‘It Was Only Afterwards That I Realised I’d Entered The Country With Rifles, Ammo And Forged Papers’

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By Stephen Smyth

I did a biathlon season a few years ago and was bouncing all around Europe from competition to competition.

It takes a lot of planning as you're carrying weapons and ammunition with you – they’re only baby ones, but lots of paperwork is required.

Anyway, on my first trip north to Norway, heading for Sweden I got a call from the embassy in Stockholm to say that our diplomatic clearance hadn't come through. We were buggered – we couldn't enter the country carrying our biathlon rifles and ammo without it.

With no idea how long it would take to come through, I got out the previous year's papers, scanned them, changed the year and printed out a fresh copy at an internet cafe in Copenhagen.

Needless to say, kids, don't try this; you could end up in jail!

We then got to the Swedish border at about 3am. And sod’s law? We got stopped!

Luckily a combination of the night shift being on and friendly smiles from inside our van meant that we were waved through.

It was only afterwards that I realised I had just entered the country with rifles, ammo and forged papers! Needless to say, kids, don't try this; you could end up in jail!

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