The start lists for the qualification heats of the Super Sprint at the Loop One Festival have been confirmed. The 59 Men and 57 Women go head-to-head in 4 qualification heats per gender. The top three finishers from each heat, plus the three fastest remaining athletes (“lucky losers”), progress to a 15-competitor final. The full start lists are available here.

The draw has created several intriguing heats, with some of the biathlon’s biggest names going head-to-head early in the competition: Defending World Cup Overall Winner Sturla Holm Laegreid (NOR) will kick off the event in the first heat, facing strong competition from French veteran Fabien Claude and local hero Philipp Nawrath.

French superstar Lou Jeanmonnot, the top seeded woman, will go head-to-head in the first heat with Lisa Theresa Hauser and Janina Hettich-Walz, who has come back in strong shape after becoming a mother. Lisa Vittozzi, the former World Cup overall winner and summer biathlon World Champion, will, in her comeback competition, face Julia Simon in Heat 2.

SCHEDULE (Times in CET)

11:00 Men Heat 1

11:20 Men Heat 2

11:40 Men Heat 3

12:00 Men Heat 4

13:00 Women Heat 1

13:20 Women Heat 2

13:40 Women Heat 3

14:00 Women Heat 4

15:35 Start FINAL MEN

16:15 Start FINAL WOMEN

SUPER SPRINT FORMAT

The Super Sprint format at the Loop One Festival offers a high-intensity, spectator-friendly competition. It begins with four qualification heats per gender, each with the athletes racing over three 1.8 km loops and completing two shooting stages (prone then standing), with no spare rounds and a 60 m penalty loop per miss. The top three finishers from each heat, plus the three fastest remaining athletes (“lucky losers”), progress to a 15-competitor final.

For the finals, the course expands to five loops and features four shooting bouts (prone, prone, standing, standing), again with no spare rounds and fixed penalty loops, culminating in a thrilling head-to-head sprint to the finish.

The event marks the first-ever urban biathlon competition organized by the International Biathlon Union (IBU), bringing world-class athletes to the Olympic Park for a fast-paced format designed to thrill fans and showcase biathlon in a new setting.

Where to Follow

You can follow all the action live on www.biathlonworld.com/watchlive

Photo: IBU/Manzoni