The Biathlon World Cup will be held in the United States for the first time in 5 years. The height is also special.
The next stop at the World Cup should be a good one for the Swiss biathletes. Swiss immigrants left their mark in the US state of Utah. Close to Soldier Hollow is the small city of Interlaken, whose coat of arms is very similar to that of the canton of Bern.
“I met a Swiss diaspora in the nearby city of Heber, which was very interesting,” recalls SRF expert Matthias Simien, who also competed in the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City in Soldier Hollow. “They are immigrants from the canton of Bern. We also managed Of participating in an evening in Bern at that time.
Schweitzer (2002) is the only supporting cast
In terms of sports, the games of that time left less lasting impressions on Simin. “For me, the motto was 'Be there.' It's everything.” The 64th and 67th places in the individual competitions did not necessarily spark biathlon euphoria in Switzerland 22 years ago, especially since Semin's teammates Roland Zvahlin, Jean-Marc Chabloz and Danny Niederberger had achieved similarly poor results.
This sport is now much better in Switzerland, also due to its recent successes. Lena Hakke-Gross claimed her second World Cup victory last weekend in Oslo.
The enthusiasm is there, but it's actually very local.
However, in the USA, no lasting enthusiasm for biathlon has developed since the Olympics. Perhaps the return of the World Cup after a five-year absence will not change this situation in the short term. “The enthusiasm is there, but it's actually very local,” Simien says. It is doubtful that the global federation will be able to gain a foothold outside Europe with its attack. At the end of the World Cup season, there will also be races in Canmore, Canada, within a week.
Soldier Hollow is likely to be a challenge for athletes due to its location at approximately 1,700 metres. “This is very difficult because a cubic meter of air contains less oxygen,” Simien says. There is little time left to adapt after the Oslo competitions. “You have almost no chance to get used to the altitude.”
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