Sports Summary
Biathlon was introduced in Lillehammer in 1994.
The competition is open to athletes with a physical impairment and blindness/visual impairment. It consists of a 7.5km route divided into three 2.5km stages. Between the two stages athletes must hit two targets located at a distance of 10 metres. Each miss is penalised by an increase in the overall route time.
The percentage-system is an adjusted time formula, which is used to determine overall place of each competitor relative to all other impaired racers. This formula assigns a percentage to each competitor based on each individual’s particular impaired race class. The athlete’s actual time is multiplied by this percentage to determine his/her adjusted finishing time. Each impairment class has a different percentage for the different techniques, classic and free technique. The percentages are evaluated after every season and changes are made if necessary.
The most important success factor lies in the capability of alternating the skills of physical endurance and shooting accuracy during the competition. Athletes with blindness/visual impairment are assisted by acoustic signals, which depending on signal intensity, indicate when the athlete is on target.
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