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13:58 on 4th December 2007

Imagine sprinting up 25 flights of stairs and, once at the top, trying to thread a needle five times in a row without once missing the hole. Imagine doing that over and over while competing against a dozen other people, and you have begun to experience the sport of biathlon.

In all biathlon events, athletes have to combine cross-country skiing with small bore rifle shooting from both a standing and prone position. The athletes ski loops of the course, stopping each time to fire a prerequisite number of shots at the target. Participants incur a penalty for missing a target in all events and the athlete with the fastest time wins.

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