The race to be Australia’s only biathlete at Vancouver next month is almost at its end.

Two Australian athletes are vying for the one spot to represent Australia, in the sport which combines the arduous demands of cross-country skiing, with precision target shooting.

Mark Raymond, 30, and Alex Almoukov, 19, are in vying to represent the country for the 10 km Sprint and the 20 km Individual events.

Both athletes are racing at Oberhof, Germany, this Saturday 9 January, at 12.45pm German time, 10 hours behind Australian EST.

Raymond and Almoukov have had a Christmas break from racing during December, and are both fired up for competition.

The race rankings are normally released the day before each event. The International Biathlon Union has live coverage via its website

Australian Biathlon Association