2026 Olympics: everything you need to know about the first individual biathlon race at the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan/Cortina
The individual format has long been the benchmark in biathlon. It was the only race (excluding relays) from the first world championships in 1958 to 1974. At the Olympic Games, the sprint was not introduced until 1980, when biathlon made its sixth Olympic appearance. For decades, the individual event has retained a prestige linked to its toughness on skis (a 45-minute effort for women, 50 for men) and its unique shooting format.
Today, it has fallen from grace, and is now limited to three annual formats (excluding the major championships), one of which is a reduced format (short individual). But it continues to feature at the World Championships and the Olympic Games, such as those in Milan/Cortina in 2026.
Managing your effort over an unusually long distance
The individual event is first and foremost a question of effort management. The distance of 15km for women and 20km for men has no equivalent in biathlon. The time trial start means that each competitor has to keep to his or her own pace, with no other guide than the verbal instructions given on the track by his or her selection team. You mustn’t start too hard to avoid losing your rhythm. But not to settle into a false rhythm either.
At the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing, the difference between the best and worst ski times reached 9 min 03 for the men (+19% of time spent on the piste) and 9 min 20 for the women (+22%). As a result, Quentin Fillon Maillet was crowned Olympic champion despite having two more faults than his runner-up, the Belarusian Anton Smolski.
No penalty ring
Perfect individual shots are rare. In 2022, only four competitors, men and women combined, managed it out of 178 classified. However, achieving a 20/20 score is even more profitable than in a pursuit or mass start. There are no penalty laps in this format, just a one-minute penalty for each mistake. Shots are therefore more relaxed, as the penalty is so significant.
The rounds on the shooting range alternate: prone, standing, prone, standing. There are five targets to clear (hit) each time, at a distance of 50m. As in the sprint, each competitor chooses their mat (between 1 and 15 for prone, 16 and 30 for standing) and the order of targets they wish to shoot at. These four shooting sequences are framed by five ski laps, of 3 km for the women and 4 km for the men. In each case, the longer loops are used.
An event open to surprises
By its very nature, the individual event is the most open format. It allows competitors who are struggling on skis to make better use of a 19/20 or 20/20 than in other events. In 2017, the American Lowell Bailey became world champion despite having just two podium finishes in his career. Three years earlier, Belarusian Nadezhda Skardino won bronze at the Sochi Olympics with the same record.
At the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan/Cortina, the individual event will take place before the sprint and pursuit, but after the mixed relay. It is scheduled for Tuesday 10 February at 13:30 for the men and the following day at 14:15 for the women.
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