Biathlon news - Johannes Thingnes Boe loses Soldier Hollow points after admitting bullet error

Boe, 25, finished fourth in the men’s 12.5km Pursuit event on February 16, which would have seen him earn 43 World Cup points and €7,000.

However he has forfeited both of them and asked the points and prize money are distributed accordingly to the athletes who finished behind him after admitting to an error of his own doing.

Boe only fired four of his five bullets and finished the race with one of his bullets still in the magazine.

The International Biathlon Union (IBU) released a statement saying that the decision was mutual and ‘taken in the spirit of fair play’ after Boe reported the incident himself.

The IBU also admitted that their miscommunication had to led to erroneous reporting of the results and said they would look into procedure to ensure it didn’t happen again.

Felix Bitterling, IBU Sports Director, said “This was an unfortunate circumstance but working with Johannes we believe we have found the best possible solution in line with the IBU Regulatory framework.

"After the miscommunication inside the sports technical group in Soldier Hollow, it was legally not possible to amend the official results afterwards. Equally, it would not have been fair for Johannes to be awarded points and prize money when the TV pictures clearly showed the mistake.

"We believe we have reached the best possible settlement to this issue thanks to Johannes’ willingness to act in the best interest of the sport: no disqualification, but points and prize money earned in the competition are taken away.”

Boe added "The case is closed for me. I had already approached the officials on site immediately and admitted the rule breach was my own fault.

"My wish is that the IBU will do everything they can to prevent such mistakes in the future. It is never easy to give up World Cup points, but I also hope that other athletes can find the motivation and strength to be honest like me in the spirit of fair play, and take responsibility for their future mistakes in case the IBU cannot go back on their own jury decisions.”