Biathlon-Perrot swaps skis for swimming pool to find Olympic edge

ANTERSELVA, Italy, Feb 4 - French biathlete Eric Perrot has swapped his skis and the shooting range for the depths of a swimming pool, submerging himself in a programme of free diving to help him with his breathing at the Milano Cortina Games.

Biathlon competitors face a unique challenge, skiing around the course as fast as they can before trying to quickly lower their pulse and control their breath on the shooting range, where the slightest movement can mean the difference between hitting the target and a costly miss.

"I like to focus on my mental game. It's key, especially when you come alone into the last shooting," Perrot said of one of the most high-pressure moments in the sport.

"You're thinking a lot about the victory because you know it's possible, but I try to see myself from the outside, figuring out the best way to do it without overthinking, or missing three shots because I wasn't focusing on the right things."

The penalties for missing the targets vary depending on the event, with everything from taking extra shots that delay their progress to penalty laps or costly additions to their race time among the punishments for errant shooting.

"To train for that, I do breathing exercises and hold my breath underwater," Perrot explained. "I've been working with a French diver who helped me to focus on breathing. That's very important for biathlon's physical part, but also for the mental game.

"When you can't breathe, you have to stay calm, find solutions, not overthink it or let it consume your energy, and it's the same on the shooting range."

The approach appears to be making a difference, and the 24-year-old three-time world champion enters his first Olympics as one of the favourites to make the podium when the competitions get underway on Sunday.

"I'm feeling good. I'm so happy to start the Olympic Games in a really good position. I'm confident in racing, shooting and everything, but I also know it is a new competition and you have to do everything over and over again," Perrot said.

Regardless of the size of the stage he will be competing on, the young biathlete intends to take a breath and make the most of what's to come.

"To win a gold medal at the Olympic Games is my dream. I've always had a lot of ambitions coming into big events, and it's the same here," he said.

"The results could be good or bad, but I'll still remember these weeks for my whole life, so I will try to enjoy them as much as possible." REUTERS