgang passes the shooting range at Soldier Hollow during the women's 4 X 7.5km relay in the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, Feb. 18, 2002.

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Skiing details

All cross-country skiing techniques are permitted in biathlon. No equipment other than skis and ski poles may be used for moving along the track. Minimal ski length is 1.6 in less than the height of the skier.

Shooting details

The biathlete uses a small bore rifle, which weighs at least 7.7 lb, including ammunition in magazines on their back during the race. The rifles use .22 LR ammunition and are bolt action or Fortner (straight-pull bolt) action.

The target distance is 160 ft. There are five circular targets in each shooting round. When shooting in the prone position the target diameter 1.8 in, when shooting in the standing position the target diameter is 4.5 in. On all modern biathlon ranges, the targets are self-indicating, in that they flip from black to white when hit, giving the biathlete as well as the spectators visual feedback for each shot.