It was as if someone with a gigantic crane had uprooted and transported an entire European biathlon stage across the Atlantic Ocean and then brick by brick reassembled it to provide a day of great theater.
Biathlon was invented by Norwegians and perfected with some help from neighboring Sweden, but such an atmosphere was unheard of for the United States. But Monday, the Soldier Hollow venue for the Winter Olympics might as well have been Oslo or Stockholm.
There were 8,500 spectators sitting and standing in the stunning sunshine, and about an equal number seemed to be waving flags. Just about as many Norwegian and Swedish flags as American banners were present, though the only guys doing the NFL thing and painting their faces with symbols of their country seemed to be Norwegian.
Of course, biathlon is as big in Norway as football is in the U.S., so it was only fitting.
On a day that may have seen the best American men’s Olympic showing–and foreshadowing an even better week ahead–the Norwegians certainly received their payoff. Already a national hero from his 1998 Olympic gold-medal performance and his multiple world championship medals, Ole Einar Bjoerndalen won the men’s 20-kilometer gold medal in 51 minutes 3.3 seconds. And Liv Grete Poiree won the silver medal in the women’s 15k.
But it was really a United Nations celebration. Andrea Henkel of Germany won the women’s race in 47:29.1 and Magadela Forsberg of Sweden at last won an Olympic medal, taking the bronze. Forsberg has won the last five World Cup titles but had never done well in the Olympics. Until she missed two targets in her final shooting round she had gold in her sights.
“I think I did very well except for the two shots I missed,” Forsberg said. “I’m very happy to win the bronze medal. My legs were so shaky–that happens when you ski hard on the tracks. But of course it’s also a combination of pressure and of being nervous.”
Biathlon combines shooting accuracy–aiming a .22-caliber rifle at 4-centimeter-wide targets 50 meters away–and cross-country skiing. The athletes must ski as hard as they can, then try to will their heartbeats down to a manageable level when they shoot.
Americans have never won an Olympic medal, but the way the fans responded you might have thought it was the World Series. There is no real history of crowd turnout and enthusiasm for the sport in the U.S., but most Europeans felt at home too.
“I always heard the noise,” said Poiree, who is married to Frenchman Raphael Poiree, who placed 10th in the men’s event. “Everybody was shouting at you.”
In Europe there is more sophisticated cheering. The loudest shouts follow clean shots. The Norwegians emulated that approach here. Forsberg said the energy from fans was palpable, but they cheered differently.
“In America,” she said, “they scream all the time.”
American biathlon had quite a bit to scream about Monday. U.S. fans decorated the surrounding snow with turquoise Olympic rings that resembled a big frosted cake baked for the occasion. Friends and family members made banners. That was all visual, but the decibel level caught American racers off guard.
Jeremy Teela of Anchorage, an Army specialist who is a member of the service’s World Class Athlete Program, placed 14th, equaling the top finish of any American in an Olympics, matching John Burritt in 1960 and Peter Karns in 1972. And Jay Hakkinen of Kasilof, Alaska, placed 26th. That’s the equivalent of two Americans scoring World Cup points in the same race. They were overwhelmed by the support.
“I was really shocked,” Hakkinen said. “Right out of the start my ears hurt from the cheering. It was real exciting. There was a lot of `Go Jay!’ That’s a big change.”
Bjoerndalen, who also raced in the 30k cross-country event for Norway on Saturday, edged Frank Luck of Germany, who won silver, and Victor Maigourov of Russia, who took bronze.
But the real shock was Teela’s finish. Teela, 25, didn’t feel sharp, and though he made 18-of-20 shots prone and standing, he didn’t think he skied well. He and Hakkinen think Wednesday’s 10k sprint is their best event, and the nation’s best chance for a top-10 finish or a historic medal.
