Biathlon-Precision and pulse at a premium in pursuit of biathlon glory

ANTERSELVA, Italy, Feb 13 : For biathletes at the Winter Games, the task is clear - ski as fast as you can, hit all your targets from 50 metres with your heart bursting out of your chest and then tear off again with the best in the world hot on your heels in pursuit of glory. 

Sound simple? For the average person it would be impossible, but for the cream of the biathlon crop it is what they are doing across the 11 Olympic competitions at Milano Cortina which are never anything less than nail-biting, nerve-jangling affairs. 

"It is like trying to hit a golf ball from 50 metres," Sweden's Anna Magnusson told Reuters of the pressures of trying to hit the tiny target on the shooting range. 

Magnusson is one of four Swedes selected for Saturday's 7.5km women's sprint and will compete against teammate Elvira Oeberg as they seek to secure their first medals of the Games. 

"I see a lot of white rings and a small black dot," Oeberg said when asked about what is in her line of sight when she enters the range.

"It's very hard - even though I'm only 26 years old. I've been doing this for almost 20 years. I've been doing this for a long time, and it's still very hard."

Biathletes spend hundreds of hours practising shooting but there is still no guarantee of success even for the best. 

"I shoot between 10,000 and 15,000 shots per year, and still I miss them sometimes," Oeberg said with a wry smile. "It's hard, there are small margins, and it takes a lot of training to get good at it."

POUNDING HEART

It is one thing to shoot accurately when practising on the range but another entirely when you are racing against the clock with your heart pounding against top-class athletes who are all battling for the podium positions 1,800 metres above sea