Biathlon at the 1980 Winter Olympics

In 1978, there were two major rule changes made in biathlon. First, small caliber guns with the .22LR rimfire cartridge were standardized. Second, the shooting range for all shootings was reduced to 50 metres.

In the 1980 Olympics, mechanical target marking was used for the first time. A new event, the 10 km sprints was introduced on the Olympic Program, with two shooting rounds and a penalty loop of 150 m skied for each missed target. The event had been on the World Championships program since 1974.