With just 12 days to go until the second edition of the Loop One Festival, the International Biathlon Union (IBU) has unveiled the full programme for its Biathlon Season Opening in Munich. On 17–18 October, the event will bring the world's best biathletes into the heart of the city. Moreover, Olympic and World Champions such as Johannes Thingnes Boe, Denise Herrmann-Wick and Dorothea Wierer are among the legends joining fans across the weekend. Two days of elite competition will be combined with music, interactive challenges, activities for children and families, and a host of opportunities to get closer to some of the sport’s biggest names.

Designed as much for first-time visitors as for dedicated biathlon fans, Loop One Festival will transform Munich’s Olympic Park into a festival of sport and entertainment. Across the weekend, visitors can choose between the live competition, the Kids Area, Side Quest Area and Home of Biathlon, catering to every interest and making watching world-class athletes just one highlight of the day.

The Loop One Festival will be accessible to all, with fans able to enter the park, enjoy the activities and watch the competition along the course free of charge on both days. Seats in the grandstand overlooking the shooting range will be ticketed, offering fans the chance to experience the stadium atmosphere and shooting action of a world-class biathlon event. Tickets can be purchased here.

From Mini Disco to DJ set: a festival for a new generation of biathlon fans

For families, Loop One Festival offers a dedicated Kids Area packed with activities throughout the weekend. Children can try Biathlon4All, get creative with face painting and airbrush tattoos, enjoy the bouncy castle and photo station, and join sessions including Kids CrossFit, Meet & Move and the Mini Disco by Moove Academy.

Some of biathlon’s biggest names will get involved too: Johannes Thingnes Boe, Denise Herrmann-Wick, Benedikt Doll and Michael Roesch will join activities across the weekend, giving children and families the chance not only to watch their sporting heroes, but to meet them and experience biathlon alongside them.

The Side Quest Area takes biathlon beyond the traditional race-day experience, mixing sport with music, community and lifestyle. Saturday features the adidas Runners x Loop One Community Run with Denise Herrmann-Wick, Biathlonrocks with “Beat the Legends” challenges and open heats, and a “High Performance. High Tech.” talk with Andreas Birnbacher. As racing draws to a close, the festival atmosphere continues with a sundowner DJ set by Toby Romeo. Mini games, the Mind Zone, food and drinks and a scavenger hunt will run throughout the day.

On Sunday, the Side Quest programme puts an additional focus on wellbeing and performance, beginning with Michael Roesch’s “Reset your pace” breathwork session and later featuring the talk “Pressure, Performance & Mindfulness”. Biathlonrocks and Biathlon4All continue throughout the day.

The Home of Biathlon at Hans-Jochen-Vogel-Platz will meanwhile bring fans closer to the personalities of the sport. Meet & Greets across the weekend feature Johannes Thingnes Boe, Denise Herrmann-Wick and Simon Schempp, alongside Biathlon4All sessions with the three Olympic Champions.

World-class biathlon at the heart of the weekend

At the centre of Loop One Festival is an innovative sporting programme bringing fast, compact biathlon racing directly to fans in Munich.

On Saturday, 17 October, the sporting action begins with the women’s and men’s super sprint qualifications at 11:00 and 12:20 respectively. At 13:35, Para biathletes take centre stage with the women’s and men’s mass start competitions, before the women’s super sprint final at 15:40 and the men’s super sprint final at 16:25. The day concludes with the women’s and men’s victory ceremonies at 17:15.

On Sunday, 18 October, the women’s qualification races begin at 10:15, followed by the men at 12:30. The weekend then builds towards the decisive super sprint finals, with the women racing at 15:45 and the men at 16:25, followed by the victory ceremonies at 17:00.

With competition unfolding alongside music, community activities and hands-on experiences, Loop One Festival offers different ways to discover and enjoy biathlon: families can make a full day of it, a new generation of fans can experience the sport in a relaxed festival setting, and established supporters can see elite athletes compete at close range.

The Festival is open 09:00–20:00 on Saturday, 17 October, and 08:00–18:00 on Sunday, 18 October.

Programme subject to change.

Photo: IBU