USBA Qualifying Criteria for Youth Olympic Games 2012

The ICC has recently approved the Criteria for the 2012 Youth Olympics. The criteria are still pending approval by the US Olympic Committee, but its unlikely they will be changed significantly.  The Games will be held in Innsbruck, Austria, Jan 13-22, 2012.  The selection procedure will primarily take place THIS winter, so athletes must plan ahead.  This is an amazing opportunity-  even if an athlete is just starting their foray into biathlon, they should consider competing in this winters’ trials.  The 2012 Youth Olympic Games is the first Winter Youth Games and is modeled on the “regular” Olympics.  Its fully supported (funded) by the US Olympic Committee and is run by the International Olympic Committee.   There are 4 events-  Sprint, Pursuit, mixed Relay, and mixed- biathlon/cross country relay.

To summarize, the USBA will be able to take 2 men and 2 women to the Youth Olympic Games.   Athletes must have a birth date between Jan 1, 1994 and Dec 31, 1995.  The first position will be filled by the best 4 of 9 races scored on the USBA % back method.  Only age eligible athletes will be in the points calculation and points base. Races will include Jr Trials (3 races, Jericho, Dec 2010), US Biathlon Nationals (3 races, Mt Itasca, March 2011) and Summer Rollerski Biathlon Festival (3 races on matched skis, Jericho, Aug 201).  The second position will be filled on coaching staff discretion, though points will definitely influence the selection.  An Alternate will also be selected, based on points.   All athletes will need to compete in the Youth Category.

Athletes selected to the Youth Olympic Games team (including Alternates) will be invited to funded preparatory camps in October (Soldier Hollow) and November (West Yellowstone).

USBA will be hosting a Jr Development Camp immediately after the USSA- Junior Olympics.  It will be held at Mt Itasca, Grand Rapids, MN, March 13-20. This training camp is for xc skiers age 14-19 who are competing at a high level in cross country skiing and are just starting biathlon training/racing.  This camp is also for those who have some biathlon experience and are looking to get some additional coaching.  The camp will combine intensive marksmanship training and ski training over a week-long camp. All athletes will be able to compete at the US National Championships which will be held at Mt Itasca, March 17, 19, 20, during the last few days of the training camp.

Questions regarding the 2012 Youth Olympic Games and the USBA Jr Development Camp should be addressed to Piotr Bednarski, Director of Athlete Development, mnbiathlon@aol.com, 952/237-0765 cell.

Provisional Criteria Pdf

2012 
Youth 
Olympic
 Games
 – January 10-24, 2012

2012 Youth Olympic Games
January 10-24, 2012
Innsbruk, Austria

Dear Athletes and Coaches,

The inaugural Youth Winter Olympic Games will be held January 13-22, 2012 in
Innsbruk, Austria. This is a new event, and as the title indicates, it’s a big deal. This
is a REAL OLYMPICS for Youth athletes (age eligibility described below), and will
include virtually all the winter sports that are included in the “regular” Olympic
Games. This event will be fully funded by the US Olympic Committee and the USBA.

The U.S. Biathlon Team will be allowed to bring 2 female and 2 male biathletes.
Athletes must be US Citizens born between January 1, 1994 and Dec 31, 1995.
There will be 4 events for biathlon:

  • 6km/7.5km Sprint
  • 7.5km/10km Pursuit
  • Mixed Relay (2 women and 2 men)
  • Combined Biathlon and XC Relay (2 biathletes, 2 xc skiers)

The qualification process for US biathletes wanting to represent the United States at
the Youth Olympic Games will begin this winter season, 2010-2011. The
International Competition Committee has not yet approved criteria, but they will be
available in the next month. Criteria will be emailed out to coaches and will be
posted on the USBA website as soon as they are available.

Because the names for team selection must be submitted to the International
Olympic Committee by early December 2011, we will most likely need to use results
from major Biathlon races during the 2010-2011 season. Athletes and coaches
need to keep this in mind when planning the winter race schedule. Though our
criteria are not yet complete, this letter is a “heads up” regarding the importance of
racing at the Jr/Youth World Team Trials, Dec 28-30, 2010 in Jericho, Vermont and
the US National Championships, March 17-20, 2011 at Mt Itasca, Minnesota.

The International Competition Committee will work to complete its work on the
Youth Olympic Games qualifying criteria by the middle of November. The inaugural
Youth Summer Olympic Games were held this summer in Singapore. From all
reports it was a resounding success. The host city website is not yet up, but here’s a
link for some more basic information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_Winter_Youth_Olympics