Millions of TV viewers and 7,000 liters of beer: that’s how much effort the Swiss biathlon premiere took

Blick provides the background tracks:

Television and radio stations from almost 30 countries broadcast the Lenzerheide races. The “host broadcaster” is SRG (with the channels SRF, RTS and RSI). She is responsible for the world signal and, according to her own information, employs 60 people and 29 cameras. The broadcasts from ZDF, which is on site with three trucks, are also being received these days. Jürg Capol, CEO of the major biathlon events in Lenzerheide, says: “Live and delayed, approximately 50 million viewers are reached, which is about twice as many as the Lauberhorn races in Wengen.”

It goes without saying that the fans in the 4,200-seat stands or the 600 VIPs also want something to combat their hunger and especially their thirst. The OC ordered 7,000 liters of beer in advance, Calanda of course. In addition, there are 6,000 lunches for the 28 teams, more than 500 volunteers and VIP guests. From a bratwurst to a raclette to a tender piece of meat, everything is included.

The biathlon arena has been transformed into a World Cup village over the past two months. The actual parking lot is now full of TV station trucks and countless containers. 114 in number – and 70 of these containers alone serve as wax booths for the service people. For this purpose, eight kilometers of bars and barrier gates have been placed throughout the area. And to make the snow-covered paths passable, 700 cubic meters of wood chips were spread. The teams also have eight wax trucks on site.

And how much does the entire event cost? The budget is 3.2 million francs. The public sector will cover 780,000 francs, of which 1 million will come from media and marketing rights, 1.05 million from ticket sales (including VIP) and 250,000 from the festival business. The organizers placed 100,000 under “Miscellaneous”. The IBU world association will provide half a million francs in prize money.