Learn › Track 06 · Competing
Match day procedure
A qualification match is 60 shots. The rules give you a fixed window for them, and a separate window before it for sighters. Start with the arithmetic.
Think first: You have 75 minutes for 60 match shots. On average, how many seconds is that per shot?
The clock, from call to STOP
Every ISSF qualification follows the same sequence. You are called to the line 25 minutes before the match starts. The first 10 minutes are set-up: unpack, set up, dry fire. Then come 15 minutes of preparation and sighting, with as many sighters as you like. At 14 min 30 s into that period, the officials call "30 SECONDS". Sighting ends, and after a short pause comes the match START. From then on you have 75 minutes for 60 shots (90 minutes on paper targets), shown as six series of ten. Warnings are given when 10 and 5 minutes remain, and then comes STOP.
60 shots in 75 minutes on electronic targets (90 on paper), after 10 minutes of set-up and 15 minutes of preparation and sighting with unlimited sighters. Shots not fired by STOP are scored as misses.
Sighters: as many as you like, but only then
The sighting block is generous on purpose. You can check your zero, settle your rhythm and shoot sighters until you are happy. The catch is that the block closes.
Think first: Twelve minutes into match time you suspect your zero has drifted. Can you fire a sighter to check?
- Yes: sighters are unlimited
- Yes, but it costs 2 points
- No: after match START there are no sighters, and a shot fired as one is scored as a miss
- Only if the Range Officer agrees
There are a few exceptions, and none of them are yours to call. If the Jury moves you to another firing point at least 30 cm to the side, you get extra sighters and 2 extra minutes. Long interruptions and some equipment failures also bring extra sighters. Those cases are in malfunctions and interruptions.
Shots at the wrong moment
The clock divides those 100 minutes into windows, and the rules say what a shot means in each one.
Think first: During set-up you fire a pellet at your target to “check the trigger”. It lands safely in the 9. What happens?
- Nothing: it is set-up time
- It counts as a sighter
- Your first match shot will be scored zero
- You lose 2 points from your last series
| When it happens | What it costs | Rule |
| Pellet fired before sighting START | First match shot scored zero (DSQ if unsafe) | RB 6.11.1.1 |
| Air released, no pellet, before preparation time | Warning, then 2 points | RB 6.11.2.1 |
| Shot after sighting ends but before match START | Shot not counted, 2 points off | RB 6.11.1.1 |
| Shot after START that doesn't hit the target | Scored as a miss | RB 6.11.2.2 |
| Two pellets fired at once and both hit | The higher one counts | RB 6.11.2.4 |
| Shot still unfired at STOP | Scored as a miss | RB 6.11 |
Load one pellet at a time. The last row of the table matters more than it looks: a shot you run out of time for is worth exactly the same as a shot that misses the target.
The last ten minutes
Time remaining is shown on your monitor, and countdown clocks are required on ISSF ranges. Use them. A steady 75 seconds a shot means about 8 shots left at the 10-minute warning.
Think first: The 5-minute warning comes and you still have 9 shots to fire. How many seconds per shot is that?
You can feel this whole sequence in the match simulator. The same clock also shapes your competition day plan.
- Called 25 min before START: 10 min set-up, then 15 min preparation & sighting with unlimited sighters.
- “30 SECONDS” 14 min 30 s into preparation. After match START there are no sighters — a sighter then is a miss.
- A pellet before sighting START zeroes your first match shot; a shot between sighting and START costs 2 points.
- 60 shots in 75 min (90 on paper). Warnings at 10 and 5 min. Unfired shots are misses.