Military Ski Patrol, Men

At the 1936 Winter Olympics, in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, a military patrol competition was held. The International Olympic Committee refused admission of this sport into the Olympic Program, but the expressed desires of Adolf Hitler forced the IOC to make this program a demonstration sport. Military patrol is considered the precursor to biathlon. The success of the Italian team was honored by Benito Mussolini with 30,000 lira per participant, because it was the first time that the Italians placed first in a Nordic skiing event at the Olympics. The competition was very close with Italy winning by only 14 seconds over second-placed Finland. Italy was led by Enrico Silvestri, who had also competed in the 1928 military ski patrol demonstration.