IBU president Besseberg praised the World Championships

The last bullets are shot, the medals are handed out and the fans left – on behalf of the IBU board members president Anders Besseberg and Vice President of information Ivor Lehotan used their chance to review the past 11 days.


“Soon we’ll end the season’s highlight. The great diversity of nationalities, the perfect weather and the nerve-wrecking and – more than anything – fair competitions made up for World Championships we’ve never seen before in the history of biathlon. I can’t think of WC that have been as exciting as we’ve seen it now. Whether it’s been winning athletes with bib number four or with bib number 96, surprising winners like Bailey or the enormous attention by the media. After every bullet there were cheers in the stadium and the location itself has done it’s job: the infrastructure in Hochfilzen is unique.”

The IBU president was particularly pleased not only regarding the high level of fan interest but also about the worldwide media coverage and the sensational TV quotas. Thanks to the ORF with 170 staff members and 49 cameras under the direction of producer Michael Kögler, outstanding impressions of the event were broadcasted in almost 60 countries worldwide. Besseberg further stated, that statistics like that make him proud, especially if one notices that only with regard to Germany over five million fans watched the competitions on TV.

In the course of a mega event like that, usually not everything is running smoothly all the time. This was also the case with the potential doping causa in Hochfilzen shortly before the beginning of these Biathlon World Championships – “Fortunately, this negative incidence was solved pretty fast, but we realized that we have to come to a consensus regarding stricter sanctions for any kind of misdeed. Concerning our future working papers this topic will be of utmost priority.”

Also Franz Berger, director of the organizing committee, was satisfied. Perfect organisation, sunny weather, fascinating atmosphere, great fans and – in addition – medals for the Men’s Relay and Simon Eder. The man who had everything under control is pleased about the event: “Our long lasting work has paid off!”

 

The World Championships in figures:

37 nations

315 athletes

565 media representatives

1.300 staff members of the organising committee

4.276 accreditations in total

11 competitions, 33 medals, records for Laura Dahlmeier with 5xGold at World Championships; the closest decision in the Men’s Sprint with a difference of 0,7 seconds between Gold and Silver

Number of spectators:

Mixed Relay: 10.700

Women 7.5km Sprint: 9.100

Men 10km Sprint: 14.300

Women10km Pursuit /Men 12.5 km Pursuit: 19.600

Women 15km Individual: 12.500

Men 20km Individual: 15.350

Women 4x6km Relay: 17.800

Men 4x7.5km Relay: 22.300

Women 12.5km Mass Start/ Men 15km Mass Start: 22. 100

143.700 spectators in total

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