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“Hit and Miss” scoring system and the new final format are “more exciting”, the ISSF Grand Prix participants said. All the athletes participating in this test match in Munich had a chance to try the new Rapid Fire final round format.

The ISSF 25 Rapid Fire Pistol Grand Prix, which was organized by the International Shooting Sport Federation to present the new competition format of Rapid Fire event, saw the participation of athletes coming from more than 15 countries. The schedule of the Gran Prix gave a chance to all the participants to experience at least one final-round-style match.

With the new competition format, developed in favor of spectators and TV, the six finalists are shooting together, one after the other, sharing three shooting bays of five targets. The scoring system is now based on a “hit & miss” system (similar to biathlon), and points are no longer displayed in the final.

The regular Rapid Fire targets used in the past are indeed set to display a “hit” when a 9.7 points or better shot is scored, and a “miss” when the finalist scores less than that value. The new final round consists in eight series. After the first four series, the finalist with the lowest score leaves the match, and so on right to the height series, when the last two shooters duel for the Gold medal.

Radoslaw Podgorski, 34, won the Grand Prix final, finishing on the highest step of the podium after a breathtaking final. The Polish shooter entered the medal match with a qualification score of 579 points (points are indeed still used in the qualifications).  Then, following the new rules, his score was set to zero at the beginning of the final round.

Series after series, following the new “hit or miss” scoring system, Podgorski advanced right to the last duel against Spain’s 23-year old Santiago Montis. The two athletes, fighting for gold, ended up with a tied score of 29 hits, and had to shoot-off for Gold. Then, it was the experienced Polish shooter who secured the brightest medal and the 50g Gold Bar awarded by ISSF outdoing his opponents 3 to 2 hits. Following them, the Bronze medal went to the home shooter Marco Spangenberg of Germany, who finished on the podium with a total score of 23 hits.

“It has been a great match, I like the new format a lot!” The Polish winner said. “There’s not a big difference in the way you train for this new competition format. And the facilities are almost the same – he continued – so it is not too difficult to adapt to it. But at the same time is more exciting. It’s fun to shoot and to watch.”

The second final of the day, the “Best Of” match where the best shooters of yesterday’s final round tests met, was won by France’s Fabrice Daumal, 24. The young shooter, winner of the 2010 ISSF World Cup in Belgrade, secured the ISSF Gold Bar with a total score of 29 hits, leaving Podgorski in second with 26 hits. Following them, the Bronze medal went to Czech Republic’s Martin Podhrasky, third with 24 hits.

Daumal, one of today’s youngest competitors, shared some thoughts with Podgorski. “This new format is by far more exciting than the old one;” he stated right after the last competition series “I believe this is a good step forward in favour of the spectators”

“The match is much faster and more interesting – Daumal added – but at the same time it is not difficult to train for this event. This system will be used during this year’s World Cup Series and at the Olympic, so I am training everyday, and I will participate in all 2011 ISSF World Cup Stages”

The new rules will be adopted during the 2011 ISSF World Cup Series (qualifying match for the 2012 Olympic Games). The first World Cup Stage featuring a 25m Rapid Fire Pistol final will be held in Sydney (AUS) starting from the 21^st of March.

Golden awards and great training oppurtunities at the ISSF Rapid Fire Pistol Grand Prix, taking place in Munich from the 7th to the 11th of February.

The ISSF launched the Rapid Fire Pistol Grand Prix in Munich, a special appointment that will give to all Rapid Fire Pistol shooters a special opportunity to train and compete with the new ISSF Rapid Fire Pistol Final Rules that went into effect the 1st of January, and that will be used throughout the 2011 ISSF World Cup Series.

The ISSF Rapid Fire Pistol Grand Prix will be organized by the German Shooting Sport Federation in cooperation with the Bavarian Shooting Federation from the 7th until the 11th of February 2011.

 The match will take place in the Finals Hall of the 1972 Olympic Shooting Range in Garching-Hochbruck, in the outskirts of Munich, Germany, the same location of the last ISSF World Championship.

All the shooters will shoot a final

The schedule and the formula of the event was developed in order to give to all participants the chance to take part in a final round, in order to get accustomed to the new rules.

Golden awards

Special prices will be awarded to the medalists of the Grand Prix. A 50-gram gold bar will be awarded to the winners, while the second and the third finalists will receive a once bar and a 20-gram gold bar, respectively.

Entry, Rules, Gun Permissions, Hotels…

For more information, download the “General Information” document at: http://www.issf-sports.org/media/calendar/2011/1253/infopdf/GP_RFP_GER_2011_Complete_Info.pdf

The French shooter beat the 2008 Olympic Bronze medallist Reitz, and set ambitious goals for his next future: “I want to secure a quota in Munich and then win the Games!”

“This is my first medal ever, I can’t believe that I won a world cup gold!” Said the 23-year old French shooter Fabrice Dumal, who won today’s 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men final during the closing day of the 2010 ISSF Word Cup in Rifle and Pistol events in Belgrade (SRB).

Dumal did not believe his eyes, when he first looked at the scoreboard monitor, after the last competition series. Ended up in first, he finished on the highest step of the podium. Gold medallist with a total score of 777.2 points, after scoring 195.2 points during the final! The French athlete, ranked 43^rd in the world, had never placed better then fifteenth, before.

“To win a world cup gold used to be my dream. Now that I made it, I should start thinking to the next step!” says the young pistol shooter, who looks forward at his future with a different attitude, now that he has secured an ISSF gold medal “I know that from tomorrow I will have to start again from zero, training and training. My aim is indeed to succeed at the ISSF World Championship in Munich. I want to win an Olympic quota place there, because my next dream is to win an Olympic Gold medal!” Concluded Daumal, who will be competing and challenging his opponents again in a few weeks, as the 50th ISSF World Championship in all events will kick-off in Munich, next July 29.

“Munich’s world championship is going to be a big fight!” commented today’s Silver medal winner, Daumal’s coetaneous Christian Reitz of Germany, who at the age of 23 has already won an Olympic Bronze medal in Beijing, three world cup stages and a world champion title (in 2006, shooting as Junior). “It will not be easy to grab an Olympic quota place at the next World Championship: there are only two of them to be awarded in the Rapid Fire event, and many competitiors trying to succeed;” commented the German shooter, who wore today’s Silver with a total score of 774.0 points. “Of course, winning an Olympic qualification quota for the next 2012 Games is also my main goal. I will try my best. I know Munich’s range very well, and I am quite happy with my shooting in this period… even if today’s final hasn’t been the best!”

The Bronze medal went to Czech Republic’s Josef Fiala, 30, who finished on the podium with a total score of 770.2 points, after outdoing his teammate Martin Strnad 49.7 to 48.5 points in a shoot-off for the third medal.

“Finally a gold medal came. I made into five out of six final matches, throughout the last two World Cup stages… I was looking for this medal” Said the young athlete right after the final match, where he upset the 2000 Olympic Champion Rajmond DEBEVEC of Slovenia to climb on the highest step of the podium.

BAKKEN has won two ISSF World Cup medals within a few days. He had placed in third in the 50m Rifle Prone men competition, at the 1st ISSF World Cup Stage held last week in Changwon, Korea, and he surprised everybody by winning today’s gold.

The Norwegian athlete had never participated in world-level competition until two weeks ago. The debuting rifle shooter had shot a few fair placements at the European Championships, in 2007 and 2008, but he had never had a chance to prove his skills in a world arena such as the ISSF World Cup in Olympic events.

“I started shooting Olympic events when I was 16 – said Bakken – but my results peaked in the last two years. It’s great to be on the podium today!” continued the Norwegian athlete.
“Five finals, in three different Olympic rifle events, within 2 weeks… I had never seen something like this!” commented about Bakken’s result Herald Stenvaag, Norway’s six times Olympians.

“London 2012 is in my dream!” said the 20-year old shooter “I want to shoot well in this year World Cup series, and then at the 2010 World Championships. I could not make it for Beijing. London is still far, but that’s my big goal!”

Today’s silver medal went to 2000 Olympic Champion and 2008 Olympic Bronze medallist Rajmond Debevec, 46, who finished the final round in second place with 1275.9 points (1180+95.9). After a consistent qualification, the Slovenian champion struggled in the final match, and was overcome by his young opponent.

Debevec had finished in the spotlights at the 2008 Games, held in the same final all where he shot silver today. Today’s podium brought the medal-counter of the Slovenian shooter over 55 World Cup awards, an outstanding results reached throughout more then 30 years of successful activity as international shooter.

Serbia’s Stevan PLETIKOSIC, 37, won today’s Bronze medal with 1271.4 points (1173+98.4). The Serbian shooter defended his qualification’s placement from the assault of the Hungarian shooter Peter SIDI, 30, who climbed up from the eight place coming as close as three tenths of a point to Pletikosic by shooting today’s best final. Sidi finished in fourth with 1271.1 points (1169+102.1).

Alexandre SOKOLOV (RUS) closed in 5th place with 1269.5 pts (1171+98.5); Jinseop HAN (KOR) finished in 6th place with 1269.4 pts (1170+99.4); Denis WEIGART of Germany placed 7th with 1268.3 pts (1170+98.3). The home shooter, China’s ZHANG Lei, finished in eight and last place with 1268.0 pts (1172+96.0).