WM - Austria / II. Republic of Austria 1978 - 4 Shilling

The German translation of the Greek word biathlon means double combat. Thus it was expressed that biathlon is a combination of two different sports that are combined into a competition. These sports are cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. This sport branch has its roots in the winter hunt. Especially in the Scandinavian countries hunting on skis is very common. Internationally, the biathlon is led by the "Union Internationale de Pentathon Moderne et Biathlon" based in Stockholm. This organization has been the international biathlon association since 1957. The first Biathlon World Cup took place on 2 March 1958 in Saalfelden near Salzburg. There were 28 biathletes from seven countries at the start. At the Olympic Games was first held in 1960 in Squaw Valley a biathlon competition. An innovation in biathlon was on the occasion of the 1976 Olympic Games in Innsbruck. Since then, no large caliber rifles, but small caliber rifles are used in the competitions. Accordingly, the distance of the shooter from the target was also reduced. At the 1978 World Cup in Hochfilzen in Tyrol were first used small caliber rifles. The brand image shows a competitive phase in biathlon.