The stadium in the Czech town of Nove Mesto na Morave, which will host the Biathlon World Championships, was closed for training on Monday due to weather conditions and the effects of a hurricane, NRK reports.
According to the source, the day before, heavy rains were accompanied by gusts of wind. Several trees fell along the route, advertising banners were also damaged and the snow cover was covered with debris and pine branches. The organizers decided to cancel training on Monday and close the track to the public so that staff could eliminate the consequences of the disaster. It should be noted that “several other trees are about to fall,” so it is not safe for biathletes to be on the territory of the facility.
— Due to bad weather conditions (especially wind), the arena suffered significant damage. Much work remains to be done over the coming days to ensure suitable conditions,” the International Biathlon Union (IBU) said in a statement.
At the same time, IBU sports director Daniel Boehm noted that organizers had stored the necessary amount of snow to restore order to the track, but that it would take time.
– The conditions are terrible. A strong wind is blowing, the snow is absolutely black. It’s just terrible to be here now,” says NRK expert Ola Lunde.
“I have never seen such conditions,” quotes Synnøve Sulemdal, six-time world champion and NRK expert, referring to the NTB agency.
It appears the first race of the World Cup, the mixed relay, could be moved from Wednesday to Thursday.
The 2024 Biathlon World Championships will take place in the Czech Republic from February 7 to 18.
NRK
Source : MatchTV
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