The stars of cross-country skiing are known to opt out of competitions in the World Cup.
For the biathletes, however, peak form towards championships has rarely trumped competition. The World Cup has a high status. But now this may be about to change.
The Swedish loyalists Sebastian Samuelsson and Anna Magnusson fear that.
The reason is a new competition calendar that the International Biathlon Union (IBU) is testing for a four-year period starting this season.
- We are very satisfied that everyone competes in basically everything, but I am a little worried that the new arrangement might mean that more people are standing over certain competitions. And we don't want to end up there, says Anna Magnusson.
The Winter World Cup contains the same number of competitions as before, but spread over more locations.
The focus of the skier criticism is an interjected competition weekend just after the New Year (January 2-3 in Pokljuka, Slovenia).
The biathletes have previously had a break when, not least, ski jumpers and cross-country skiers experience perhaps the best television weekends of the year in terms of viewing figures. Now the IBU wants to "maximize the commitment of the supporters", "future-proof the sport" and with the New Year's competition spin on what has made biathlon "Europe's most watched winter sport".
In exchange, the leave before Christmas will be slightly longer than before. But that does not outweigh the disadvantages, says Sebastian Samuelsson.
Do you like the new schedule?
- No, the 29-year-old answers without hesitation.
- It's an extra place, which means an extra burden for everyone. Drivers, herders with their trucks, journalists and everyone have to move more. I think that's a shame.
There are a couple of weeks left until the world cup premiere when DN meets Samuelsson in Idre. Until recently, he was chairman of the IBU's so-called active committee. This means that the Swedish Olympic and World Cup medalist has good insight into how the discussions have gone.
- I understand that you have to think about development and sponsors, all the pieces around. But now we have added two days in Munich in October (a roller-ski shooting competition under the auspices of the IBU), and so it will be an extra world cup. You can keep adding things all the time, but somewhere you reach a limit where people feel that "now we can't take it anymore". And then I think the product will be worse, says Samuelsson.
- The IBU's argument has been that it should not get tougher (more competitions). But it's not the competitions themselves that are taxing, it's the traveling and everything around it. I think most activists feel that it is going in the wrong direction.
This season, there is only one sprint and one relay each for women and men on the program in Pokljuka.
It can create a situation that the IBU may not have anticipated.
- If you don't go to Pokljuka, you suddenly have another week at home with good training, says Sebastian Samuelsson.
- The risk is that you feel that it is not worth the trip there. And if many people start to think like that ... then it won't be good.
Then you start touching the cross-country skiers?
- Then we start to touch the cross-country skiers. The strength for us has been that everyone runs everything and that we have had a schedule that allows it. Then I understand the financial perspectives, that it is a very good period for television.
Yes, can you take up the fight in terms of interest with Tour de ski?
- There will certainly be good viewing figures, it always is ... but we'll see. Tour de ski is a completely different concept. Here (in biathlon) we are talking about two competitions.
After the New Year, just over a month remains until the WC in Estonia, which is the big highlight of the season.
- Somewhere, I just hope that no one shows up in Pokljuka! And that they (IBU) realize that "this was not so smart", exclaims Samuelsson.
Are you thinking about skipping those competitions yourself?
Sebastian Samuelsson usually always has a quick answer at hand. Now he falls silent for a second before saying:
- If you want to stay over a weekend, it's the closest one to hand. I don't think you should stand over competitions, but it's clear, you only lose one individual competition, and in my opinion you gain quite a lot by not being there. You can come to Ruhpolding (World Cup week 6-10 January) fresher than everyone else. So we'll see how it turns out. But it's clear, if you want to win the overall World Cup and are there and fight, you have to go to Pokljuka, probably.
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