NSSF Helps Launch “Team 2010” Biathlon Initiative with $10,000 Grant

NSSF Helps Launch “Team 2010”
Biathlon Initiative with $10,000 Grant
“Team 2010”, a major initiative by the United States Biathlon Association (USBA) to broaden shooting sports industry support as the team prepares for the 2010 Olympics, has received a major boost from the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).

Olympic observers agree that the United States may be poised for its first-ever Olympic Biathlon medal at the Winter Games in Vancouver, BC in 2010. “The United States Biathlon Team is the most improved in the world.  It won’t be long before a moment of brilliance brings them to the podium for their first Olympic medal,” commented Michael Dixon, Eurosport TV Biathlon Commentator.

“We are aware of the improved performances by our U.S. Biathletes, particularly their impressive scores on the range,” commented Steve Sanetti, President & CEO of the NSSF. “We welcome the opportunity to be a major and early supporter of ‘Team 2010’ with this $10,000 grant and hope other members of the shooting sports community will embrace this exciting effort.”

“The shooting sports community is rightfully proud of the tradition and success of our U.S. Olympic shooting team during the Summer Olympic Games,” Sanetti commented. “Biathlon provides us with the opportunity to expand that positive exposure for shooting sports to the Winter Olympics, as well.”

“Biathlon is a sport that captivates and fascinates nearly all who see it,” explained Max Cobb, Executive Director of the USBA. “The world-class Biathlete attempts to combine the physically demanding sport of cross-country skiing with the intense precision of rifle marksmanship. The opposing disciplines collide with unique drama at the shooting range. With hearts pounding nearly three times a second, athletes struggle to control their breathing as they attempt to squeeze off a successful shot, knowing that each shot, and the number of seconds it takes to make it, will determine who stands on the podium that day.”

“The USBA created a High Performance Plan that included an emphasis on improving our shooting performance,” Cobb outlined. “Thanks to that High Performance Plan and to lots of hard work by our athletes and coaches, we have never been better positioned for a trip to the Olympic medal stand.”

“At the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy, Jay Hakkinen came within fractions of an inch of capturing at least a Bronze medal,” Cobb related. “However, missing one target by half the diameter of a .22 caliber bullet dropped Jay out of medal contention and postponed America’s growing hopes for a Biathlon medal to 2010. Our goal is to enlist key shooting industry partners that will help us move that bullet the final quarter of an inch closer to the center and to Olympic success.”