Publication date: 18 Jan 2023
About the Biathlon World Championships
The Biathlon World Championships (BWCH) is an international biathlon competition held annually in February and March, apart from the year of the Winter Olympics.
Athletes who compete in the BWCH earn points that count towards the overall World Cup and the Nations Cup. Not only male athletes, but also female ones take part in this championship. Men and women have been competing together in the championships since 1989.
2023 Biathlon World Championships
The 2023 Biathlon World Championships will be held on 8-19 February in Oberhof, Germany.
The event is part of the 2022-23 Biathlon World Cup calendar. A total of 12 medal events will be contested at the BWCH.
History of the Biathlon World Championships
Biathlon as a sport has its origins in a military patrol race, which involved 4 servicemen with a senior and a junior officer and 2 privates. Their task was to cover a distance of 25 km with weighted knapsacks and shoot at targets with rifles on the way. 1958 was the year of the first biathlon World Cup. At that moment the Swedish athlete Adolf Wiklund, who fired all his shots without a miss, impressed everyone. Surprisingly, at the first Biathlon World Championships a military rifle was used.
Biathlon as a discipline has been part of the Olympics since 1960.
The official history of the women’s event dates back to 1983, when it was known as the European Biathlon Championships, although not only European teams took part.
Each year the number of relays has increased, starting with the individual 20 km race.
Results of the previous BWCH
| The year | Venue | Results |
| 2021 | Pokljuka, Slovenia | Norway (9 gold, 3 silver, 4 bronze)
France (2 gold medals, 2 silver, 3 bronze) Sweden (1 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze) |
| 2020 | Rasen-Antholz, Italy | Norway (6 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze)
France (3 gold, 2 silver, 3 bronze) Italy (2 gold, 2 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 2019 | Östersund, Sweden | Norway (5 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze)
Germany (2 gold, 2 silver, 3 bronze) Italy (2 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze) |
2024-25 Biathlon World Championships
According to preliminary information, the next BWCH will be held in Nové Město na Moravě (Czech Republic) and Lenzerheide (Sweden) in 2025.
Keep an eye on the dates of the men’s and women’s biathlon competitions and other events in our Sporting Events Calendar.
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