Biathlon is cross-country skiing with rifle shooting, and the winner is whoever has the best time once penalties are counted: each missed target either adds time (60 seconds in the Individual, 45 in the Short Individual) or sends the athlete round a 150 m or 75 m penalty loop. Athletes shoot from 50 m, prone or standing, with 5 rounds in every shooting bout.
This page follows the IBU Event and Competition Rules, Version 2026, as of November 2026. The rule book was adopted by the 1998 IBU Congress and has been amended up to the 2026 Congress. It's long and covers a lot of event administration, so I've kept to the parts that explain what you're watching. Some sections apply only at certain events, such as World Championships entry quotas, and they're not covered here.
How a biathlon race works
Athletes ski a set number of loops and stop at the range between them to shoot. There are no points in the race itself. The clock decides everything, and penalties feed straight into the clock, either as added time or as extra distance on a short penalty loop.
That's the bit that makes biathlon so watchable. A fast skier who misses targets can lose to a slower one who shoots clean, and you'll often see the race change at the range rather than on the course.
The race formats and their distances
These are the standard competitions in the IBU rules, with the shooting order and the penalty for each miss:
| Format | Men | Women | Start | Shooting order | Penalty per miss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Individual | 20 km | 15 km | Single, 30 seconds apart | P-S-P-S | 60 seconds added |
| Short Individual | 15 km | 12.5 km | Single, 30 seconds apart | P-S-P-S | 45 seconds added |
| Sprint | 10 km | 7.5 km | Single, 30 seconds apart | P-S | 150 m loop |
| Pursuit | 12.5 km | 10 km | Pursuit start | P-P-S-S | 150 m loop |
| Mass Start | 15 km | 12.5 km | Everyone together | P-P-S-S | 150 m loop |
| Relay | 4 x 7.5 km | 4 x 6 km | Together, then tags | P-S on each leg | 150 m loop |
P means prone and S means standing, so P-S-P-S is four bouts in that order: lying, standing, lying, standing.
There are mixed formats too. The mixed relay is 4 x 6 km with women and men, and the single mixed relay is one woman and one man sharing the legs on a 1.5 km loop, with a 75 m penalty loop instead of 150 m.
The Super Sprint has a qualification and a final on the same day, both on a 1.5 km loop. The qualification is 4.5 km with single starts 15 seconds apart, the best 30 athletes go through, and the final is 7.5 km with everyone starting together, 5 loops, four shooting bouts and a 75 m penalty loop.
Single starts, pursuit starts, mass starts and tags
- Single start, used in the Individual, Sprint and Super Sprint qualification. Athletes go one at a time, normally 30 seconds apart (15 seconds in the Super Sprint qualification). You're racing the clock, so the athlete in front on the course isn't always the one in front in the results.
- Pursuit start. There's no standard interval. Each athlete starts at the time listed in the start list, which is how far they finished behind the winner of the qualifying race, rounded to the nearest second.
- Mass start, used in the Mass Start and the Super Sprint final. All athletes start together at one simultaneous start.
- Relay start. The first athlete from every team starts at the same time, and each later team member sets off when the incoming teammate touches them in the hand-over zone.
That's why the Pursuit and Mass Start are the easiest races to follow. The first athlete across the line, after penalties and adjustments, wins. In a single-start race you're really watching split times.
Prone, standing and the 50 m range
The distance from the front edge of the shooting ramp to the line of targets is 50 m, plus or minus 1 m. Every shooting bout uses 5 rounds.
In prone, the rifle may only touch the hands, shoulder and cheek, and the lower side of the wrist of the supporting arm must be clearly raised from the snow.
In standing, there's no support. Only the hands, shoulder, cheek and the area of the chest next to the shoulder may touch the rifle, and the supporting arm may be held against the chest or propped on the hip.
Skis stay on. Removing one or both skis on the mat isn't allowed, and neither is putting any object under them. A shooting sling and arm cuff are allowed.
Lane choice changes with the format. In the Individual and Sprint, athletes choose their lane from the ready targets. In the Pursuit, Mass Start and relays, lanes are given out in sequence, and in the Mass Start the first bout is shot from the lane that matches the start number.
What a missed target costs
This is the part that decides races. Every target left standing after a bout is a penalty, and the kind of penalty depends on the format:
- Individual: 60 seconds added to the athlete's time for each miss.
- Short Individual: 45 seconds added for each miss.
- Sprint, Pursuit, Mass Start and relays: one 150 m penalty loop for each miss.
- Single mixed relay and Super Sprint: one 75 m penalty loop for each miss.
Penalty loops can't be saved for later. They must be skied straight after the bout where the targets were missed, not after the next bout and not just before the finish line. An athlete who realises they've missed one may go back to the loop, as long as they don't block anyone.
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There's a harsher penalty for shooting the wrong way. A hit from the wrong position, in the wrong sequence or from the wrong place in the lane doesn't score, even if the target falls. The athlete gets the missed target penalty plus a further 30 second penalty.
A quick worked example. In a Sprint, an athlete who misses two targets in the prone bout skis two 150 m loops before heading back out on the course. In the Individual, the same two misses would add 2 minutes to the final time instead, with no extra skiing.
Relays and the 3 spare rounds
Relays work differently at the range, and it's the rule most viewers miss. Each athlete fires the first 5 rounds. If targets are still standing, they can use up to 3 spare rounds, hand-loaded one by one, until all 5 targets are hit or all 8 rounds are fired. Only targets still standing after that cost a penalty loop.
That's why you'll see relay athletes loading single rounds by hand at the mat. It's slower than a magazine, but it can save a trip round the loop. The team's time runs from the start of the first member to the finish of the last member.
How the result is decided
Competition time is measured electronically, backed by manual timing, and registered to 0.1 of a second. In the Individual, the time runs from start to finish with the shot-penalty time added on. In the Pursuit, Mass Start and Super Sprint final, the first athlete across the line after penalties and adjustments wins.
In the Pursuit, remember that the start order is the order of the gaps from the qualifying race. Being first out of the start doesn't mean much if the penalty loop catches up with you.
My take for first-time viewers
I'd start with the Pursuit or the Mass Start, because whoever crosses the line first wins and you don't need to track the clock. Learn what P and S mean, count the misses at each bout, and remember that each one is a 150 m loop.
I'd skip the Individual until you're comfortable, because its 60 second penalties only show up in the results, not on the course. If you like sports where precision under pressure decides it, curling's rules and the rules of darts reward the same kind of watching, and ice hockey is the winter pick if you'd rather have nonstop action.
Frequently asked questions
How far away are the biathlon targets?
The distance from the front edge of the shooting ramp to the line of targets is 50 m, plus or minus 1 m.
What happens if you miss a target in biathlon?
It depends on the format: 1 minute added in the Individual (45 seconds in the Short Individual), or a 150 m penalty loop in the Sprint, Pursuit, Mass Start and Relay (75 m in the single mixed relay and Super Sprint).
How many shots are in a biathlon shooting bout?
5 rounds per bout. In relays an athlete also has 3 spare rounds that are hand-loaded one by one.
What is the difference between a sprint and a pursuit in biathlon?
The men's Sprint is 10 km (women 7.5 km) with single starts. The Pursuit is 12.5 km for men (10 km for women), with athletes starting at times based on the gap behind the qualifying race winner.
How is a biathlon winner decided?
By competition time, which always includes penalties. In the Individual it's start to finish plus shot-penalty time, and in the Pursuit, Mass Start and Super Sprint final the first across the line after penalties wins.
