Biathletes won’t be coming to Dübendorf this summer

Last year, the biathletes’ “Grand Prix of Switzerland“ in Dübendorf near Zürich made a premiere that attracted considerable attention beyond Switzerland. The organizing committee of the national ski federation Swiss-Ski fought until the last minute to make a repeat event happen this summer – unfortunately, without success. It has now been announced that there will be no “Grand Prix of Switzerland“ in Dübendorf this year. The sporting arrangements would not have been a problem; rather, Swiss-Ski was unsuccessful in its search for sponsors, meaning that athletes and fans of the biathlon scene will have to do without the summer highlight in Switzerland this year.

Christian Manzoni, who is responsible for media relations for biathlon at Swiss-Ski, is not giving up and plans to work toward bringing back the “Grand Prix of Switzerland“ in 2010. Since both the International Biathlon Union and fans and athletes spoke very positively about the event in Dübendorf, the “Grand Prix of Switzerland“ may not be gone for good just yet.

Last year, several of Germany’s top biathlon stars also competed. Martina Beck, better known to many biathlon fans by her maiden name, Glagow, and Andreas Birnbacher gave the event in Dübendorf two German winners right at its premiere. For tourists, both the biathlon races themselves and Dübendorf’s geographical proximity to Zürich are appealing.