Air Rifle (men's and women's events)

Smallbore Rifle (men's and        women's events)

Running Target (men's event)

Clothing, Equipment, Accessories: All rifle clothing and accessories are governed by strict rules for thickness and stiffness. Shooters start with sweatshirts and tights, then put on jackets and pants made of leather or canvas. This ensemble improves physical stability and helps muffle the pulse during these lengthy contests. Flat-soled leather boots aid the rifle shooter’s stability from the standing and kneeling positions. Leather gloves with rubber-padded palms helps minimize the discomfort of the heavy rifle and leather shoulder sling. Athletes use a leather sling (extending from the triceps to the front of the rifle stock) and a floor mat for support when shooting from the prone or kneeling positions. In the standing portion of the men’s three- position match, athletes may use palm rests for extra comfort and gun elevation. Between shots, competitors rest their rifles on a shooting stand and use spotting scopes to view their targets. Shooting glasses, ear and eye protection are other important accessories. 
     In Running Target, competitors wear leather or canvas jackets that are tighter than those worn by other rifle shooters. The jackets inhibit upper body movement, forcing more lower body movement in tracking targets. Flat-soled shooting boots are commonly worn for balance and stability. 
 
 
Pistol Events 

           Air Pistol (men's and women's events) 
 
       In Air pistol shooting (cal. .177) competitors stand at a firing line 10 metres from the target. The task is to hold the pistol as steadily as possible, aiming at the centre of the target, while smoothly squeezing a trigger which takes 500g of pressure to release. This is a very difficult task, and to repeat it perfectly for 60 shots demands the most rigid mental discipline. A world class shooter makes scores of around 590 (men) or 390 (women), which means only ten shots fail to hit the bullseye. 
 
 
           Free Pistol (men's event) 
 
     Free pistol is the big brother of the air pistol event, using smallbore (.22 cal.) single-shot pistols at 50 metres distance from the target. The addition of wind and lighting changes, plus the added distance, alter the nature of the challenge considerably although often one athlete will be proficient at both events. The World Record is 581/600, but winning scores in competition rarely reach that level and 570 is normally assured of first position. 
 
 
           Rapid Fire Pistol (men's event) 
 
     Rapid fire pistol, like running target and like the clay target events, is one of the group of events where the shooter has to fire on command or as soon as the target appears. Five shots must be fired from a .22 cal. pistol at each of five separate targets, at timings which decrease from 8 down to 4 seconds. This event has been totally dominated in recent times by two time Olympic champion Ralf Schumann from Germany, who is capable of recording almost perfect scores even in the 4 second series and has several times come close to shooting 600 out of 600. 
 
 
           Sport Pistol (women's event) 
 
     Sport pistol combines both precision and timed fire in two stages of equal proportions, using .22 cal. pistols over a distance of 25 metres. Historically it has been Australia's most successful rifle or pistol event in international competition, and the Australian record score of 584 points would place in the top 8 at any World level event. 
 
 
         Centre Fire Pistol (men's event) 
 
     The Centre Fire pistol event is not shot in the Olympics but is one of the UIT-sanctioned events.  It is very similar to women's Sport pistol in that shooter undergo a precision stage and a "dueling" stage. Like Sport Pistol this event is shot at a distance of 25 meters.  The only difference is that a larger caliber of pistol(usually .32 cal) is used in this event. 
 
 
        Standard Pistol (men's event) 
 
      The Standard Pistol event is shot at 25 meters with .22 cal pistols.  It consists of 3 20-shot stages: precision, timed and rapid.  Like Center Fire this event is not shot in the Olympics but is shot in many UIT-style competitions. 
 
 
Clothing, Equipment, Accessories: Pistol shooters compete without the benefit of special clothing, gloves or boots. Most athletes wear flat-soled shoes for increased stability, but footwear must not extend above the shooter’s ankle. Competitors frequently wear blinders over their "non-shooting" eye to prevent squinting. Spotting scopes allow athletes to view their targets in 25- and 50-meter competition. In all events, special caps designed to limit the athlete’s field of vision are common; ear and eye protection are a given. 
 
 
Shotgun Events 
 

Trap (men's and women's events)

 
     In trap shooting the shooter stands with gun mounted and calls for a target. Instantaneously a target is thrown from one of three traps concealed in a bunker 15 metres in front, at a speed of about 100km/h. Depending on which trap the target came from, it could be flying high or low, and to the left, the right or the centre. The shooter has no way of knowing, and just has to react as fast as possible to shoot the target and break it before it gets too far away (under 1 second). The shooter can fire both barrels of the gun at the target if the first shot is not successful. There are five different shooting stations and a round consists of five targets from each station. The Men's competition consists of three rounds on the first day and a further two, plus a final for the top 6, on the second day. Women shoot 75 target plus a Final for the top 6 in a single day. Olympic Champion Michael Diamond hit 149 targets out of 150 when he won the Olympic Gold Medal in 1996 - a new Olympic record. 
 
 

Double Trap   (men's and  women's events)

 
In double trap the shooter stands with gun mounted and calls for a pair of targets. There are three rounds in a double trap competition, plus a final for the top six shooters. For each of the three rounds the shooters have different patterns of targets, the pairs being either widely spaced or close together. The shooter has to shoot both targets, one with each barrel. There are five shooting stations just as for trap. Double trap lasts for just one day and consists of 160 targets for women (including final) and 200 for men. 
 

Skeet (men's and women's events)

 
     Skeet targets fly across, rather than away from, the shooter, and the shooter must have the gun held down in the ready position before the target appears. The gun has to be mounted, and the shooter has to swing to intercept the flight of the target and shoot it. From some of the eight shooting stations, 'double' targets are thrown which mean the shooter has to shoot two targets flying in opposite directions. Skeet shooting is relatively slow and the shooter has a long time to think about the next shot, a mental challenge similar to that of a golfer, for example. The structure of skeet competitions is the same as for trap - 25 targets in a round, 150 targets (including final) in a competition over two days for men; 100 in 1 day for women. 
 
Clothing, Equipment, Accessories: Shotgun shooters typically wear vests with ammunition pouches and extra padding where the gun is shouldered. Most competitors have vests for cold and warm weather.  Glasses are used for safety and to enhance target-tracking ability. Competitors have various colored lenses for different weather conditions. For example, a bronze lens is appropriate for sunny weather, while a yellow or light orange lens would be best for overcast skies. Some competitors affix blinders to the sides of their shooting glasses to keep wind out of their eyes and prevent distraction from side motion.