How to Cook for Elite Athletes

A Guide for Organising Committees and Hotels

Introduction

This Guideline was created together with Sports Nutritionist Judith Haudum to provide IBU Organising Committees and Hotels with a toolkit on how to offer athletes with high quality meal options and what ingredients are necessary to create those.

Whenever athletes gather for competition, the margin between victory and defeat is small. Diet affects performance, and the food that is chosen in training and competition will affect how well athletes train and compete. Especially when athletes follow special diets like vegetarian (without meat) or vegan diets (no animal products at all), there are often limited nutritious meal options available.

Athletes choose to follow a vegan or vegetarian diet for various reasons, such as health benefits or lower impact on the environment. The IBU encourages caterers and hotels to focus on foods with low impact on the environment (e.g. regional, local foods, vegetables in season, meat products from sources/partners with minimal impact on the environment).

It is recommended to use minimal fat in the preparation of the meals served and avoid pre-produced instant products. Some athletes experience complications and symptoms when consuming additives and other agents in ready-to-cook products. If possible, serve the meals in buffet style, as this allows athletes to choose the right portions and products preferred.

How to Read the Following Table

The table lists menu components that should be served at every lunch and dinner, i.e., macronutrients (carbohydrates, proteins, fats) and vegetables/salads, fruit (for dessert).

The columns list a variety for:

Omnivores (people who eat all animal products, including meat)
Vegetarians (no meat but other animal products OK)
Vegans (no animal products: no meat, no egg, no dairy products, no milk)
In the carbohydrate section, gluten-free options are marked with an asterisk (*)

Different Diets

Carbohydrates

Applies for all groups

Omnivores	Vegetarian	Vegan
Rice * Oats ** Bulgur Bread Potatoes * Sweet potatoes * Pasta / gluten free pasta * * gluten-free ** need to check if gluten-free	Quinoa * Polenta * Millet * Rye Couscous Buckwheat * Maize *	Amaranth * Lentils * Chickpeas * Beans * Soybeans *

Omnivores

Vegetarian

Vegan

Rice *
Oats **
Bulgur
Bread
Potatoes *
Sweet potatoes *
Pasta / gluten free pasta *

* gluten-free

** need to check if gluten-free

Quinoa *
Polenta *
Millet *
Rye
Couscous
Buckwheat *
Maize *

Amaranth *
Lentils *
Chickpeas *
Beans *
Soybeans *

Protein

Omnivores	Vegetarian	Vegan
Meat Fish Eggs Dairy (hard & soft cheeses, yogurt) Deli meat Tofu and soy products (e.g. edamame) Legumes (peas, lentils, chickpeas, beans) Grains with high protein content (quinoa, rye, millet, amaranth, buckwheat, bulgur, sorghum, bulgur, kamut, teff, farro) Seitan Nuts Seeds	Fish Eggs Dairy (hard & soft cheeses, yogurt) Tofu and soy products (e.g. edamame) Legumes (peas, lentils, chickpeas, beans) Grains with high protein content (quinoa, rye, millet, amaranth, buckwheat, bulgur, sorghum, bulgur, kamut, teff, farro) Seitan Nuts and nut butters Seeds	Tofu and soy products (e.g. edamame) Legumes (peas, lentils, chickpeas, beans) Grains with high protein content (quinoa, rye, millet, amaranth, bulgur, sorghum, buckwheat, bulgur, kamut, teff, farro) Seitan Nuts and nut butters Seeds

Vegetables

Applies for all groups

Omnivores	Vegetarian	Vegan
Broccoli Carrots Red beets Zucchini Eggplant Squash	Tomatoes Corn Parsnips Green beans Fennel Spinach, arugula, chard	Red, green, yellow peppers Mushroom Red and green cabbage Leek Celery Garlic, onions

Fats and Toppings

Omnivores	Vegetarian	Vegan
Fats Olive oil Canola oil Walnut oil Flaxseed oil	Fats Nuts, seeds (unsalted) Nut butter Butter Toppings Seeds (flaxseed, pumpkin seeds, sesame, sunflower seeds) Shredded cheese (e.g. parmesan, feta) Fresh herbs Dried fruits (e.g. raisins, cranberries, apricots)	Fats Olive oil Canola oil Walnut oil Flaxseed oil Toppings Nuts, seeds (unsalted) Nut butter Nuts (walnuts, cashews, almonds) Seeds (flaxseed, pumpkin seeds, sesame, sunflower seeds) Fresh herbs Dried fruits (e.g. raisins, cranberries, apricots)

Omnivores

Vegetarian

Vegan

Fats

Olive oil
Canola oil
Walnut oil
Flaxseed oil

Fats

Nuts, seeds (unsalted)
Nut butter
Butter

Toppings

Seeds (flaxseed, pumpkin seeds, sesame, sunflower seeds)
Shredded cheese (e.g. parmesan, feta)
Fresh herbs
Dried fruits (e.g. raisins, cranberries, apricots)

Fats

Olive oil
Canola oil
Walnut oil
Flaxseed oil

Toppings

Nuts, seeds (unsalted)
Nut butter
Nuts (walnuts, cashews, almonds)
Seeds (flaxseed, pumpkin seeds, sesame, sunflower seeds)
Fresh herbs
Dried fruits (e.g. raisins, cranberries, apricots)

Fruits

Applies for all groups

Omnivores	Vegetarian	Vegan
Apple Pear Bananas Oranges	Clementines Red and green grapes Kiwi fruit Sliced fruits	Homemade fruit salad (unsweetened) Dried fruit mixes (unsweetened)

Example Meals (Lunch/Dinner)

Omnivores	Vegetarian	Vegan
Homemade carrot-ginger soup Mild beef curry with potatoes, plain rice, grilled vegetables Apple crumble	Homemade carrot-ginger soup Risotto with tuna; Spinach, roasted beets, red bell peppers Fruit muffin	Homemade carrot-ginger soup Risotto with tofu; Spinach, roasted red beets, red bell peppers Vegan nut cake
Minestrone soup Salmon steak with potatoes, couscous, grilled zucchini, yellow bell peppers, squash Fruit cake Homemade broccoli soup Polenta with veal, mixed grilled vegetables Pudding	Minestrone soup Salmon steak with potatoes, couscous, grilled zucchini, yellow bell peppers, squash Fruit cake Homemade broccoli soup Polenta pizza with feta, tomato, arugula topping Pudding	Minestrone soup Lentils burger, potatoes, grilled zucchini, yellow bell peppers, squash Vegan fruit cake Homemade broccoli soup Polenta with warm lentils/beans, mixed grilled vegetables Pudding (with non-dairy milk alternative)
Homemade tomato soup Grilled chicken with sweet potato, lentils, mixed cooked vegetables Rice pudding	Homemade tomato soup Spinach omelette with sweet potato, lentils, mixed cooked vegetables Rice pudding	Homemade tomato soup Bean burger with oven baked sweet potato, mixed cooked vegetables Rice pudding (with non-dairy milk alternative)
Homemade noodle soup Grilled fish, tagliatelle, amaranth, roasted beets, carrots, zucchini Fruit cake	Homemade noodle soup Spaghetti with ricotta, arugula Fruit cake	Homemade noodle soup Spaghetti with tomatoes, chickpeas Vegan fruit cake, soy yogurt
Broccoli soup Grilled fish with quinoa, potatoes, spinach, carrots, corn Chocolate cake (no coating)	Broccoli soup Grilled fish with quinoa, potatoes, spinach, carrots, corn Chocolate cake (no coating)	Broccoli soup Risotto with beans, zucchini Vegan chocolate cake (no coating)

About IBU

The International Biathlon Union (IBU) is recognised by the International Olympic Committee as the international governing body for the Olympic sport of biathlon. Headquartered in Anif near Salzburg, the IBU is a non-profit organisation registered in Austria that regulates the sport and oversees competition organisation world-wide. In cooperation with its 60 member national federations, the IBU uses competitions, events, programmes and other activities to promote and develop participation in Biathlon throughout the world.

Contact Information:

Riikka Rakic, Head of Sustainability, riikka.rakic@ibu.at
Website: www.biathlonworld.com
Address: Sonystrasse 20, 5081 Anif b. Salzburg, Austria
Publication Date: August 2023

Models: Elite Athlete Cooking, Athlete Cooking, Cooking

File Info : application/pdf, 10 Pages, 145.99KB

IBU How to cook for elite Athletes Guide

References

International Biathlon Union

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