Shooting: Tripartite, Trading and Reallocations Announced

The International Sport Shooting Federation has updated its tripartite, traded quotas and the reallocation of some quotas. Originally 24 quotas were reserved for nations which have qualified less than an average of eight athletes to individual events over the past two Olympics. The quotas can be spread out over any of the 15 Olympic events.

In total 18 nations were granted tripartite quotas. Four nations were actually given two quotas; Bolivia (men’s 50m pistol and women’s 10m air rifle), Malta (men’s double trap and women’s 10m air pistol), Oman (men’s 50m rifle 3 positions, women’s 10m air pistol) and Pakistan (men’s 25m rapid fire pistol and women’s 10m air rifle). The 14 nations which received a single tripartite quota were; Andorra (women’s 10m air rifle), Angola (men’s trap), Bangladesh (men’s 10m air rifle), Barbados (men’s skeet), Bhutan (women’s 10m air rifle), Bosnia and Herzegovina (women’s 10m air rifle), Iraq (women’s 10m air rifle), Kosovo (women’s 10m air rifle), Lebanon (women’s trap), Macedonia (women’s 10m air rifle), Nicaragua (men’s 10m air pistol), Panama (men’s 10m air pistol), Paraguay (men’s double trap) and Sri Lanka (men’s 50m rifle prone).

In shooting nations are allowed to trade one of their athlete quotas to another. A nation can only do this once. In total 12 nations have traded quotas; Egypt (women’s 50m rifle 3 positions to men’s trap), India (men’s 50m rifle 3 positions to men’s trap), Italy (men’s 50m pistol to men’s 25m rapid fire pistol), Kazakhstan (men’s trap to women’s trap), South Korea (men’s 10m air pistol to women’s 10m air rifle), Qatar (men’s 50m rifle 3 positions to men’s skeet), Russia (women’s 10m air pistol to women’s skeet), Slovenia (women’s 10m air pistol to women’s 10m air rifle), Sweden (women’s 10m air rifle to men’s double trap) and Switzerland (women’s 10m air rifle to men’s 50m rifle 3 positions). China and Germany also traded quotas, but they also declined a quota due to a single athlete qualifying in two events despite the nation owning two athlete quotas thus we don’t know the trade. Regardless China has lost an athlete quota in men’s 50m pistol and women’s 50m rifle 3 positions and gained an athlete quota in men’s 50m rifle prone. Similarly Germany lost quotas in men’s 50m rifle 3 positions and women’s 10m air rifle and gained an athlete quota in women’s 25m pistol.

The ISSF also announced some reallocations of quotas. Reallocated quotas go to the nation with the most athletes which have attained the MQS, but did not qualify any athlete quotas during the qualification process. In total there were seven reallocated quotas, two from unused tripartite quotas, three through unqualified quotas from the continental qualifiers and two from nations which have declined athlete quotas, specifically China and Germany. The reallocated quotas went to; Azerbaijan (men’s 25m rapid fire pistol), Bahrain (men’s 50m rifle prone), Colombia (men’s trap), Estonia (men’s 25m rapid fire pistol), Lithuania (men’s skeet), Romania (men’s 10m air rifle) and Uzbekistan (men’s 10m air rifle). Technically the Netherlands was initially given a spot, but it was declined.

It is expected that a few more reallocation quotas will be given out as nations begin to finalize their teams. Similarly we can also expect more traded athlete quotas.

 

Quotas by Nations

• Bolivia – 2
• Malta – 2
• Oman – 2
• Pakistan – 2
• Andorra – 1
• Angola – 1
• Azerbaijan – 1
• Bahrain – 1
• Bangladesh – 1
• Barbados – 1
• Bhutan – 1
• Bosnia and Herzegovina – 1
• Colombia – 1
• Estonia – 1
• Iraq – 1
• Kosovo – 1
• Lebanon – 1
• Lithuania – 1
• Macedonia – 1
• Nicaragua – 1
• Panama – 1
• Paraguay – 1
• Romania – 1
• Sri Lanka – 1
• Uzbekistan – 1

 

References

• ISSF. 2016 Olympics Quota Places by Nation and Number. Access on May 29 2016.

Shooting: European Nations Qualify After 10m Championship

Eight nations qualified spots to the Olympics at the 2016 European 10m Shooting Championship. The top three eligible shooters in the men’s and women’s air rifle and air pistol events qualified their nations to the Olympics. The European 10m Shooting Championship was held in Gyor, Hungary from February 22nd to February 28th 2016.

The women’s 10m air rifle was won by Serbia’s Andreas Arsovic who barely qualified to the final as she finished eighth in the qualification round; finish just 0.2 ahead of ninth place. The Olympics quotas went to bronze medalist Petra Lustenberger of Switzerland, Croata’s Tanja Perec and Hungary’s Julianna Miskolczi.

The quotas for the men’s 10m air pistol were decided after the qualification round as there were only three eligible athletes remaining. Poland’s Wojciech Knapik, Georgia’s Tsotne Machavariani and Hungary’s Miklos Tatrai all qualified their nation to the Olympics. The event was won by Turkey’s Yusuf Dikec whom came from behind to defeat Spain’s Pablo Carrerra.

The women’s 10m air pistol was also decided during the qualification round as the quotas went to Hungary’s Viktoria Egri, Croatia’s Marija Marovic and Poland’s Beata Bartkow-Kwiatkowska. The event was won by Ukraine’s Olena Kostevych.

After the conclusion of the qualification round the quotas for the men’s 10m air rifle went to, Germany’s Julian Justus, Norway’s Ole Magnus Bakken and Spain’s Jorge Diaz. The event was won by Russia’s Sergey Kamenskiy.

This was the final qualification event for shooting. All that remains to be decided are the tripartite quotas for underrepresented nations and the reallocation of unused quotas given back by qualified nations.

 

Quotas by Nations

• Hungary – 3
• Croatia – 2
• Poland – 2
• Georgia – 1
• Germany – 1
• Norway – 1
• Spain – 1
• Switzerland – 1

 

References

• SIUS. 2016 European 10m Championship Results. Access on February 27 2016.
• ISSF. Quota Places By Nation and Name. Access on February 27 2016.

Shooting: 15 Nations Qualify After Asian Qualification Event

15 nations qualified at least one quota at the 2016 Asian Olympic Qualification Event. In total 35 quotas were available across the 15 events to the highest ranked eligible shooters, athletes which have not already qualified their nation a quota, respecting the 2 quotas per nation per event rule. More specifically one to women’s trap and women’s skeet, three to men’s 50m rifle 3 position, women’s 50m rifle 3 position and women’s 25m pistol, four to men’s trap and men’s skeet and two to the remaining eight events. Originally the event was supposed to be held in Kuwait City, Kuwait, but the suspension of the Kuwaiti National Olympic Committee meant the event was moved. The Asian Olympic Qualification Event was held in New Delhi, India from January 25th to February 3rd 2016.

The men’s 50m rifle prone was won by South Korea’s Kim Jong-Hyun, a 2012 Olympic silver medalist in the 3 position event. Despite a relatively poor final shot it was enough to finish ahead of Thailand’s Attapon Uae-Aree. Both nations also qualified a quota to the Olympics.

India’s Heena Sidhu was the top ranked shooter in the women’s 10m air pistol, winning the gold and an Olympic quota with a 1.3 point lead. The second Olympic quota went to fourth place finisher Golnoush Sebghatollahi of Iran.

The semi-finals in the women’s trap left three shooters tied at 13 points, requiring a shoot-off. Japan’s Yukie Nakayama grabbed the first spot to the final while a second shoot-off was required to decide the second place. That was when China’s Li Qingnian defeated her compatriot Chen Fang to reach the final. Nakayama would go to win the gold medal in a shoot-out after both athletes were tied, but since she already won a quota for her nation the Olympic spot went to China’s Li.

The men’s 25m rapid fire pistol was won by Teruyoshi Akiyama of Japan. The second quota went to the bronze medalist and Akiyama’s compatriot Eita Mori.

The quotas for the men’s trap were decided at the semi-finals as five eligible shooters competed for the four spots. Currently suspended Kuwait’s Abdulrahman Al Faihan and Chinese Taipei’s Yang Kun-Pi qualified two of the quotas for as they reached the gold medal match by winning a shoot-off. The other two quotas went to India’s Kynan Chenai whom qualified to the bronze medal match and Kazakhstan’s Andrey Mogilevskiy whom finished fifth. Al Faihan won the gold medal by defeating Yang 14-13.

In the men’s 50m pistol it was Japan’s Tomoyuki Matsuda whom won the gold medal, but since he already won a quota in an earlier event the two spots went to North Korea’s Kim Song-Guk and his compatriot 2004 Olympic bronze medalist Kim Jong-Su.

The women’s 10m air rifle required a shoot-off to decide the gold medal as Iran’s Najmeh Khedmati and India’s Ayonika Paul finished level on points. Khedmati scored 0.2 better than Paul in the shoot-off to win the gold medal. For Paul however the silver medal was enough to qualify her nation to the Olympics. The second spot went to fourth place Lee Eun-Seo of South Korea.

Japan’s Naoya Okada qualified his nation a spot in the men’s 10m air rifle by winning the gold medal. Bronze medalist Pouria Norouzian won the second quota as silver medalist Yuriy Yurkov previously won a spot in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions.

The quotas for the men’s double trap were decided in the semi-finals as United Arab Emirates’ Khaled Al-Kaabi and 2012 Olympic trap bronze medalist Fehaid Al-Deehani of suspended Kuwait qualified their nation. Al-Kaabi won the gold medal by a score of 26-25.

The three medalists in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions event all won a quota for a nation. The gold medal went to Singapore’s Jasmine Ser Xiang Wei as she won her nation its first shooting quota. The silver and bronze medals went to Iran’s Mahlagha Jambozorg and South Korea’s Lee Kye-Rim respectively.

Despite sweeping the podium in the women’s 25m pistol South Korea only won one quota because they have previously won a quota in the event. The quota was won by gold medalist Koh Eun. The other two quotas went to fourth place Akiko Sato of Japan and sixth place Shun Xie Teo of Singapore.

The men’s 10m air pistol was won by Malaysia’s Guanjie Wong whom required an excellent final round to defeat Saudi Arabia’s Atallah Al-Anazi. Both shooters qualified their nation its first shooting quotas to the Olympics.

The single quota for women’s skeet was decided at the gold medal match. In the final Japan’s Naoko Ishihara defeated Thailand’s Nutchaya Sutarporn 13-9 to win the gold and Olympic quota.

The quotas for the three Olympic spots in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions were not given out to the medalists as they have all qualified previously. Instead they went to India’s Sanjeev Rajput, Qatar’s Vitaliy Dovgun and Thailand’s Napis Tortungpanich. The gold medal was awarded to Kim Jong-Hyun who won his second gold medal of the championship.

The four quotas in the men’s skeet were decided by virtue of their semi-final appearance. Kuwait’s Saud Habib and his compatriot Abdullah Al-Rashidi, Qatar’s Rashid Hamad and one between United Arab Emirates’ Mohamed Ahmad and Saeed Al-Maktoum which would be decided in the bronze medal match. The gold medal went to Saif Bin Futtais as he defeated Habin 13-12. The bronze medal went to Al-Maktoum as he defeated Aahmad 15-14.

While Kuwait is still suspended by the IOC the nation can still qualify quotas. Should the issue not be solved by the time the Olympics begin the athletes would compete under the Olympic flag. This was the final opportunity for Asian nations to qualify athletes in shooting.

 

Quotas by Nations

• Japan – 5
• India – 4
• Kuwait – 4
• South Korea – 4
• Iran – 3
• North Korea – 2
• Qatar – 2
• Singapore – 2
• Thailand – 2
• United Arab Emirates – 2
• China – 1
• Chinese Taipei – 1
• Kazakhstan – 1
• Malaysia – 1
• Saudi Arabia – 1

 

References

• SIUS. 2016 Asian Olympic Qualification Event Results. Access on February 2 2015.
• ISSF. Quota Places By Nation and Name. Access on February 2 2015.

Shooting: Egypt Leads The Way At African Championship

Egypt was able to win gold medals in 8 out of the 15 events at the 2015 African Shooting Championship. The highest ranked eligible athlete from each of the 15 events was given a quota to compete at the Olympics. The African Shooting Championships was held in Cairo, Egypt from November 30th to December 6th 2015.

Egypt showed off its powerhouse status by winning 10 out of the 15 quotas. The events which they won in were men’s 50m rifle 3 positions, men’s 50m rifle prone, men’s 50m pistol, men’s 25m rapid fire pistol, men’s 10m air pistol, men’s trap, men’s skeet, women’s 50m rifle 3 positions, women’s 10m air rifle and women’s 10m air pistol.

As a reminder in order to win your nation a quota you must score at least the Minimum Qualification Score (MQS) during qualification. This meant second place Ahmed Darwish of Egypt and his compatriot third place Abdel Aziz Mehelba won quotas in the men’s 50m rifle prone and men’s trap respectively because the shooters ranked ahead of them did not achieve the MQS. This also meant that no one won a quota in the women’s skeet as the athletes were not able to achieve the status. The quota will be reallocated to a nation not yet qualified on a later date.

The other four quota places went to four different nations, namely from the performances of Chafik Bouaouid of Algeria in the men’s 10m air rifle, Michael Nicholson of Zimbabwe in the men’s double trap, Olfa Charni of Tunisia in the women’s 25m pistol and Gaby Ahrens of Namibia in the women’s trap.

This was the final opportunity for athletes in Africa to qualify to the Olympics. Currently only the Asian Olympic qualifiers and the 10m European Championships remain as Olympic qualification events in shooting.

 

Quotas by Nation

• Egypt – 10
• Algeria – 1
• Namibia – 1
• Tunisia – 1
• Zimbabwe – 1

 

References

• ESF. 2015 African Shooting Championships Results. Access on December 9 2015.
• ISSF. Quota Places By Nation and Name. Access on December 9 2015.

Shooting: Australia Wins Big At Oceania Championship

Australia continues to be the dominant nation at the 2015 Oceania Shooting Championships. In total 18 quotas were up for grabs across the 15 events, one to the highest ranked eligible athlete for each event while a second was made available for the men’s 50m rifle prone, men’s trap and men’s skeet. The Oceania Shooting Championship was held in Sydney, Australia from November 27th to December 2nd 2015.

Australia was the top nation as they won 13 out of the 15 Olympic events. This in turn gave them 14 out of the 18 available quotas. New Zealand was able to avoid getting swept as Natalie Rooney and Chloe Tipple were able to win gold and an Olympic quota at the women’s trap and women’s skeet respectively. Ryan Tyalor’s silver medal in the men’s 50m rifle prone gave New Zealand its third Olympic quota. The final Olympic quota went to Fiji’s Glenn Kable whose silver medal was enough to qualify his nation and potentially himself to his fourth Olympics.

As a reminder the Olympic quota can only be won by an athlete whom reached the MQS during the qualification round. This made the men’s 10m air pistol’s qualification a bit more interesting as both the gold and silver medalists did not reach the MQS, instead the quota was won by bronze medalist Chris Summerell of Australia.

With the big gain of quotas Australia now has a total of 18 and is now fourth highest among all nations. They will also participate in 14/15 events as they failed to qualify in the women’s skeet. This was the final opportunity for Oceania nations to qualify in this spot.

 

Quotas by Nation

• Australia – 14
• New Zealand – 3
• Fiji – 1

 

References

• SIUS. 2015 Oceania Shooting Championships Results. Access on December 2 2015.
• ISSF. Quota Places By Nation and Name. Access on December 2 2015.

Shooting: Europe and Asia Secure Spots After Shotgun World Championships

Wins in the men and women’s skeet gave the United States the overall lead in the medal table, but in terms of Olympic qualification it was an all-European and Asian affair at the 2015 World Shotgun Championships. The two highest ranked eligible athletes, as in athletes not already qualified and their nation have not previously qualified two spots in the event from the five shotgun events will be given quotas to compete. The World Shotgun Championships were held in Lonato, Italy from September 9th to September 18th 2015.

The women’s trap required a six person shoot-off to determine the final athlete for the semifinals. The shoot-off was won by Spain’s Fatima Galvez causing the other five eligible athletes to be eliminated. The first quota was decided in the semifinals where Russia’s Elena Tkach qualified to the final along with Galvez. Galvez would go on to win the gold medal by defeating Tkach 11-9. The second quota was determined from the bronze medal match between Egypt’s Maggy Ashmawy and North Korea’s Pak Yong Hui. The bronze medal and Olympic spot went to Pak as she defeated Ashmawy in a dominant 12-6 win.

The Olympic quotas for the men’s trap were decided during the qualification round as only Khaled Al-Mudhaf of Kuwait and Belgium’s Maxime Mottet were the only two eligible athletes to reach the semifinals. The final between Italy’s Giovanni Pellielo and Slovakia’s Erik Varga required a shoot-off after a 12-12 tie. Varga was able to win the shoot-off and the gold medal with a score of 2-1. The bronze medal went to Maxime Mottet as he defeated Alberto Fernandez of Spain 13-11.

Five women vied for the final semi-final spot in the women’s skeet, but it was Germany’s Christine Wenzel that won the shoot-off. While it was unfortunate for Libuse Jahodova of the Czech Republic and Cyprus’ Andri Eletheriou they can take solace of the fact of just reaching a shoot-off was enough to give them the two quotas. The final was an all United States affair where Morgan Craft defeated her compatriot Caitlin Connor 15-13. China’s Wei Ning won the bronze medal over Sutiya Jiewchaloemmit of Thailand, winning 15-13.

A shoot-off was required to decide which two of three men qualified to the semifinals of the men’s double trap. Sadly for Malta’s William Chetcuti he was the odd man out as Kuwait’s Ahmad Al-Afasi and United States Walton Eller were able to outlast him. The first quota was decided when Great Britain’s Tim Kneale qualified to the final. He was however, unable to win the gold medal as Russia’s Vasily Mosin defeated him by a score of 29-26. The second quota required a shoot-off in the bronze medal match to be decided as both Al-Afasi and Australia’s James Willett tied 24-24. Al-Afasi was able to give Kuwait its second quota of the championship by defeating Willett 4-3 in the shoot-off.

The highlight of the competition happened in the men’s skeet where France’s Anthony Terras equalled the world record by scoring a perfect 125. While India’s Mairaj Khan and Germany’s Ralf Buchheim lost in the shoot-off to reach the semifinals it was still enough for them to receive the two Olympic quotas. The final between Terras and United States’ Vincent Hancock required a shoot-off as both athletes finished with a perfect 16. Hancock was able to take the gold medal after he won the shoot-off 8-7. Italy’s Gabriele Rossetti won the bronze medal by defeating Denmark’s Jesper Hansen 15-14.

This was the final opportunity for nations from Europe and Pan America to qualify quotas to the Olympics in shotgun events. As for the other continents they will all have one more opportunity to qualify at their continental qualifier.

Quotas by Nation

• Kuwait – 2
• Belgium – 1
• Cyprus – 1
• Czech Republic – 1
• Germany – 1
• Great Britain – 1
• India – 1
• North Korea – 1
• Russia – 1

References

• SIUS. ISSF 2015 World Shotgun Championship in Lonato Results. Access on September17 2015.

Shooting: 25 Nations Win Quotas at Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun World Cup Event

China led in the medal table, but it was Russia that led all nations with four quotas at the Rifle, Pistol and Shotgun World Cup. This was the final World Cup which offered Olympic quotas as a total of 34, 3 in the 10m events and 2 in the other events were up for grabs. The World Cup event was held in Gabala, Azerbaijan from August 6th to August 16th 2015.

In the women’s skeet Poland’s Aleksandra Jarmolinska equaled the world record during the qualification round by shooting a perfect 75. The performance and given everyone else that reached the final was not eligible to win a quota meant she was given one of the Olympic quotas. The second quota went to Chile’s Francisca Crovetto and while she lost a shoot-off against the United States’ Morgan Craft she will at least go home knowing she won her nation a spot to the Olympics. The gold medal went to Italy’s Katiuscia Spada whom defeated Morgan Craft in the final. The bronze medal went to Amber Hill of Great Britain.

Federico Gil of Argentina won the first Olympic quota in the men’s skeet by virtue of reaching the finals. The second quota was to be decided among five shooters who had to participate in a shoot-off to determine the final qualifier to the semifinals. It was a marathon 18 shots, but it was Austria’s Sebastian Kuntschik that outlasted Jin Di of China and the rest of the challengers as he qualified to the final. Kuntischik used the momentum to reach the finals, but it was not enough to defeat United States’ Vincent Hancock who won in a shoot-off 6-5. The bronze medal went to Italy’s Gabriele Rossetti.

Only two eligible shooters reached the final in the men’s 10m air rifle so they automatically were given the Olympic quotas. They were Petar Gorsa of Croatia and Illia Charheika of Belarus. The third quota was given to ninth place Istvan Peni of Hungary. The final was won by China’s Cao Yifei who won by 0.5 points over South Korea’s Kim Sang Do.

For the first time this World Cup the Olympic quotas in the women’s 10m air rifle needed to be decided in the final round as six eligible shooters all reached the final including three from Iran. Iran was able to grab the maximum quotas as Elaheh Ahmadi benefitted from a mistake by China’s Zhang Binbin to win gold while her compatriot, Najmeh Khedmati won the bronze medal. Fourth place Anna Zhukova of Russia took the third and final quota to the Olympics.

In the men’s 50m pistol the two Olympic quotas went to India’s Prakash Nanjappa and Spain’s Pablo Carrera as they were the only eligible shooters to reach the final. The final was dominated by China’s Mai Jiajie who at one point had a 4.8 lead over the entire field and won by 3.3 points over South Korea’s Park Daehun.

The final was needed to decide the quotas in the women’s 25m pistol as three eligible athletes scored high enough to take part. Russia’s Vitalina Batsarashkina won the first quota by reaching the final. She was however unable to win gold as China’s Zhang Jingjing defeated her 7-1. The second quota went to sixth place finisher Tsogbadrakhyn Monkhzul of Mongolia.

In the men’s double trap Germany’s Michael Goldbrunner was able to reach the semifinals by surviving a shoot-off along with Russia’s Vasily Mosin against Morocco’s Mohamed Ramah to keep himself in contention for one of the two quotas. The semifinals were quite interesting; firstly Steven Scott of Great Britain booked his spot to the final along with an Olympic quota after scoring a perfect 30. The other five shooters all scored 29 requiring a shoot-off. China’s Hu Binyuan was first eliminated, but then both Mosin and India’s Asab Mohammed were eliminated together meaning a second shoot-out was required to see which one goes to the bronze medal final. Not to be outdone both Goldbrunner and United States’ Walton Eller were eliminating at the same time as well therefore a second shoot-off was also required to decide which one goes to the gold medal match while the other one will play for bronze. Eller defeated Goldbrunner to advance to the gold medal match while Mosin defeated Mohammed to advance to the bronze medal match. This also meant Goldbrunner would be given the second quota to the Olympics. The gold medal was won by Eller as he defeated Scott 30-26. Vasily won the bronze medal by defeating Goldbrunner 30-29.

The men’s 50m rifle prone was won by Russia’s Kirill Grigoryan whom defeated United States’ Matthew Emmons by 0.9 points. The bronze medalists, Tomas Jerabek of the Czech Republic was given the first Olympic quota while the second one went to fourth place finisher Torben Grimmel of Denmark.

After the qualification round in the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol three athletes were left fighting for two Olympic spots. The fight between the three athletes went to the medal portion as compatriots Hu Haozhe and Lao Jiajie of China both won the gold and silver medals respectively and the Olympic quotas as bronze medalist Boris Artaud just barely missed out.

Three athletes were left fighting for two quota places in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions. Poland’s Sylwia Bogacka and Switzerland’s Jasmin Michler were able to outlast Austria’s Franziska Peer to win the two quotas. The gold medal went to China’s Chen Dongqi who outscored her compatriot Yi Siling by 0.8 points. Russia’s Anna Zhukova won the bronze medal.

The quotas for the men’s 10m air pistol went to the three eligible final qualifiers; South Korea’s Kim Cheongyong, Kazakhstan’s Rashid Yunusmetov and his compatriot Vladimir Issachenko. A terrible shot in the final round cost Issachenko the gold medal as Cheongyong was able to pass him right at the end. The bronze medal went to Juraj Tuzinsky of Slovakia.

The Olympic quotas for the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions went to Russia’s Fedor Vlasov and India’s Chain Singh by virtue of their appearance in the final. The event was won by China’s Hui Zicheng whom defeated Austria’s Alexander Schmirl by 1.9 points. Zhu Qinan of China won the bronze medal.

A couple of former Olympic medalists picked up their spots in the women’s 10m air pistol. By virtue of their final appearance 1996 gold medalist Olga Kuznetsova of Russia and 2012 silver medalist Celine Goberville of France both qualified to the Olympics. The third quota went to 11th place finisher Pim-On Klaisuban of Thailand. Zorana Arunovic of Serbia won the event by scoring 1.3 higher in the final round than Lin Yuemei of China. Tien Chia Chen of Chinese Taipei took the bronze.

Five Olympic eligible shooters reached the semifinals of the women’s trap. A bit of controversy occurred in the semi-final as Russia’s Elena Tkach was disqualified due to having an overweight cartridge. Japan’s Yukie Nakayama and Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yi-Chun not only qualified to the finals, but secured the two Olympic quotas. In the final Nakayama defeated Lin 14-12 while United States’ Corey Cogdell required a shoot-off to defeat Italy’s Jessica Rossi 5-4 after they tied 12-12.

The men’s trap required a 12 person shoot-off to determine the final two spots to reach the semifinals. In the end it was 2012 Olympic gold medalist Croatia’s Giovanni Cernogoraz and France’s Herve Boivin that survived the huge gauntlet. By winning the shoot-off Cernogoraz was able to use the momentum to reach the final and grab the first Olympic quota. The second quota went to Erdinic Kebapci of Turkey by virtue of reaching the bronze medal match. The gold medal was won by Russia’s Alexey Alipov as he defeated Cernogoraz 15-14. The bronze medal went to Erminio Frasca of Italy as he defeated Kebapci 13-12.

For Pan American nations this was the last opportunity to gain quotas in rifle and pistol events. For Europe it was the last opportunity to gain quotas in non-10m rifle and pistol events. Both continents will have a final chance at grabbing shotgun quotas at the World Shotgun Championships. Overall China leads all nations with 22 quotas with the United States and Russia following with 20 and 19 quotas respectively.

Quotas by Nation

• Russia – 4
• China – 2
• Croatia – 2
• India – 2
• Iran – 2
• Kazakhstan – 2
• Poland – 2
• Argentina – 1
• Austria – 1
• Belarus – 1
• Chile – 1
• Chinese Taipei – 1
• Czech Republic – 1
• Denmark – 1
• France – 1
• Germany – 1
• Great Britain – 1
• Hungary – 1
• Japan – 1
• Mongolia – 1
• South Korea – 1
• Spain – 1
• Switzerland – 1
• Thailand – 1
• Turkey – 1

References

• SIUS. 2015 ISSF World Cup Gabala Results. Access on August 15 2015.
• ISSF. Quota Place by Nation and Name. Access on August 15 2015.

Shooting: 17 Nations Qualify After 25, 50, 300m & Shotgun European Champs

Germany, Hungary, Russia and Ukraine all qualified two shooters each at the 2015 25, 50, 300m and Shotgun European Championships. 1 to 3 quotas for a total of 21 were available across 10 events; the 10m pistol and rifle events are not held here while the men’s double trap offered no quotas. The quotas went to the top ranked athlete not yet qualified, respecting the maximum quota per event for a nation. The European Championships were held in Maribor, Slovenia from July 18th to August 1st 2015.

The women’s 50m rifle 3 position was decided by the final shot where Italy’s Petra Zublasing was unable to catch Serbia’s Ivana Maksimovic, losing by just 0.1. The three Olympic quotas went to Great Britain’s Jennifer McIntosh, Poland’s Agnieszka Nagay and Czech Republic’s Lucie Svecova.

In the men’s 50m rifle prone the final two shooters were Russians Sergey Kamenskiy and Sergei Kovalenko. Kolalenko was able to maintain his 1.2 lead to win the title and an Olympic quota with a score 209.2. The second quota went to fourth place Norbert Szabian of Hungary.

The semifinals for the men’s skeet was very tight as five shooters all finished with a score of 15, requiring a shoot-off. In the end it was Greece’s Ethimios Mitas and Italy’s Luigi Lodde which qualified to the final while Denmark’s Jesper Hansen and Eric Delaunay of France both qualified to the bronze medal match. In the final Lodde defeated Mitas 16-14 though Mitas received a quota to the Olympics. For the bronze medal Hansen defeated Delaunay 16-14 and likewise Delaunay also received a quota to the Olympics. The third quota went to 2000 Olympic gold medalist Mikola Milchev of Ukraine.

A shoot-off was also needed to decide the medal matches for the women’s 25m pistol as three shooters tied with a score of 16. Both Zsofia Csonka of Hungary and Viktoria Chaika of Belarus qualified to the final while Olena Kostevych of Ukraine was relegated to the bronze medal match along with 1988 Olympic gold medalist Nino Salukvadze of Georgia. Csonka was able to win the gold medal by winning 8-6 while Kostevych won the bronze medal with a score of 7-5. The two Olympic quotas went to Csonka and Salukvadze.

For the first time in 2016 a shooter which gained a quota to the Olympics did not reach the final round. In the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions Austria’s Gernot Rumpler finished 12th overall, but it was enough to grab one of the three quotas. The other two went to sixth place Milenko Sebic of Serbia and seventh place Michael Janker of Germany. The winner of the event was Russia’s Sergey Kamenskiy.

Only one quota was available for women’s skeet. In the semifinals a shoot-off was required to determine the second finalist and an Olympic quota was on the line because Slovakia’s Danka Bartekova had previously qualified. After a marathon shoot-off Germany’s Christine Wenzel defeated Cyprus’ Andri Eleftheriou 12-11. In the final Wenzel defeated Brtekova 16-14. Bronze went to Eleftheriou as she defeated her compatriot Panagiota Andreou 14-11.

In the men’s 50m pistol it was Portugal’s Joao Costa that won gold with a bit of luck. He was closest to elimination for the final three elimination stages, but decent shots combined with poor hits by his opponents meant he was able to survive and win. The two Olympic quotas went to silver medalist Francesco Bruno of Italy and bronze medalist Sergey Chervyakokskiy of Russia.

The final in the women’s trap was between Slovakia’s Zuzana Stefecekova and Russia’s Ekaterina Rabaya whom scored 14 and 13 respectively in the semifinals. In the final it was Stefecekova who won gold and the only Olympics quota, winning by a score of 11-8. The bronze medal went to Italy’s Jessica Rossi whom defeated France’s Delphine Reau 13-11.

The men’s 25m rapid fire pistol came down to the final set as both Germany’s Oliver Geis and Russia’s Alexei Klimov were tied. In the end Geis was able to outshoot Klimov to win the gold. The bronze went to Spain’s Jorge Llames. The single Olympic quota went to Ukraine’s Roman Bondaruk.

A shoot-off was required to determine the finalist for the men’s trap. It was Alberto Fernandez of Spain which defeated Slovenia’s Bostjan Macek in a grueling 14-13 match. In terms of Olympic quotas it did not matter as both shooters along with bronze medal match qualifier Stefano Selva of San Marino all won a spot to participate at the Olympics. In the final Italy’s Giovanni Pellielo defeated Fernandez in a shoot-off 6-5 after tying 15-15. The bronze medal went to Macek as he defeated Selva 13-12.

The opportunity for European nations to qualify is running out. All that remains is a World Cup event for some rifle and pistol events. The shotgun events have an additional World Championships while the 10m rifle and pistol European championships will be held in 2016.

Quotas by Nation

• Germany – 2
• Hungary – 2
• Russia – 2
• Ukraine – 2
• Austria – 1
• Czech Republic – 1
• France – 1
• Georgia – 1
• Great Britain – 1
• Greece – 1
• Italy – 1
• Poland – 1
• San Marino – 1
• Serbia – 1
• Slovakia – 1
• Slovenia – 1
• Spain – 1

References

• SIUS. 2015 European Championship 25, 50, 300m, Shotgun Maribor Results. Access on August 1 2015.
• ISSF. Quota Places by Nation and Name. Access on August 1 2015.

Shooting: United States Leads Medal Count at Pan American Games

The United States led the medal count with 13 medals, including 4 gold at the shooting events at the 2015 Pan American Games. 20 Olympic quotas were up for grabs among the 15 events; 1 for each along with an additional spot for the men’s 10m air rifle, men’s trap, men’s skeet, women’s 50m rifle 3 positions and women’s 10m air rifle. The quotas went to the highest ranked eligible shooter or shooters of the event. The Pan America Games are currently being held in Toronto, Canada from July 7th to July 26th 2015. The shooting events were held from July 12th to July 19th 2015.

The United States placed a higher priority in Olympic quotas over medals as they sent non-qualified athletes in events which they have not qualified the maximum quotas. The move ultimately paid off as they won the most quotas by winning a total of five (men’s 50m rifle 3 positions, men’s 10m air rifle, men’s 25m rapid fire pistol, men’s skeet and women’s 25m pistol). The United States has now reached the maximum quota in six events and has qualified at least one athlete in all events with the exception of men’s trap.

Argentina also had a great performance as they increased their Olympic quotas from zero to four (men’s trap, women’s 50m rifle 3 positions, women’s 10m air rifle and women’s skeet). Interestingly enough they accomplished this without winning a single event as the gold medalist either previously qualified or the event offered two quotas.

Two quotas went to Canada (women’s 10m air pistol and women’s trap), Peru (men’s 50m pistol, men’s trap) and Brazil (men’s 50m rifle prone, men’s 10m air pistol) though in Brazil’s case those were previously host quotas that will now be reallocated so their total still remains at 9. There was some confusion as to who won the men’s 50m pistol quota as Brazil’s Julio Almeida won gold. However, a relative poor performance in the qualification round made him miss the MQS which is a requirement to gain the quota so the quota went to bronze medalist Marko Carrillo of Peru.

A single quota went to Cuba (men’s skeet), Guatemala (men’s double trap), Mexico (women’s 10m air rifle), Puerto Rico (women’s 50m rifle 3 positions) and Venezuela (men’s 10m air rifle). Some may be disappointed with Cuba’s performance considering they are arguably considered the second strongest shooting nation behind the United States, but with most of their top shooters already qualified to the Olympics it was always going to be difficult for them to qualify any more athletes.

With its performance here the United States has pulled even with China for most quotas with 20 total. Pan American nations now have only one more chance to qualify in rifle and pistol events, at the next World Cup. Shotgun events will have an additional qualifying event at the Shotgun World Championships.

Quotas by Nation

• United States – 5
• Argentina – 4
• Brazil – 2
• Canada – 2
• Peru – 2
• Cuba – 1
• Guatemala – 1
• Mexico – 1
• Puerto Rico – 1
• Venezuela – 1

References

• Toronto2015. Shooting – Schedule & Results. Access on July 19 2015.
• ISSF. Quota Place by Nation and Name. Access on July 19 2015.

Shooting: 12 Nations Qualify After European Games

The final direct qualifier to the Olympics at the inaugural European Games is shooting. The highest ranked non-qualified athlete from each event will be given a spot to compete at the Olympics, provided it does not interfere with the maximum quota a nation can obtain. The 2015 European Games are currently being held in Baku, Azerbaijan and will be held from June 12th to June 28th 2015.

Overall 12 nations qualified an athlete with three qualifying two athletes; France (men’s 50m rifle 3 positions and women’s 50m rifle 3 positions), Russia (men’s trap and men’s double trap) and Switzerland (women’s 10m air rifle and women’s 25m pistol). The European Games was a bit of a relief for Switzerland as the nation had one of the largest number of athletes with the Minimum Qualification Scores (MQS) and not an Olympic quota. With that monkey of their back the only European nation without an Olympic quota, but a large number of MQS athletes is Poland.

The other quotas went to Belarus (women’s 10m air pistol), Germany (men’s 50m rifle prone), Great Britain (women’s skeet), Israel (men’s 10m air rifle), San Marino (women’s trap), Slovakia (men’s 50m pistol), Spain (men’s 25m rapid fire pistol), Sweden (men’s skeet) and Ukraine (men’s 10m air pistol). Notable athletes that qualified their nations were 2004 Olympic gold and 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Aleksey Alipov of Russia, 2014 Youth Olympic gold medalist Sarah Hornung of Switzerland and 2014 Youth Olympic gold medalist Pavlo Korostylov of Ukraine.

The overall competition at the European Games was quite good. Among the Olympic events Italy won the most medals with 2 gold, 3 silver and 3 bronze. It was however Serbia that won the most gold medals, winning in four different events. Russia and Germany also won multiple gold medals with two apiece. Overall 20 nations won at least 1 medal including small nations like San Marino (women’s trap).

The next qualifying events for Europe is split. For the non-10m events the next qualifying event will be the European Championships because the 10m events have their own European Championships to be held in 2016. This makes the next competition for the 10m events the ISSF World Cup.

Quotas by Nation

• France – 2
• Russia – 2
• Switzerland – 2
• Belarus – 1
• Germany – 1
• Great Britain – 1
• Israel – 1
• San Marino – 1
• Slovakia – 1
• Spain – 1
• Sweden – 1
• Ukraine – 1

References

• Baku2015. European Games Shooting Results. Access on June 22 2015.