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A suitable Pistol

Remembering that there is a world of difference between a quality target pistol designed for ISSF competition, and a basic ‘plinker’, the following is a quick guide:

* for Air Pistol

the european manufacturers dominate. A quality target air pistol will deliver excellent accuracy!
o compressed air/precharged pneumatic (CA/PCP) or CO2?
While there are a number of excellent hand-cranked Air Pistols available on the second-hand market (e.g. Air Match, FWB 65), most of the new Air Pistols available are CA/PCP.

+ Compressed air – typically, these operate with compressed air stored in a receiver built into the pistol at pressures around 180 bar. The compressed air can be from bulk storage (e.g. scuba tanks), or hand pumps (good exercise, and has the advantage that you are not dependent on supplies of compressed air).
+ CO2 – with the current fashion for CA Air Pistols, most target manufacturers now concentrate on those pistols rather than CO2 pistols.
o electronic or mechanical trigger mechanism?
+ electronic trigger
+ mechanical trigger

the beginning pistol shooters would be well advised to start with a mechanical trigger

More details on Air Pistol specifications can be found at 10m Air Pistol 3.3 – specifications

* for the ISSF 25m rimfire events

o semi-automatic or revolver?
+ .22 semi-automatics – at international competitions the european manufacturers dominate the market for these pistols. Their pistols come with excellent sights, adjustable triggers. Price is not always a guide to reliability!

+ .22 revolvers – while .22 revolvers are allowed within the ISSF rules for the rimfire events, the modern semi-automatic rimfire target pistols reign supreme in these events. You are extremely unlikely to see a rimfire revolver at an international ISSF competition.

* for the ISSF 25m centerfire event

o in reality, there are only two calibres suitable for this event;
+ .32 S&W Long (or the russian 7.62 variants), and
+ .38 Special (or .357 Magnum loaded to the same specifications)
in practice, fashion leads the way and the .38 calibre is rarely seen at international competitions – this despite the fact that the .38 calibre is less liable to display ‘flyers’.
o semi-automatic or revolver?
+ semi-automatic pistols are the fashion. Their real advantage for ISSF events is that shooters do not have to alter their stance and shoulder position to re-cock for the next shot (no serious shooter would use double-action for this event).
+ revolvers are capable of accuracy equal to that of the semi-automatic pistols. One often overlooked advantage of a revolver is that ‘malfunctions’ are very rare.

The beginning shooter interested in the ISSF Center Fire event would be well advised to purchase a revolver rather than a semi-automatic.

* for the ISSF 50m event

The european single-shot ‘Free’ pistols reign supreme.

Ammunition

* for Air Pistol

o flat-nosed, waisted lead pellets
o 4.5 mm (.177″) target pellets come in two weights. Either will be suitable.

o target quality pellets will be marked for diameter, usually in the range of 4.48 to 4.52 mm. For the beginning shooter this will usually make little difference.

* for the ISSF 25m rimfire events

o quality, standard velocity .22 Long Rifle

o for the ISSF Rapid Fire Pistol event there are minimum velocity requirements.

* for the ISSF 25m centerfire event

depending on calibre of the pistol

o .32 S&W Long (or in the russion 7.62 variants), using 98 grain wadcutter projectiles, or

o .38 using 148 grain wadcutter projectiles

* for the ISSF 50m event

o quality, standard velocity .22 Long Rifle

Hearing Protection

Unfortunately, there are still people who will tell you that only wimps need hearing protection – there are also a large number of older shooters with various degrees of hearing loss, sometimes severe hearing loss!

* under ISSF 8.2.8, All shooters and other persons in the immediate vicinity of the firing line are urged to wear ear plugs, ear muffs, or similar ear protection – consider adequate hearing protection ESSENTIAL!.

* Ear protectors incorporating any type of receiving devices are not permitted for shooters – this does NOT prohibit electronic hearing protection – it does prohibit receiving devices to stop coaches from communicating with a shooter (except as per 8.9.5.2).

Eye Protection

Eye protection should be worn, even for those events where single shot pistols are used. Semi-auto firearms will eject the fired cases as a considerable speed and can easily injure an eye. ISSF rules limit the size of blinders and occluders, but eye safety should be of utmost interest to every shooter.

A mentor

The best ‘investment’ a beginning shooter can make is a mentor to:

* guide you through the etiquettes and protocols of club and competition shooting.
* advise you on pistol and ammunition selection

* buddy-system you through the early stages

A coach

The reality is that what you ‘do’, and what you ‘think you do’ are two very different things. Reading all the books and articles on pistol shooting will improve your knowledge, but will not enable you to objectively apply this knowledge.

Nothing (absolutely NOTHING) will improve your shooting ability like following the advice of a qualified coach!

People’s Republic of China gains another Gold thanks to GUO Wenjun, a 24-year old athlete who climbed up the scoreboard to finish in first with a new, exciting, Final Olympic Record. Another record was set during the qualifications by the Russian World Champion Natalia PADERINA, who finished in second place after firing a frustrating 8.5 on her second competitions shot. Bronze to the Georgian champion SALUKVADZE “But I am too sad to celebrate” she commented.

The 10m Air Pistol Women Event saw the victory of the home champion, the 24-year old GUO Wenjun of China, who finished on the first step of the podium winning a precious Gold for China with a total score of 492.3 points (390 + 102.3). With this golden final score, the young shooter set a new Final Olympic Record, shattering the previous 490.1 held by Olga KLOCHNEVA, who had established it shooting for URS at the 1996 Games of Atlanta. GUO, starting her match in second place one point behind the current World Champion Natalia PADERINA of the Russian Federation, moved on the lead when her opponents fired a fatal 8.5 on her second competition shot. From there on, GUO kept the lead, running alone to the Gold supported by the numerous local spectators. “I couldn’t ask for any better – say GUO after the round – I won the this Gold after years of hard work, and I am happy. I did not change anything from the qualifications. – she continued – I just felt comfortable during the final round, and I tried to give my best” The Chinese shooter kept up with the expectations: she had been enlisted between the favourites after she had won two consecutive ISSF World Cup Stages in Munich and Milan, earlier this season.
Natalia PADERINA, 32, after loosing her front position, landed in second place winning the Silver medal with a score of 489.1 points (391 + 98.1). She had entered the final round with an impressive score of 391 points, a new Olympic Record, one point more then what shot by the Chinese athlete TAO Luna at the 2000 Games of Sydney. The excellent qualification result did not save her from the remount of GUO, and the Russian shooter could not recover after that 8.5 “I was a little bit disappointed. I fail to concentrate at the beginning of the match” commented PADERINA at the press conference “Anyway, this medal is priceless for me, I cannot describe my feelings right now” continued the Russian athlete, who had finished in fifth place at the last Games of Athens “GUO is very competitive – added PADERINA – maybe playing on her home soil was an advantage… I congratulate her!”
The battle for Bronze was won by the Georgian athlete Nino SALUKVADZE (39), the 1988 Olympic Silver medallist of Seoul. She won her duel against Jasna Sekaric of Serbia, finishing on the podium with a score of 487.4 points “It is a sad day for my country” only said SALUKVADZE “I am happy, but it is difficult to celebrate while my country is on war” . She preceded the five times Olympic medallist Jasna SEKARIC of Serbia, who closed her round in sixth place after a disappointing final of 96.9 points.

Asia dominated the 10m Air Pistol Men Final. China, Korea and the People’s Republic of Korea shared the second podium of these Games: the final round saw the duel for Silver between the two shooters from the Korean peninsula, and the outstanding victory of the home champion PANG Wei, winner of the home spectators applauses.

Asia monopolized today’s 10m Air Pistol Men Event, the second shooting competition of the first day of this XXIX Olympiad of Beijing 2008. If the first podium of the Games (10m Air Rifle Women competition) had been reserved by Europe, the Air Pistol Men event turned out to be an exclusive heritage of the Asian shooters that conquered the three medals. The home athlete, the 2006 ISSF World Champion PANG Wei, 22, did not hide his intentions when he entered the final round in first place, starting the final match with two points of advantage on the followers and wearing the “medals suite” of the Chinese team “I did not mean to be arrogant! – claimed PANG during the press conference – the final hall is very cold because of the air conditioners, so I thought to wear the “medal suite” to be more comfortable while shooting…”
The Chinese champion did not suffer the pressure of the home court, has had happened two hours before to his team-mate DU Li in the Rifle Women match, and shot Gold without hesitations with a total score of 688.2 points (586+102.2) “Well, I did not know the results of the 10m Air Rifle competition – PANG admitted – we were kept away from journalists and media, to maintain the right focus before the pistol match.” But PANG could not avoid meeting the media crowding the final hall to follow his competition “I was not scared by cameras and lights. We are preparing these Games since four years, and I am used to compete on international stages. Sure, the Games are not the same, you feel it is different, and this explains those few mistakes I made during the final round” In spite of some minor disappointments, such as a first shot of 9.3 points, PANG had no difficulties to close on the highest step of the podium, to gain the first Olympic medal of Beijing 2008 in shooting for his country. The new Olympic Champion follows the footsteps of his coach, the 2004 Champion WANG Yifu who has been training him during the last years “My coach has an important role in this victory. But I was alone with my pistol on the final range, today. I will try to give my best in the following years, and I whish I could be so successful as the champions that preceded me.”
The Asian podium was completed by JIN Jong Oh from Korea, Silver medallist with 684.5 points (584+100.5), and KIM Jong Su from the People’s Republic of Korea, Bronze medallist with 683.0 points (584+99.0). The two athletes, who had started tied with the same qualification points, fought head to head right to the end, finishing on the podium side by side. They had been competing also in the Olympic final of Athens 2004, where they had finished in fifth and eighth place respectively.
The final round was concluded by a shoot-off for the fourth place between two American shooter, the well known World Cup multi-medallist Jason Turner, and the surprising Brian Beaman, tied with the score of 682.0 points . Beaman, who lost the shoot-off 10.3 to 10.5, had never competed in a major final round before “This is the best place to start doing finals, the Games! It has been an incredible day, a little bit stressing maybe, but I could not ask any better!”

The first Gold medal of these Games went to Czech Republic, won by the 24-year old Katerina EMMONS in the 10m Air Rifle Women Event. She defeated the home champion and title defender DU Li, who wasted her chances of victory during the final and finished in fifth place. Silver went to Lioubov GALKINA of the Russian Federation, Bronze to the surprising Snjezana PEJCIC of Croatia.

The first Gold medal of the XXIX Olympiad was assigned by the shooting sport, at the 10m Air Rifle Women Final, and was won by the Czech shooter Katerina EMMONS, the 2004 Olympic Bronze medallist in this event. Which is the better way enter the very first Olympic final? Sure, with a new Olympic Record! This could have thought Katerina EMMONS, who came out of the qualification rounds with an outstanding score of 400 points, the perfection, a new Olympic record. The Czech shooter entered the final match in first, with one point of advantage on the followers, and that was enough to keep her on the lead right to the end “I had shot 400 points at least five times, always out of official competitions. I was so happy to shot this score today, during the Games!”
The Final Hall of the Olympic Shooting Venue hosted the IOC President Dr. Jacques Rogge and the ISSF President Mr. Olegario Vazquez Raña that followed the match and awarded the medallists. The Venue turned out to be overcrowded by media: the first medal of the Games always gains the maximum coverage, so that more then 200 journalists, and a number of photographers and cameramen followed the match. But Katerina did not seem impressed about it, and shot keeping on the lead right to the end, closing the round with a new Final World Record of 503.5 points “I did not understood I had scored a new final record. Matthew told me right before the awarding!” Matthew, the Olympic Rifle Gold medallist of Athens 2004 Matthew EMMONS, Katerina’s husband, followed the final round from the honour tribune, and was the first to congratulate her at the end of the match. “Matthew is my best team-mate. We work as a team, the best team in the World!” The question came natural: Katerina, are you going to shoot for the USA in the next future? “I could. I don’t know if I will keep shooting for Czech Republic. Lets say that I would like to leave both the doors opened. What is sure is that I will take a break next year – added Emmons – I think I may take one year off from shooting. We want to have a family, and I really need rest after these four, intense, years”. Katerina defeated her most titled opponents, during this golden final. World’s number one DU Li of China, the Olympic title defender, finished out of the podium in fifth place, behind the American shooter Jamie BEYERLE and with a final score of 499.6 points. The result came unexpected. The home athlete was said to be one of the most favourite, and her defiance could be explained only by the pressure mounting on the home team during these days “I really feel bad for DU Li – said Katerina EMMONS at the press conference – She can absolutely shoot better then this. The Chinese media probably put to much pressure on her. It has been hard for me, with no journalists on the shoulders, I can imagine that it has been even harder for her.”
The results of the 10m Air Rifle competition confirmed the Russian shooter Lioubov GALKINA as Silver medallist. The 35-year old athlete, second with 502.1 points, had won Silver also at the last Games of Athens, and she did not hide her emotions while standing on the podium “This is a great day! At the beginning of the round I thought I could maybe finish in third: this Silver was unexpected.” Four years ago, after winning Silver in the Air Rifle Event, Galkina became the 2004 Olympic Champion in the 50m Rifle Three Positions competition, and now expectations for the incoming competition are growing “We will see… I am not used to this weather. Sure, with air-condition, in the 10m all, I did not suffer the humidity. But conditions are going to be different on the 50m hall, which is open. – continued Galkina – It is not easy to stand there for hours with those heavy shooting suits. But the 50m Rifle Three Position Event is my favourite, so… we will see!”
Next to the defiance of the super-favourite home athlete DU Li, a surprise came from Snjezana PEJCIC, 26, from Croatia, the Bronze medal winner. She had never stood on an international podium as senior shooter before, but here in Beijing she showed to have the right skills to challenge the experts. She entered the round in third place, and never gave up, shooting in the tenth ring with precision “I started with the same qualification score of DU Li – she said after the match – and I thought I could never make it to the podium. Come on, she is so strong! But then I realized she was missing and missing, while I was trying to give my best. I won the Bronze, while she is out of the podium – Snjezana continued – but I can understand her: the pressure on the Chinese team is incredible, DU has been followed by journalists and photographers since the first shots of the morning. That’s too much!”
The first medals of this XXIX Olympiad, the first medals of the shooting sports, where awarded by the IOC President, Dr. Jacques Rogge, who honoured the shooting family by following the final round near by the ISSF President Dr. Olegario Vazquez Raña. Dr. Rogge implicitly confirmed what he said last August, at the ISSF 100 years anniversary in Munich: “The shooting sports open the Games: this is becoming a tradition!”

The XXIX Olympiad of Beijing 2008 has been declared open by the Chinese President Hu Jintao today. The Olympic Torch, concluding its four-months long journey, entered the Bird’s Nest stadium carried by the former Chinese pistol shooter Xu Haifeng, winner of the first Olympic Gold ever of China in 1984, and passed to the gymnast Li Ning who flamed the gigantic Olympic cauldron.

The world journey of the Olympic Torch is over: the flame came back to Beijing after a four-months long journey, 129 days and 137.000 kilometers. The flame entered the so-called Bird’s Nest stadium, where the Olympic Games of Beijing 2008 were officially open. The countdown is over: the most important sport festival, the event that the world was waiting since four years, has been declared opened by the Chinese president Mr. Hu Jintao, invited on the main stage of the opening ceremony by the IOC President Dr. Jacques Rogge.
“For a long time, China has dreamed of opening its doors and inviting the world’s athletes to Beijing for the Olympic Games. – Said the IOC President – Tonight that dream comes true. Congratulations, Beijing! You have chosen as the theme of these Games One World, One Dream. That is what we are tonight!”
The outstanding Opening Ceremony, held at the Bird Nest, amused the entire world. Over 90000 spectators followed the ceremony from the tribunes, while 20000 performers displayed the history of China through the centuries. The spectacle rose in intensity when thousands of athletes coming from 204 nations marched into the stadium, in a colorful parade. From the USA to San Marino, form Russia to the Netherlands Antilles, all the delegations received the same worm welcome of the Bird Nest, while the sky was lightened by 29.000 spectacular fireworks. The Stadium burst into applauses for the Chinese team, the last to march into the venue, guided by the flag bearer, the basketball player Yao Ming.
“As one dream, may these Olympic Games bring you joy, hope and pride. Athletes, the Games were created for you by our founder, Pierre de Coubertin. These Games belong to you. Let them be the athletes’ Games.” said Dr. Jacques Rogge, saluting the Olympians.
The Olympic flame’s four-month-long journey culminated with a spectacular end at the Opening Ceremony. The Olympic Torch entered into the Bird’s Nest carried by the Chinese pistol shooter Xu Haifeng, winner of the first Olympic Gold medal ever for China at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. The Torch passed then to some of the most representative Chinese athletes. The Torch closed then its journey with the lighting of the cauldron just after midnight as former gymnast Li Ning, lifted into the air with a spectacular effect after he received the Olympic flame, “ran” along the 500-meter-long brim of the Bird’s Nest to reach the gigantic cauldron, which he ignited using the flame from his torch.
The IOC President Jacques Rogge, concluding the ceremony, reminded to the athlete and to the World the Olympic values, saluting the XXIX Olympiad. “Please compete in the spirit of Olympic values: excellence, friendship and respect. Dear athletes, remember that you are role models for the Youth of the World. Reject doping and cheating. Make us proud of your achievements and your conduct.”

The competitions will start tomorrow at the Olympic Shooting Hall, where the first final of these Games, the 10m Air Rifle Women match, will be held. The first medals of the Beijing 2008 Games will be awarded by the IOC President Dr. Jacques Rogge and by the ISSF President Mr. Olegario Vazquez Raña.