Shooting words · Intermediate

The words that make the commentary make sense. They build on the beginner words.

I · Intermediate · 30 words · Step 2 of 2

Rifle and pistol

Rapid fire pistol

The 25 m men's pistol event with series fired in 8, 6 and 4 seconds. Women's 25 m pistol has a precision stage and a rapid-fire stage.

Running target

A discipline in which the target moves across an opening, fired at 10 m and 50 m in slow and fast runs. It is not an Olympic event in the ISSF tables.

Inner ten

A small central zone inside the ten ring. A ten that is an inner ten ranks above a ten that is not, which matters when scores are tied.

Shotgun

Double

Two targets thrown together. In skeet, finals use a regular double or a reverse double on stations 3, 4 and 5; the order in which the two targets are shot is the difference.

Also called: regular double, reverse double
See also: Skeet

Lost target

A target the shooter did not hit. The referee calls each target hit, lost, no target or irregular, and a finalist who disagrees must protest before the next athlete shoots.

Flash target

A clay target filled with coloured powder, which shows a puff of colour when hit. They must be used in finals.

Scoring and formats

Hit-miss scoring

Scoring used in 25 m pistol finals, in which a shot either hits or misses. A shot inside the hit zone counts as one hit; on the rapid-fire target that means 10.2 or higher.

Shoot-off

Extra shots to break a tie. In shotgun finals a tie for gold and silver goes to an immediate shoot-off, and ties for third to sixth place go by qualification ranking.

Tie-breaking

Tied rifle and pistol scores go first to the most inner tens, then to the best of the last ten-shot series, then shot by shot from the last shot back. Athletes still tied share the rank and are listed alphabetically.

Ranking lists

The ISSF keeps two: the World Ranking, from results at ISSF Championships in the calendar year, and the Qualification Ranking for the Olympic Games, from qualifying competitions in the Olympic qualifying period.

Electronic scoring target

A target that scores each shot electronically and shows its position and value on a monitor at the firing point. It must be accurate to at least half of a tenth ring. Only ISSF-approved targets can be used.

Also called: EST
See also: Firing point

Competition and officials

Mixed team event

A team of one man and one woman from the same country. In the ISSF programme the mixed team events are 10 m air rifle, 10 m air pistol, trap and skeet. In the 10 m events the final is decided by the first team to reach 16 points.

See also: Air rifle, Air pistol, Trap, Skeet, Final

World Cup

An ISSF Championship, like the Olympic Games and the World Championships. The ISSF world ranking is built from results at its Championships.

Also called: shooting

Relay

A group of athletes assigned to shoot together. In rifle and pistol events athletes are put in relays and firing points; in shotgun events they are put in squads.

Also called: squad
See also: Group, Choke, Lead

Chief Range Officer

The official who runs the firing line and gives the range commands. Range officers make sure the commands are obeyed and guns are handled safely.

Also called: CRO
See also: Range, Range commands

Jury

Officials the ISSF appoints to supervise each Championship. A jury can give a warning, and can disqualify an athlete, for example one who refuses to use a safety flag.

Deduction

Points taken off an athlete's score as a penalty, usually two. Examples are firing too many shots, or crossfiring a sighting shot onto another athlete's match target.

Safety and rules

Crossfire

A shot that lands on another athlete's target. A crossfire in a match is a miss. Crossfiring a sighting shot onto someone's match target costs two points.

Malfunction

When a gun fails to fire as the trigger is pulled. It is allowable if, for example, the cartridge did not fire, and then the athlete can continue with a repaired or replacement gun. It is not allowable if the athlete caused it, for example by leaving the safety on.

Dry firing

Releasing the trigger of an unloaded gun. It is allowed on the firing line or in a designated area. In finals it is not allowed until preparation and sighting time starts, and in 10 m air gun finals not at all.

Equipment terms

Sight picture

The view an athlete sees when aiming, including the alignment of the sights with the target.

Trigger pull

The amount of force needed to fire the gun, adjustable and important for consistency.

Recoil

The backward force felt when a gun fires, which shooters train to manage smoothly.

Choke

A narrowing at the end of a shotgun barrel that affects how the shot pattern spreads.

Also called: shotgun
See also: Lead

Diopter sight

A precision rear sight with a small aperture, common in rifle shooting.

Technique terms

Natural point of aim

The direction a shooter's body naturally points without muscular correction, used to improve consistency.

Follow through

Maintaining position and focus for a moment after the shot is fired.

Lead

Aiming slightly ahead of a moving clay target to account for its travel time.

Also called: shotgun
See also: Clay target

Hold

Maintaining steady aim through small natural body movement while preparing to fire.

Zeroing

Adjusting the sights so the point of aim matches the point of impact at a given distance. In competition this is done with sighting shots.