May 14, 2014 (Quebec City, QC) – The International Masters Games Association (IMGA) is staging the second edition of the Winter World Masters Games (WWMG) in Quebec City from Jan. 31-Feb. 8 in 2015, yet despite earlier statements, biathlon will likely now be included in the program.

However the costs of including biathlon is still a potential stumbling block according to correspondence that SkiTrax received from the IMGA.

“The meeting I had was Quebec was positive in regards to biathlon but they were still looking into some budget issues. I’m going to Quebec at the end of the month and by then, they should have gathered all information about the Games and should be ready to launch their website. This also means that a decision about biathlon will have been taken,” wrote Samantha Hayward, Manager Communications & Partnerships (IMGA) on May 12.

Previous communication by Hayward with the organizer indicated that, “The following sports will be on the program: skiing, long track speed skating, ice hockey, curling, winter triathlon, snow shoeing and climbing. As you can see, unfortunately biathlon will not be on the program.”

The reason at that time was some apparent confusion about Canadian legislation regarding the importation of biathlon rifles, but that issue has since been resolved. In recent years Canada has hosted multiple international biathlon events in conjunction with the International Biathlon Union (IBU), including two World Junior events.

The world-class biathlon range on Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Valcartier, is about 20 minutes west of Quebec City and biathlon events that are part of the WWMG would be staged there. Despite previous reports no decision has been made to close the Valcartier biathlon range, also known as the Centre de biathlon Myriam Bédard (CMB), according to Chris Lindsay, High Performance Director at Biathlon Canada – see our report here.

The WWMG is expected to draw some 3,000 athletes over age 25 with anticipated economic spinoffs from the event estimated at between $6 million and $10 million. The IMGA originally slated the event for Sestriere, Italy, but moved it to Quebec City due to financial concerns.

Stay tuned to SkiTrax for any further developments on the 2015 WWMG.

Read February’s WWMG press release here.