Marko S.Laaksonen*,Thomas Finkenzeller,Hans-Christer Holmergc,Gerold Sattlecker

aDepartment of Health Sciences,Swedish Winter Sports Research Centre,Mid Sweden University,?stersund 83125,Sweden

bDepartment of Sport Science and Kinesiology,Paris Lodron University of Salzburg,Salzburg 5020,Austria

cSchool of Sport Sciences,UiT The Arctic University of Norway,Troms? 9019,Norway

Abstract The biathlon,an Olympic sporting discipline that combines cross-country skiing with refle marksmanship,entails considerable physiological demands,as well as fine motor control while shooting after intense exercise and under mental pressure.Although much of our knowledge about cross-country skiing is probably also applicable to the biathlon,carrying the refle and shooting under stress make this discipline somewhat unique.The present review summarizes and examines the scientific literature related to biathlon performance,with a focus on physiological and biomechanical factors and shooting technique,as well as psychophysiological aspects of shooting performance.We conclude with suggestions for future research designed to extend our knowledge about the biathlon,which is presently quite limited.

Keywords:Cortical activity;Gaze behavior;Postural balance;Skiing;Triggering

Fig.1.Overview of the Swedish National Biathlon Arena in?stersund,Sweden,including the shooting range(1),penalty loop(2),skiing tracks(3),spectator stand(4),and start and finish areas(5).Illustration by Ulf Nygren.

Fig.2.Measurement of relevant parameters during biathlon shooting in the standing position.

Fig.3.Increases in the average biathlon skiing speed for females(A)and males(B)from the 2001-2002 to the 2016-2017 season.Each data point represents the average skiing speed of the first 5 finishers in 4 annual biathlon World Cup sprint events(?stersund,Sweden;Hoch filzen,Austria;Oberhof,Germany;and Oslo,Norway).

Table 1 The VO2maxof Norwegian female and male biathletes and cross-country skiers who won Olympic and/or World Championship medals between 1990 and 2013(mean±SD).

Table 2 A summary of peer-reviewed studies on biathlon shooting technical factors and shooting performance.