The Junior European Championships will be the first international championship event planned at the new venue at Polana Jakuszycka. The organisers expect as many as 250 male and female athletes, accompanied by more than a hundred coaches and technical staff. The event will last a week, during which eight sets of medals will be awarded in four events. Compared with previous editions, the competition programme has undergone an important change.

It did not concern the individual races or sprints, which have been part of the Junior European Championships programme from the very beginning. The mixed relay and single mixed relay, held since 2018, also have a secure place in the schedule. However, after many years, the pursuit races have disappeared from the competition programme. They will be replaced by one of the youngest events tested by the International Biathlon Union—the mass start 60.

This highly spectacular format has featured for several years in the calendars of lower-level competitions: the IBU Cup and the IBU Junior Cup. By decision of the international federation, in February 2024 Jakuszyce will host its debut at a championship-level event. What is the mass start 60? It is essentially the mass-start race well known from the World Cups, but with as many as 60 athletes taking part, selected on the basis of two previously held individual events.

How is it possible for such a large group of athletes to start simultaneously when the shooting range will still have only 30 lanes? The problem has been solved by dividing the athletes into two groups: numbers 1 to 30 shoot after the first skiing lap, while numbers 31 to 60 report to the range for the first time after completing two laps. The field is then evened out, and the competitors are spread out enough that they have no difficulty fitting onto the range during subsequent visits. The simultaneous start of as many as 60 athletes will undoubtedly make this the most spectacular event of the competition in Jakuszyce.

The competition will begin with two days of training. The individual races are scheduled for Wednesday, 7 February; relay races will take place the following day, and after a rest day, the sprint competition will be held on 10 February. The championships will conclude with the mass-start races. The women’s events will start at 10:30 each time, while the men will compete for medals at 14:00.

Tourist trails open during the competition

Importantly, during the championships and the preceding IBU Junior Cup competition, which begins on 30 January, the athletes will occupy only a small part of the Jakuszyce ski trails. They will compete only on the approximately 7.5-kilometre high-performance trails and at Polana Jakuszycka itself. The competition area will be fenced off with nets. The remaining trails—88 kilometres in total—will be available and maintained by Stowarzyszenie Bieg Piastów. They can be accessed at eight points: the Stowarzyszenie Bieg Piastów car parks (1b), Polana Maliszewskiego (20), Huta (43), Chatka Robaczka (41), Czerwony Potok (26), Harrachov railway station (6), Novy Svet–Harrachov via the Partyzancka trail to Dział Izerski (7). It will additionally be possible to enter the trail at Orle via the Polana Jakuszycka railway platform (1). The numbers in brackets are those used to identify the individual locations on most maps and trail signs.

Competition programme:

  • 7 February, 10:30 a.m. – women’s individual race (12.5 km)
  • 7 February, 2:00 p.m. – men’s individual race (15 km)
  • 8 February, 10:30 a.m. – mixed relay (4x6 km)
  • 8 February, 2:00 p.m. – single mixed relay (6 km+7.5 km)
  • 10 February, 10:30 a.m. – women’s sprint (7.5 km)
  • 10 February, 2:00 p.m. – men’s sprint (10 km)
  • 11 February, 10:30 a.m. – women’s mass start 60 (9 km)
  • 11 February, 2:00 p.m. – men’s mass start 60 (12 km)

Opened in 2022, Dolnośląskie Centrum Sportu is one of the most modern facilities of its kind in Europe. The venue was created both for amateurs who want to enjoy several dozen kilometres of ski trails in the Izera Mountains and as a training site for professionals preparing for the most important competitions. During its still relatively short operation, DCS has already proven itself as a venue for national and international biathlon and cross-country skiing competitions, led by Bieg Piastów, a Worldloppet member.