For the first time in the history of the Biathlon World Cup, the competition will be held in
Estonia, specifically in
Otepää.
Due to the
Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian biathletes are only allowed to compete under a neutral flag since the competition in Kontiolahti. Their performances are not included in the previous classifications of their countries. Previously, the Ukrainian national team announced the withdrawal from the biathlon competition by the end of the season.[2]
On 2 March 2022, IBU announced that Russian and Belarusian biathletes are banned from IBU events.[3]
Polish biathlete
Magdalena Gwizdoń starting in the sprint in Otepää broke the all-time record of the World Cup (starting in her 27th season). The previous record for starting in 26 seasons was held by
Ole Einar Bjørndalen.