Oberhof conditions leave Norway's biathletes stunned
The weather is causing the organizers of the Biathlon World Cup in Oberhof a lot of headaches. The competitions have to be postponed by one day. There are differing opinions about the condition of the course, the Norwegians, for example, are stunned.
The first race of the Biathlon World Cup in Oberhof had to be postponed due to the bad weather. However, rain and wind are the minor problems. Much bigger are the concerns about the condition of the course. "These are probably the worst conditions I've ever raced in Oberhof," said superstar Johannes Thingnes Bø on NRK, shocked by the conditions on the legendary course in the Thuringian Forest. A lot of tree bark and stones on the track were just one problem, added the 30-year-old. "There is also very little snow in some places. The descents were life-threatening," Bø sounded the alarm.
As the Norwegians were the first team to complete a training session, they also involuntarily became guinea pigs. What they experienced also outraged Endre Strømsheim. "Horrible. These are absolutely crazy conditions to train in. At least it's a record for me: it was the worst training day ever." The track only consists of 50 percent snow. The rest was "sawdust, earth and stones". Johannes Dale agreed wholeheartedly. He also said: "It was a very strange training session with a mixture of gravel, spruce needles and stones on the track. It was the worst training I've had in my World Cup career." It was also "cold and wet", complained the 26-year-old.
"The work here was simply poor"
The conditions also caused annoyance in the Norwegian wax truck. The many stones and the dirt on the track made testing almost impossible. The material was also destroyed. "The work here was simply poor," criticized Norway's chief technician Tobias Dahl Fenre. In his eyes, it is also "impossible" to fix the problems before the first race. "The only option is for them to add more snow. But if they do that, they will have to choose a different method," he said, referring to the mixture of stone and snow that is currently forming the trail. It feels as if the organizers have driven over the course with a snow machine and distributed stones, said the technician.
IBU sports director Daniel Böhm did not defend Oberhof against the criticism, but promised improvement in the coming days. "We will definitely not be able to create a winter wonderland. But together with the organizers, we will do our best to make it as good as possible. We have some snow in storage that we can use for the worst hit areas," he said.
"Joy is there and we have worked so hard"
Despite the persistent rain, the competitions are due to start late on Friday. This was confirmed by the head of the organizing committee, Bernd Wernicke: "We were well prepared, point A. We were always in agreement with the IBU, point B. And the weather forecast shows that the postponement was correct. We can hold the competitions from Friday," said Wernicke. The men's ten-kilometre sprint scheduled for this Thursday was postponed due to the heavy rain, plus temperatures and gusts of wind and is now scheduled for Friday (11:20 a.m./ARD). "I'm ready now: it just has to start. The joy is there and we've worked so hard," said Wernicke.
Unlike the disgruntled Norwegians, the German biathletes were understanding. "The conditions were fine. The track was firm and the helpers got the track hard with salt," said Justus Strelow after training. "Everyone will make the effort to ensure conditions are as fair as possible." As this is not the first time that Oberhof has suffered from a lack of snow in January, French legend Martin Fourcade also got involved in the issue. He even questioned the continued existence of the races in Thuringia on X and wrote: "Maybe it's time to find an arena that suits our era."
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Despite the challenging conditions, Norwegian biathletes strongly advocate for the Winter sports event in Oberhof to continue. "We understand the difficulties, but the track should be made as fair as possible for all competitors," said Justus Strelow, a German biathlete. The Biathlon World Cup, originally scheduled to begin with the men's 10-kilometer sprint, has been postponed due to poor weather and the subpar track conditions, much to the dismay of the Norwegian team, who considers the current conditions the worst they've ever encountered in Oberhof.
Source: www.ntv.de
