I saw this today on Fasterskier. Very interesting model and rather Moneyball:
US Biathlon Debuts Tryout Camp to Target Development
http://fasterskier.com/article/us-biathlon-debuts-...
Biathlon Canada tried this years ago with really young junior skiers and I think the only one that panned out was JP Le Guellec. By panning out I mean three Olympics and the first Canadian to win a World Cup.
Has this ever been tried for Orienteering and did it have any success?