Biathlon at the 2010 Winter Olympics


The biathlon competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics were held at Whistler Olympic Park in Whistler, British Columbia. The events were held between the 13th and 26 February 2010.
The men's individual biathlon was notable for the awarding of two silver medals due to two competitors finishing with a tie. No bronze medal was awarded in this event.
In October 2020, the medals won by Evgeny Ustyugov in 2010 were revoked as a result of new tests for doping violations. In November 2024, almost 15 years after the Vancouver Olympic Games, the CAS rejected Ustyugov's appeal for the deprivation of his Olympic medals. In May 2025, the Swiss Federal Tribunal rejected the appeals of Ustyugov, leaving the International Olympic Committee to formally reallocate Ustyugov's medals to other athletes. In September 2025 the IOC Executive Board approved the medal reallocations.

Events

A total of ten biathlon events were held at Vancouver 2010:
! Men !! Women

Competition schedule

All times are Pacific Standard Time.
! Day !! Date !! Start !! Finish !! Event

Qualification

Athlete quotas

Athlete quotas: 220 athletes

A NOC may enter no more than 12 athletes, and no more than 4 athletes per event.
Quotas by events:
  • Individual: 88, 87
  • Sprint: 88, 87
  • Pursuit: 60 athletes1
  • Mass start: 30 athletes
  • Relay: 20 teams
1Qualification to the pursuit is based on results from the sprint

Eligibility criteria

All competitors must comply with one of the three minimum qualifications standards set forward by the IBU:
  • The athlete must have achieved a time that is less than 20% higher than the average time of the top 3 during a sprint or individual in the European Cup, including the European championships, during the 2010/2009 or the 2009/2008 season.
or
or
  • The athlete must have participated in a Biathlon world cup or world championships during the 2008/2009 or 2009/2010 season.
  • All members of a relay team must comply with those criteria.
Additionally, only athletes representing an NOC that is recognized by the IOC and member of the IBU can participate in the games.

Qualification criteria

All 220 quota places will be awarded using a point ranking combining the 2008 and 2009 Biathlon World Championships.
Men's
  • Rank 1 to 5: six athletes
  • Rank 6 to 20: five athletes
  • Rank 21 to 28: one athlete
Women's
  • Rank 1 to 5: six athletes
  • Rank 6 to 15: five athletes
  • Rank 16 to 20: four athletes
  • Rank 21 to 27: one athlete

Participating nations

According to final report by VANOC these were the final participation numbers:
NationsMen'sWomen'sTotal
Australia|2010 Winter