6 : 2009 ISSF WORLD CUP FINALS WCF > WUXI / BEIJING

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1 6 : 2009 ISSF WORLD CUP FINALS WCF > WUXI / BEIJING = I N T E R N A T I O N A L S H O O T I N G S P O R T =» ISSF WORLD CUP FINAL RIFLE AND PISTOL WUXI» ISSF WORLD CUP FINAL SHOTGUN BEIJING» ASIAN CHAMPIONSHIP SHOTGUN ALMATY» ISSF MEETINGS» DOPING: THE ISSF IPOD» RESULTS

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3 CONTENTS 6:09 C O V E R P A G E JIN JONG OH (KOR) It would have been impossible to beat Jin Jong Oh, today this is what his opponents have been repeating after every competition since the 2008 Olympic Games of Beijing. The Korean Pistol phenomenon has been winning all that was to be awarded, in the last two years. The two-time Olympic medallist of Beijing, the best 2008 shooter as the international sport press voted him, closed the 2009 season in the best possible way, finishing on the highest step of the podium once again. Or, better said, twice again. After winning two Gold and one Silver medals throughout this year s ISSF World Cup Series, Jin ruled the World Cup Final in Wuxi, shooting Gold both in the 50m Pistol Men and in the 10m Air Pistol Men events. Still not happy with that, he kept on winning, securing the prize awarded by SIUS Ascor at the traditional Champions Trophy that closed the 2009 ISSF season. What is said by his opponents seems to be true. So far, only Jin has been able to beat himself, recording higher scores from match to match. What is going to happen next year, when the first Olympic Quota Places will be awarded? R E S U LT S N E W S Asian Championship in Almaty, KAZ 38 ISSF ACTIVITIES ISSF Meetings in Munich 4 ISSF World Cup Final in Wuxi, CHN 40 IOC CONGRESS The Olympic movement in Society 6 ISSF World Cup Final in Beijing, CHN 41 COMPETITION ISSF WORLD CUP FINAL in Wuxi, CHN 8 I N F O R M A T I O N COMPETITION ISSF WORLD CUP FINAL in Beijing, CHN 20 DOPING THE ISSF IPOD The information portal on doping 28 Calendar 122 COMPETITION ASIAN CHAMPIONSHIP SHOTGUN in Almaty, KAZ 30 Photos Cover and Contents: Marco Dalla Dea Impressum 122 ISSF RULES Shotgun Committee informs 34 NEWS Industry informs 36 ISSF RANKING Official World Ranking 118 TRANSLATIONS German Version 42 French Version 68 Spanish Version 92 ISSF NEWS 3

4 ACTIVITIES ISSF MEETING IN MUNICH ONCE AGAIN, NOW IN 2009, THE ISSF ORGANIZED THE 7 TH EDITION OF THE WORKSHOP FOR ALL REPRE- SENTATIVES FOR THE ORGANIZERS OF THIS YEAR S SUPERVISED CHAMPIONSHIPS AND COMPETITIONS AS WELL AS THE ORGANIZERS WHO WILL HOLD THESE COMPETITIONS AND CHAMPIONSHIPS NEXT YEAR AT THE HILTON PARK HOTEL IN MUNICH FROM NOVEMBER 6-7. T he number of participants in this Workshop for Championship Organizers is increasing every year and shows us that this meeting is highly accepted by our member federations and also very interesting to the participating representatives of these organizers. This year we had more than 85 participants and following this short report on the activities of this Workshop and the meetings at the Hilton Hotel all interested readers will find a very detailed report by our ISSF Media Coordinator Mr. Marco Dalla Dea, who very effectively put together this report which includes detailed information about our member federations. In this report we all can appreciate how important these presentations on the various topics for the organizers of a World Cup or any ISSF supervised competition can be for the organizers and should encourage our member federations to send representatives of next years competitions to the Workshop in November next year. We also hope that the designated Technical Delegates for next years competitions will participate in this Workshop because they obtain very important information and skills for their work. We would like to express our gratitude and appreciation to our Vice-President Mr. Gary Anderson, who did an outstanding job preparing and heading this Workshop. Later on, immediately following the Workshop, our Section Committees for Rifle, Pistol, Shotgun, Running Target as well as of the Athletes Committee and Technical Committee held their annual meetings at the Hilton Hotel. Very lively discussions on the first year, since the new Rules became effective, took place in these meetings and we thank all our elected officials for their participation and mutual commitment. The Athletes Committee was meeting among itself and was also meeting with each section committee to discuss problems and matters of which they have been informed by their colleague shooters. Our member federations, officials and especially all our shooters will very actively prepare themselves for our major World Championship, which will be organized in Munich next summer, and our youngest athletes will be busy preparing themselves for the first edition of the Youth Olympic Games to be organized next August in Singapore. During this year we enjoyed very successful organizations and celebrations of World Cups and World Cup Finals. In addition, our Running Target discipline enjoyed the successful All Photos: Viola Pfuhl 4 ISSF NEWS

5 ACTIVITIES organization of a separate World Championship for their sport, which unfortunately is not a part of the Olympic Games program anymore. At the end of this year we can declare once more that it was a very successful year for our Olympic Shooting Sport. We wish all our Member Federations and all our shooters great success in their preparation for next years World Cups and especially for the major World Championship. To all our friends and readers of ISSF News we convey our most sincere holiday greetings. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Peaceful New Year 2010 and we are sure that we will be united and strong in the struggle for harmony and solidarity in the Olympic Sport. 7 TH ISSF CHAMPIONSHIPS ORGANIZERS WORKSHOP The ISSF Secretary General Horst G. Schreiber officially opened the 2009 ISSF Championships Organizers Workshop, welcoming the participants on behalf of ISSF President Olegario Vázquez Raña. Championship Organizers for Workshop for Organizers 2009, 2010 and 2011 took part in a meeting that was held at the Hilton Park Hotel in Munich on November 6 and 7. The number of participants rises year after year, which proves to us that this meeting is productive. We would like to improve, year after year. The Workshop is a good chance to share our experiences, and to meet those who will organize ISSF competitions in following years, said Mr. Schreiber while opening the Workshop. We are on the seventh edition of this meeting, and we are looking forward to also organizing a Workshop next year continued Mr. Schreiber I thank you all for helping our future look great. Together with the ISSF President, Mr. Olegario Vazquez Raña, I took part in the IOC Congress in Copenhagen. Let me say that our reputation at the IOC is exceptionally positive. We are going to have 390 quotas also at the 2012 Games. The future ahead of us is brilliant! The ISSF Vice-President, Mr. Gary Anderson, led the Workshop and drew the conclusions of the meeting: We are looking forward to give our athletes and our spectators the best possible championships. Mr. Anderson said - Cooperation and teamwork within the ISSF family is improving, and we strongly encourage it. We looked back at the season, and we looked forward Mr. Anderson continued Organizers are doing an excellent job. We have to keep on working, carefully taking care of all the details required to improve. I am convinced that all of you are committed to excellence. Thank you all for coming here! SUPPORTING THE ORGANIZERS Several topics related to the successful organization of an international championship were discussed during the annual workshop, where organizers of this year s events and ISSF experts shared their experiences with the organizers of Competitions for 2010 and The meeting was also attended by the Competition Manager of the 2012 Olympic Games, Mr. Peter Underhill, who presented London s venues to the ISSF family. The Vice-President of ISSF, Mr. Gary Anderson, spoke about Program Planning and Championship preparation, stressing the need for a careful distribution of programs for competitions and highlighting the importance of a factual communication between the various parts involved in the planning. Careful program planning and an excellent preparation are essential for a successful competition. Try to keep athletes and delegations as much informed as possible, and to respect deadlines; said Mr. Anderson. His opinions were Here are a few of the notable responsibilities that the ISSF has in relation to anti-doping as an affiliated member of the IOC: To encourage and support the promotion of ethics in sport as well as education of youth through sport and to dedicate its efforts to ensuring that, in sport, the spirit of fair play prevails and violence is banned; To encourage and support the organization, development and coordination of sport and sports competitions; To act against any form of discrimination affecting the Olympic Movement; To encourage and support the promotion of women in sport at all levels and in all structures with a view to implementing the principle of equality of men and women; To encourage and support measures protecting the health of athletes; To lead the fight against doping in sport. seconded by Mr. Max Mückel (GER) speaking about the Rifle and Pistol schedules, and by Mr. Petros Kyritsis, who dealt with Shotgun programs. Mr. Anderson also announced that an ISSF Guidelines for Organizers document is going to be released in the following weeks, available to all the championship organizers in order to support them in their work. We are going to publish the guidelines on the organizers section of our website, issf-sports. org, where you will also find all the presentations and information about this Workshop, reminded Mr. Anderson. Sharing their experiences, the 2009 Organizers presented their report regarding this year s competitions, analyzing the positive outcomes and the weak points they faced during the organization of World-level competition. The Organizers also listened to the comments provided by Mr. Juha Hirvi (FIN), Chairman of the ISSF Athletes Committee, who identified positive and negative aspects of this year s competitions. THE OLYMPIC CHARTER LISTS IN DETAIL THE ROLES OF THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE AND ITS AFFILIATED INTERNATIONAL FEDERATIONS. As member of the Olympic Movement, the ISSF mandates you: all shooters, medical personnel, trainers, and everyone involved in any way in shooting-sport to cooperate with the ISSF in accomplishing all its responsibilities under the IOC Charter. The ISSF underlines your shared responsibility in keeping shooting-sport free from doping to ensure an even, healthy playing field for all participants and aspiring Olympians. As always we encourage all of you who wish to submit a question for discussion in the next edition of the IPOD to send your inquest to munich@issf-sports.org. ISSF NEWS 5

6 ACTIVITIES The ISSF anti-doping code complies with international standards, continued Ms. Soubliere all anti-doping rules apply to all ISSF competitions. This year, we had to carry out some out-of competition anti-doping tests aside from the regular in-competition tests. Twenty-eight out-of competition tests and 426 in-competition tests were conducted this year, both during International and National competitions. Two sanction cases were found during international matches, reported the Anti-doping consultant. Make sure that you comply with the WADA document regarding the carrying out of tests. And be prepared to also do doping control before the final, in case of a qualification World Record is set. Ms. Soubliere suggested to the organizers. We are placing our efforts in an extensive education program she continued there is a brand new section dealing with anti-doping matters on the ISSF website, and we are regularly publishing articles on the ISSF NEWS Magazine. We are trying to involve everybody, showing that learning about doping can also be fun! INFORMATION: ISSF ENTRIES AND RESULT SERVICES Up-to-date information and well-organized accreditations are key factors to be taken in consideration during the organization of an international competition: the Information System should be considered a basic factor by the organizers. The ISSF Entries Service and the ISSF Result Service were the topics of two presentations headed by ISSF experts and authorities. Mr. Derek Ivy (GBR) of the ISSF Administrative Council and Mr. Jan Ketzel (GER) of the ISSF Headquarter explained the ISSF Entries and Accreditation Service, stressing the fact that championships entries should always be submitted on-line, through the ISSF on-line Entries Service: The on-line registration is the safest and most accurate system to entry participants, Mr. Ivy said - we invite you to follow our guidelines, in order to avoid misunderstandings and provide for a smoother organization! Respect of deadlines is essential stressed Mr. Ketzel each participant should use our on-line service, and organizers should avoid any confusion: the only way to enter athletes and officials in an ISSF competition is to pass through the ISSF Entries Service. All the documentation has to pass through the ISSF. ANTI-DOPING: NO EFFORT SHOULD BE SPARED The new WADA anti-doping code places more responsibilities on the ISSF. No efforts should be spared to comply with the code, said ISSF Anti-Doping consultant, Ms. Janie Soubliere (CAN), who had been working on the matter under the supervision of the Chairman of the ISSF Medical Committee, Dr. James Lally (USA). RULES AND JURY The Chairman of the ISSF Technical Committee, Mr. David Parish (GBR) presented the latest changes of the ISSF rules-book, A few issues with rules arose in 2009, most are minor changes and reviews of existing rules. We invite you to get an updated ISSF Rulebook; Mr. Parish said, reminding that the rulebook and Errata may be downloaded from the ISSF website. The Chairman of the ISSF Judges Committee, Ms. Kerstin Bodin (SWE), reported on the 2009 season, explaining how ISSF Juries are appointed and dealing with Juries responsibilities. Thirty-four different countries were represented by 2009 Juries, and 15% of the Juries were women, said Ms. Bodin Of course, we are looking to improve these numbers, and we are especially trying to increase the number of women, but we are quite satisfied about this year s Juries. We are asking to our Organizers to welcome a certain number of extra Judges who are willing to improve their international experience. Mr. Bodin also commented on this year s results: We had overall positive feedbacks from Juries and Technical Delegates, and we are looking forward to improve. Our Juries have been doing a great job, but we should take care of maintaining a high-standard. I ask you to pay attention to language problems: our Juries should be able to communicate fluently in English. Rehearsal is also a key word for our job: careful training and a deep knowledge of rules and procedures is essential for a smooth competition. 6 ISSF NEWS

7 ACTIVITIES OPERATIVE INFO: SHARING ISSF KNOW-HOW ISSF experts and authorities were in charge of relayed their know-how to next year s Championships Organizers, both by promoting a series of small-group meetings and by giving lessons on operative matters. Mr. Aado Maranik (AUS), a member of the ISSF Rifle Committee, explained the basic procedures of Equipment and Testing Controls, dealing with the equipment required and with the various testing procedures and reported on the 2009 season. Mr. Tomislav Sepec (CRO), the Chairman of the ISSF Rifle Committee, led a discussion about rifle range competition operations, followed by a lesson of Ms. Susan Abbott (USA) about pistol range competition operations. Mr. Keith Murray (GBR) of the ISSF Shotgun Committee conducted a lesson dealing with shotgun competition operations. Mr. Murray explained the various phases of a shotgun competition, highlighting the importance of a well-trained group of officials to run a competition and to comply with official schedules. Train and rehearse. And when you have finished, train and rehearse again, he stressed, backed by ISSF experts. Mr. Li Feng (CHN), member of the ISSF Executive Committee, relayed his experience at the 2008 Olympic Games on the topics of organizing Final round competitions and carrying out award ceremonies. MEDIA COVERAGE: COLLABORATION WANTED The ISSF TV Project Coordinator, Mr. Wolfgang Schreiber (GER), and the ISSF Media Coordinator, Marco Dalla Dea, explained the various requirements involved in the TV coverage of championships by the ISSF TV, and identified the various opportunities offered by TV productions. We are working in the interest of the sport and of the organizers, said Mr. Schreiber ISSF TV has the experience and the capability to produce video footage that complies with international standards. We are publishing highlights of competitions, interviews and full finals on our website issf-sports.org. We have been covering Final rounds live, choosing international athletes and experts to work as commentators. We have successfully collaborated with several international and national television stations this year, receiving positive feedbacks. No efforts should be spared by next year s organizers to ensure a positive TV coverage, and to involve local media during the competitions. Collaboration is the keyword said the ISSF Media Coordinator we want to work in close contact with the Organizers to set up a network with the local media. We produce video footage; you can help us by promoting the material among local media, in order to reach a positive coverage of the event. The ISSF has several communication channels: TV, website, newsletter, magazine let us use them all! We would like to share all our capacities of communication with you. So feed us with your news! LONDON 2012: THE VENUE UNVEILED The 2009 ISSF Workshop gave the 2012 Olympics Competition Manager, Mr. Peter Underhill, the opportunity to present the projects of the Olympic venues in London. A new and temporary shooting venue will be built in the green area facing the Woolwich Royal Artillery Barracks, in Greenwich, in the heart of the Games. The venue is truly in the heart of the city, on the river-zone. Shooting is going to be placed in the heart of the Olympics, twenty minutes away from the Olympic Village, and about fifteen minutes from the city center. It is not going to be a stand-alone venue. Equestrian, Badminton and Gymnastics will be placed in the same area, said Mr. Underhill. A temporary three-range Shotgun venue will be built on the spectacular grounds of the Woolwich Royal Artillery Barracks. In order to deliver an excellent and uniform background to the competitors, a special net destined to collect lead and targets will be placed eighty meters in front of the shooting lines. The green net, produced expressly for this purpose by a German company, will reach a height of 20 meters, and will be removable. We really tried to maximize the sport presentation by placing the sport venue next to historical and meaningful buildings. It will be possible to move the net up and down, for example during TV presentations, before the finals. It is going to be great for athletes, and spectacular for audience. The Rifle and Pistol venue will provide 60 lines for 50 meters events, 60 lines for 10 meters events, and 40 lines for 25 meters events. A specific combined World Cup test-event should be held at the end of April Both at the test event and at the Games we are going to use sport-specific volunteers, people with a certain experience in the sport. We have seen the venue and we approved it commented ISSF Secretary General Horst G. Schreiber, following the presentation of Mr. Underhill - We are very happy that our athletes will be in the Olympic village, in the heart of the Olympic City. We said no to a satellite village. We insisted on this point. We succeeded to be truly in the heart of the Games, to give our athletes a chance to experience the true feeling of the Games. Olegario Vázquez Raña President of ISSF Horst G. Schreiber Secretary General of ISSF ISSF NEWS 7

8 WCF WUXI 2009 ISSF RIFLE&PISTOL WORLD CUP FINAL WUXI NOTHING LESS THAN THE BEST THE 2009 WORLD CUP SERIES IN RIFLE AND PISTOL EVENTS CLOSED IN WUXI, CHINA, WHERE THIS YEAR S WORLD CUP FINAL TOOK PLACE FROM THE 24TH THROUGH THE 29TH OF OCTOBER. ONLY THE BEST QUALIFIED TO TAKE PART IN THE COM- PETITION: 85 ATHLETES FROM 29 COUNTRIES MET HERE TO COMPETE AT THE BRAND NEW SHOOTING RANGE OF WUXI AFTER BEING SELECTED THROUGHOUT THIS YEAR S FOUR WORLD CUP STAGES AT CHANGWON, BEIJING, MUNICH AND MILAN. C hina s Wu Liuxi, winner of the 10m Air Rifle Women event that took place on October 25, was the thousandth athlete taking part in an ISSF World Cup Final: since the competition was established in 1988, 999 shooters have qualified and taken part in it, including 621 men and 378 women. We are honored to host this world level sport competition in our city, said Wuxi s Mayor, Mao Xiaoping, who officially opened the competition inaugurating the new Wuxi Shooting Range and Archery Hall. We would like to extend a warm welcome to all the shooters and distinguished guests from China and abroad said Mr. Mao Xiaoping As one of the major economic cities in China, Wuxi is putting a lot of efforts into attracting sport events, and its citizens are sport enthusiasts. As a competitive sport, shooting is greatly popular in our city, and we are honored to host such a prime event. I hope this ISSF World Cup Final will enjoy total success. The Chinese Shooting Association proves its leadership in the development of our shooting sport once again, commented Sheik Salman Al Sabah, President of the Asian Shooting Confederation, speaking from the opening ceremony s stage On behalf of the Asian shooting confederation, we welcome our colleagues of the ISSF and our international shooters. We thank the Chinese people and the Organizing Committee for hosting us in this magnificent sport facility. The World s best shooters qualified to compete here: we wish them a fair and high standard competition! The ISSF Technical Delegate, Mr. Woo Jae Lee from Korea, welcomed the athletes on behalf of the ISSF, wishing them a successful competition, and thanked the Organizing Committee for their excellent job preparing the event. The President of the Chinese Shooting Association, Mr. Feng Jianzhong, fired a 10m Air Rifle shot as the symbolic first shot of the 2009 World Cup Final. CHINESE SHOOTERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT An impressive number of spectators followed the entire ten final rounds that were held during this year s World Cup Final, confirming the words of the town s major Mao Xiaoping, who had referred to it as a sports enthusiastic city. The fans were not disappointed, as the home shooters won the highest number of medals, placing in first in the overall medal standings. China led the World Cup Final, earning an impressive total number of nine medals out of ten events. The Chinese shooters won three Gold (including the first Gold medal of the competition, obtained by Wu Liuxi at the 10m Air Rifle Women Final), four Silver and two Bronze medals, finishing upon nine podiums. The home team s greatest stage of success were the 10-meter events, as Chinese shooters won three Gold medals at the 10m Air Rifle Women, the 10m Air Pistol Women and the 10m Air Rifle Men events. The Korean team placed in second, thanks to the Olympic Champion of Beijing Jin Jong Oh who earned two Gold medals. The Pistol master, one of the most successful shooters of the ISSF World Cup circuit in recent years, easily won both the 50-meter and the THE MEDAL STANDINGS RK NOC G S B TOTAL 1 CHN KOR USA NOR RUS GEO SRB GER BLR HUN POR AUS FIN JPN SVK TOTAL All Photos: Marco Dalla Dea 8 ISSF NEWS

9 WCF WUXI GOLD WU, Liuxi (CHN) SILVER YIN, Wen (CHN) BRONZE GALKINA, Lioubov (RUS) 10M AIR RIFLE WOMEN 10-meter Pistol events, leaving his opponents a few points behind.the third spot of the overall medal standing ranking was earned by the United States of America, with three medals, one Gold, one Silver and one Bronze. Olympic multi-medallist Matthew Emmons turned out to be the star of this ISSF World Cup Final: the 28-year old shooter led the 50m Rifle Three Positions Men event, winning his third consecutive title while receiving support and applauses from the Chinese audience: It s an emotion I cannot describe. The Chinese audience made me feel like I was at home. He said before the crowd of Chinese spectators who cheered for him right to the last shot. CHINESE TEAM-MATES DUEL TILL THE END The opening final round of the 2009 ISSF World Cup Final in Rifle and Pistol events in Wuxi was followed by a number of Chinese spectators who crowded the brand new final hall to support their athletes during the 10m Air Rifle Women event. The home athletes did not disappoint the expectations of their fans: after going through the qualifications, three Chinese shooters made it into the final, and performed at their best in a breathtaking final match. The title defender, China s Wu Liuxi, walked into the final hall with a matched World Record of 400 points, and with a slight margin of one point over her team-mate Yin Wen, an expert in this event. The tables turned immediately, as Wu lost her advantage on the first shot by firing a disappointing 9.6 that could not compete against Yin s From there on, the round turned into a spine chilling neck and neck duel between the two team-mates, who battled for Gold right to the last shot. Moving back and forth in first and second position, competing on the edge of tenths, the two team-mates arrived almost tied to the eighth competition shot. The following last two shots determined the victory of Wu, who moved to first place winning the Gold medal with a margin of 0.5 points over her team-mate Yin, who placed in second. With a total score of points ( ), Wu confirmed the title she had won at last year s World Cup Final Awards 10m Air Rifle Women in Bangkok. Behind her, 27-year old Yin Wen closed the round in second place, with a total score of points ( ). She had never participated in a World Cup Final in this event, but she was regarded as one of the favorites to step on Wuxi s podium, as she had won two World Cup Gold medals this year at the World Cup Stages of Changwon and Beijing. The experienced Russian Olympian Lioubov Galkina followed in third, winning Bronze with a total score of points ( ). The 2008 Olympic Silver medallist placed in second at last year s World Cup Final in Bangkok, and she qualified for this year s final by reaching good results throughout this year s ISSF World Cup Series. The Ukraine s Darya Shytko, 23-years old, finished just one tenth of a point away from the podium, ending up in fourth place with a total score of points. The 2008 Olympian had never participated in an ISSF World Cup Final before, and she qualified to compete in Wuxi by winning this year s World Cup Stage in Munich. Climbing to the fourth place, Shytko defeated the third Chinese finalist, 20-year old Yi Siling, Silver medal winner of this year s World Cup Stage in Munich, who ended up in fifth place with a total score of points. Korea s Lee Da Hye, 22-years old, followed her in sixth place, while Italy s Petra Zublasing, 20 years old, the youngest finalist, finished in seventh with a total of points. Closing the match in eighth and last place, the 2004 Asian Champion, India s Suma Shirur scored a total of points. ISSF NEWS 9

10 WCF WUXI 10M AIR RIFLE MEN SILVER SIDI, Peter (HUN) GOLD ZHU, Qinan (CHN) BRONZE HAKKINEN, Henri (FIN) JIN AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD RANKING The World s number one free pistol shooter, Jin Jong Oh of Korea, won the 50m Pistol Men competition at the 2009 ISSF World Cup Final in Wuxi, leaving his opponents far behind as he finished in the lead with an unbeatable advantage of thirteen points. The 30-year old Olympic Champion of Beijing, who came here to Wuxi to defend the title he had won at last year s Final in Bangkok, walked into the final round with an 11-point head start over his followers after qualifying with 575 points. During the final match, the Korean champion increased his margin over his competitors, scoring 96.8 points and finishing on the highest step of the podium with a total of points, a score that none of his opponents could match. Jin seems to be unbeatable on the firing lines of the 50m Pistol Men events: starting with the 2008 Olympic Gold medal won in Beijing, all the way through his victories at the 2008 ISSF World Cup Final and at the 2009 ISSF World Cup Stage of Changwon, his leadership in the World Ranking has never been contested. The shooter who placed in second, silver medalist Joao Costa of Portugal, closed THE DUEL OF WORLD RANKING LEADERS The 10m Air Rifle Men final round was probably one of the most followed matches of the 2009 ISSF World Cup Final in Rifle and Pistol events in Wuxi. The World s number one in this event, Chinese idol Zhu Qinan, faced the World Ranking s number two Peter Sidi of Hungary in an intense final round that remained open to any result until the last shot. Walking into the final hall in second place, with a qualification score of 598 points, Zhu started climbing on her first shot. Coming closer to Sidi, he jeopardized his chances of winning on his fourth and sixth final shots, when he fired 9.8 and 9.5 points, but he was able to recover during the second half of the match by also taking advantage of his opponent s mistakes. Closing the match with a couple of outstanding shots, the Chinese hero, Olympic Champion of Athens and Silver medallist of the last Game of Beijing, climbed to the lead. With a final score of points, and a total score of points, Zhu ended up in first place, winning his third consecutive ISSF World Cup Final title, and confirming once again his leadership in the World Ranking. Hungary s Peter Sidi, who had walked into this year s ISSF World Cup Final as second in the World Ranking behind Zhu, started the final round in the lead thanks to a qualification score of 599 points. Trying to defend his leadership from Zhu, he missed on his seventh final shot, firing a disappointing 8.5 and falling back into second place, thereby winning Silver with points. I was tired said Sidi right after the final I don t know exactly what happened, I am just a little bit stressed by the time change. We came to China just a couple of days ago, and I had no time to get used to the time zone. I am sorry about that freaky shot anyway, I finished on the podium, and I am glad I am bringing a medal back home. The Olympic Bronze medallist of Beijing, 29-year old Finnish shooter Henry Hakkinen, won the World Cup Final Bronze medal with a total score of points. After qualifying for the final match with a score of 595 points, the Finnish shooter climbed onto the podium after defeating China s Cao Yifei by shooting a final of points. Awards 10m Air Rifle Men GOLD JIN, Jong Oh (KOR) 50M PISTOL MEN SILVER COSTA, Joao (POR) 10 ISSF NEWS

11 WCF WUXI GOLD KLIMOV, Alexei (RUS) Awards 50m Pistol Men the match thirteen points behind Jin, with a total score of points ( ). The 44-year old Portuguese athlete, three-times Olympian, participated in the 2002, 2007 and 2008 World Cup Finals, but previously he had never made it to the podium. Slovakian finalist Pavol Kopp, 30 years old, finished in third place earning the Bronze medal with a total score of points. After entering the match with 560 qualification points, Kopp climbed to third place, defeating the Olympic Champion of Athens, Russia s Mikhail Nestruev with 95.6 points. Clearly disappointed by his final score of points, Nestruev had to face domestic shooter Shi Xinglong in a shoot-off for the fourth place. The Russian Olympic Champion, winner of six World Cup Final medals, took a few seconds to regroup, and then defeated his Chinese opponent 10.2 to 9.0 points, which placed him in fifth. BRONZE KOPP, Pavol (SVK) SILVER REITZ, Christian (GER) 25M RAPID FIRE PISTOL MEN KLIMOV EARNS HIS SECOND TITLE Russian Rapid Fire Pistol shooter Alexei Klimov won his second consecutive ISSF World Cup Final title in Wuxi, confirming his leadership in this event one year after the 2008 World Cup Final in Bangkok. The 34-year old Russian shooter made it into the final round in second place, and then climbed to the top making up for the point of disadvantage he had in regards to qualification leader Reitz, finishing in first with a total score of points ( ). Klimov is not new to World Cup Final spotlight: he won the title in 2008 and 2006, and he had made it to the podium in 2007, where he obtained a Silver medal. Winning this ISSF World Cup Final in Wuxi, Klimov defeated the current World Ranking leader, 22-year old record holder Christian Reitz of Germany, one of the youngest and strongest Rapid Fire shooters today. Reitz went through a good qualification round, and entered the final round in the lead. The young shooter, looking for the highlight of his season here in Wuxi, placed himself in second by firing a couple of disappointing shots in the eighth ring on his last final series, when he had no time left to recover. The Olympic Bronze medalist of Beijing ended in second place, winning Silver with points ( ). BRONZE AKIYAMA, Teruyoshi (JPN) Awards 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men Sometimes history repeats itself: Reitz placed in second behind Klimov, the same as in last year s World Cup Final held in Bangkok. Japan s marksman Akiyama Teruyoshi, 37 years old, earned the Bronze medal by placing in third behind Klimov and Reitz with a total score of points ( ). The Japanese athlete faced and defeated his opponent Taras Magmet on the second relay, winning the second medal of his international sport career after the Bronze he obtained at this year s ISSF World Cup Stage in Beijing. Magmet landed in sixth place, while India s Vijay Kumar closed the match in fourth with points. The Olympic Champion of Beijing, the Ukraine s Oleksanr Petriv, ended up in fifth place with points. Following his success at the Games, the Ukrainian shooter never made it back to an ISSF podium, and he managed to squeeze into this year s World Cup Final by placing in fourth at the World Cup Stage in Milan. ISSF NEWS 11

12 WCF WUXI GOLD BERG, Vebjoern (NOR) BERG TRIUMPHS BY 0. 4 POINTS Uncommon shooting skills and a bit of luck took the Norwegian shooter Vebjoern Berg to the highest podium of the year. The 29-year old athlete won the 50m Rifle Prone Men final at the ISSF World Cup Final in Rifle and Pistol events in Wuxi by 0.4 points, a margin of a few tenths of a millimeter over his opponents. He started the final round in the lead, tied to the USA s Michael McPhail and to Australia s Warren Potent. The three shooters competed almost tied along the whole final, but the last shot determined the victory of Berg, who fired an outstanding 10.8 finishing in the lead with a total score of points ( ), 0.4 more than what Silver medalist McPhail scored. This is the best way to conclude a good season. I ve reached good results both at national and international stages, and I was seeking a medal at the World Cup Final, said Berg smiling after his last shot. During the 2009 season, he only took part in the ISSF World Cup held in Milan, where he won a Silver medal, thus qualifying for this year s Final in Wuxi. It has not been easy... he continued, speaking about the final I was hoping to finish on the highest step of the podium, but I would not say that I was expecting it. Next year s most important competition is the World Championship in Munich. Berg said about the forthcoming season The first Olympic Quota Places for London are going to be awarded there, and all the best shooters of the world will try to get them. I took a break but now I am starting my preparation for next season. The Silver medal went to the USA s Michael McPhail. The 27-year old American shooter finished in second with points ( ), winning his first World Cup Final medal ever. The American shooter was one of the stars of the 2009 ISSF World Cup Series, after winning two Bronze medals at the World Cups held in Beijing and in Munich. This has been an unnerving final, we were all tied, it was a neck and neck battle. You all saw how it ended he commented after the match, looking at the scoreboard: he finished four tenths behind Berg, and two tenths ahead of Potent. The title defender, Australia s Potent, did not confirm his title, but finished among the best once again. Currently ranking first in the Rifle Prone World Ranking, the Beijing Olympic Bronze medalist collected medals throughout the whole season this year. He won Gold at the World Cups of Changwon, Beijing and Milan, missing the highest step of the podium only in Munich. Dueling against Berg and McPhail for a spot on today s podium, Potent ended in third place with a total score of points ( ), just two tenths less than McPhail and six tenths away from the Gold. The intense match did not even finish at the last shot: the Australian shooter had to participate in a shootoff to obtain the Bronze medal, outdoing Italy s Marco De Nicolo 10.3 to 9.4 points. SILVER MCPHAIL, Michael (USA) BRONZE POTENT, Warren (AUS) 50M RIFLE PRONE MEN Awards 50m Rifle Prone Men 12 ISSF NEWS

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14 WCF WUXI Awards 50m Rifle 3 Positions Women MIHAJLOVIC WINS GOLD Serbian shooter Lidija Mihajlovic defeated China s Du Li in the 50m Rifle Three Positions Women event, earning the Gold medal after an intense duel. Mihajlovic won the round with a total score of points, leaving Olympic Champion Du in second place two points behind her, and American Olympian Beyerle in third place. The Serbian athlete had qualified for the final round with a score of 586 points. Starting in third place, she climbed all the way to the first place by shooting points in the final, an outstanding score that turned out to be unreachable by domestic shooter Du and American finalist Jemie Beyerle, who started tied in the lead with 587 points after the qualifications. Both finalists shot tied throughout the first part of 50M RIFLE 3 POSITIONS WOMEN the match, Du moving to the lead by a few tenths after the first two shots, and Beyerle returning to the lead after firing an outstanding 10.9 on her third competition shot. Things changed during the second half of the match: the American shooter eventually slipped due to a disappointing 8.7-point shot, but Du Li did not take advantage of this, scoring a 9.0 that made her slide behind Mihajlovic. From there on, Beyerle and Du continued dueling for the Silver, while Mihajlovic was approaching the Gold and taking advantage of her opponents mistakes. The medal standings were decided by the very last competition shot, which turned out to be decisive to assign the medals. Du Li scored a 10.1, securing Silver with a total score of points ( ), while Beyerle finished in third place with 684 points ( ) as she fired a 7.7-point shot. China s Wan Xiangyan closed the match in fourth place, with points, followed by Russia s Lioubov Galkina, fifth with points. Meanwhile, the 10m Air Rifle Women Silver medalist Yin Wen, third Chinese finalist, ended in sixth place with points, preceding India s Sawant (seventh with points) and Kazakhstan s Malinoskaya (eighth with points). GOLD SALUKVADZE, Nino (GEO) 25M PISTOL WOMEN SILVER CHEN, Ying (CHN) OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS FACE TO FACE GOLD MIHAJLOVIC, Lidija (SRB) SILVER DU, Li (CHN) BRONZE BEYERLE, Jamie (USA) The 1988 Olympic Champion Nino Salukvadze won the 25m Pistol Women event, obtaining the 2009 ISSF World Cup Final Gold medal by defeating 2008 Olympic Champion Chen Ying, cheered by her national supporters here in Wuxi. Georgian champion Salukvadze built her victory during the morning s qualifications, entering the final round with 589 points and a solid advantage of five points over her opponents. Salukvadze left her competitors far behind, leaving the final with a score of points, a score that took her to the highest step of the podium with a total of points. The Georgian shooter, Bronze medalist at the last Olympic Games in the 10m Air Pistol Women event, has a long history of successes in ISSF events. Competing both in the 10m Air Pistol and in the 25m Pistol Women events, the 40-year old athlete possesses 8 World Cup Final Gold medals won throughout her sport career since She obtained her last World Cup Final title in the 25m Pistol Women event sixteen years ago, in Winning this year s final, she defeated Beijing s Olympic Champion Chen Ying, who entered the final round in fourth place and struggled right to the last shot to find a spot on the podium. The battle for the Silver medal was breathtaking for the audience, 14 ISSF NEWS

15 BRONZE DORJSUREN, Munkhbayar (GER) as Chen and the title defender, Germany s Munkhbayar Dorjsuren dueled to reach the second step of the podium. Chen, 31-years old, currently second place in the World Ranking, started in fourth place after scoring 584 points throughout the qualifications. Then, she rapidly climbed and tied with Dorjsuren, who had qualified in third with 586 points. Both athletes shot almost tied throughout the last two final series, separated by only a few tenths of a point. Chen eventually moved to second place, winning Silver with points ( ), and six tenths of an advantage over Dorjsuren, Bronze medalist with points ( ). The shooter who qualified in second with 586 points, China s Wu Yan, ended up in fourth place behind Spain s Sonia Franquet after shooting a disappointing final score (197.1 points, for a total of points). Her teammate Yuan Jing followed her in sixth, with a total score of 781.6, preceding Kazakhstan Yuliya Bondareva and Belarus Viktoria Chaika. THREE-WAY FIGHT FOR THE GOLD A three-way tie opened the 10m Air Pistol Women Final, as three shooters made it into the final match with a matched qualification score of 387 points. Olympic Champion Guo Wenjun, her team-mate Hu Jun, and Belarusian champion Viktorya Chaika, battled throughout the final round in a breathtaking neck and neck battle to reach the Gold medal, with scores fluctuating by only tenths. China s Guo Wenjun was the first to miss, firing a frustrating 8.1 on her second competition shot. The Olympic Champion slid to third place, and even if she had managed to score tens again, she wouldn t have been able to recover from her mistake. Ahead of her, Hu and Chaika continued to duel for the brightest medal right to the end, separated by just tiny fractions of points. Thirty-one year old Chinese finalist Hu Jun triumphed on her last shot, defeating her opponent Chaika by three tenths and winning Gold with a total score of points ( ). The 31-year old athlete qualified for this year s ISSF World Cup Final by obtaining a Gold medal at the World Cup in Beijing, and a Silver at the World Cup Stage in Milan. I am happy about this victory, although I know I should improve, said Hu right after the final, interviewed by a crowd of Chinese journalists I fired a couple of bad shots, and I could have scored an higher total She commented 10M AIR PISTOL WOMEN Awards 10m Air Pistol Women WCF WUXI about her eighth and ninth final shots, a 9.4 and a 9.1 that jeopardized her chances of victory World Champion Chaika, 28 years old, ended in second place, just three tenths behind, with a total score of points ( ), as she scored a 9.8-point last shot. Current World Ranking leader Guo could not catch up with her team-mate Hu and the Belarusian finalist Chaika, thereby ending in third place nine tenths behind them, and winning Bronze with points ( ). Korea s Lee Ho Lim, who climbed twice upon ISSF podiums throughout this year s World Cup Series, finished in fourth place. In spite of shooting the highest score of the final (100.9 points), the 21-year old athlete closed the round in fourth, four tenths away from the Bronze medalist, a consequence of her lower qualification score of 384 points. The Olympic Champion of 2004 Olena Kostevich followed in fifth place, with a total score of points ( ), while Australia s hope, Lalita Yauhleuskaya, 45 years old, placed in sixth with points ( ). GOLD HU, Jun (CHN) Awards 25m Pistol Women SILVER CHAIKA, Viktoria (BLR) BRONZE GUO, Wenjun (CHN) ISSF NEWS 15

16 WCF WUXI GOLD JIN, Jong Oh (KOR) 10M AIR PISTOL MEN SILVER PANG, Wei (CHN) UNBEATABLE JIN WINS AGAIN Two days after his victory in the 50m Pistol Men event, Korean shooter Jing Jong Oh triumphed again, winning the 10m Air Pistol Men final and leaving the 2009 ISSF World Cup Final undefeated. The Olympic multi-medalist earned his second Gold by defeating 2008 Olympic Champion Pang Wei, supported here by a a large crowd from Wuxi, his hometown. Jin fought right to the last shot to obtain his second Gold. Starting the match in first place with 591 points after the qualifications, he lost his two-point head start on the second final shot by firing a disappointing 8.6. Managing to focus once again, the Korean athlete started to climb the scoreboard thanks to great shots, BRONZE MAI, Jiajie (CHN) trying to catch up with China s Pang Wai. Both shooters shot an exciting neck and neck duel right to the last shot, when Jin finally moved back to the lead, ending up on the highest step of the podium with one point of advantage over Pang and a total score of points. Twenty-three year old local hero Pang, a Gold medalist of the last Olympic Games in Beijing, experienced the pressure of the match and did not take advantage of having the home-court advantage as well as the support of his fans. In spite of having an extraordinary chance to win the Gold, he was unable to take advantage of it, finishing in second and obtaining Silver with a total score of points. Exactly one year ago, at the World Cup Final in Bangkok, he won Bronze. In spite of missing the Gold medal, the Awards 10m Air Pistol Men Chinese team walked out of the 10m Air Pistol Men s match with two medals, as Pang s teammate Mai Jiajie finished in third, winning the Bronze. The young pistol shooter, who qualified for this year s World Cup Final by obtaining Silver at the World Cup Stage in Beijing, climbed the scoreboard after starting in fourth place, and later on reaching a spot on the podium with a total score of points, after shooting an impressive final round of points. The 2007 World Cup Final Champion, Russia s Vladimir Isakov (39 years old) finished in fourth place, closing the match two points behind the medalists with a total score of points. Following him, the youngest finalist of this match, 19-year old Swiss shooter Lukas Grunder, finished in fifth place with points. 16 ISSF NEWS

17 EMMONS STEALS WUXI S HEART The USA s Olympic Champion Matthew Emmons confirmed his leadership in the 50m Rifle Three Positions Men event again by winning his fifth ISSF World Cup Final Gold medal, earning once more the title he had won at the 2008 World Cup Final in Bangkok. The American shooter won both the most valuable medal as well as the hearts of the Chinese audience, scoring more points then anyone else, and earning the warmest applauses from the audience. Emmons won the Gold with a total score of points, climbing from the third place he originally had thanks to an outstanding final score of points, the highest score shot in this final round. While he was moving up from the third position towards the lead, the Chinese audience crowding Wuxi s final hall forgot the two Chinese shooters struggling in sixth and eighth place, and started cheering for him, clapping after every shot. I realized they were cheering for me. That s awesome. It s an emotion I cannot describe. The USA and China are often rivals in these Olympic competitions but this audience made me feel like I was at home! said Emmos, signing autographs for the audience and journalists after the medal ceremony. I am thrilled about this victory he added, speaking about the final I changed my sightings after the 50m Rifle Prone event, and I was quite confident as I walked into the final hall. It has been a great day! The leader during qualifications, Korean shooter Han Jinseop, closed the match in second place, finishing behind Emmons with a total score of points. Han had entered the final match with the highest qualification score of 1180 points, three points more than Emmons, but he lost his advantage as he shot twice in the eighth ring, and his final score of 94.6 points turned out to be too weak to defeat Emmon s Twenty-one year old Norwegian Rifle shooter Ole Magnus Bakken turned out to be the unlucky athlete of the final. The young champion, one of the best rifle shooters of this year s ISSF World Cup Series, made it into the WCF WUXI final tied to Han in the lead, thanks to a qualification score of 1180 points. Keeping his advantage over Emmons, he came close to the Gold medal, but a terrible last shot of 5.3 points sent him to third place, earning a Bronze medal, with a total score of points ( ). Really everything can happen a match s result can really change at the last shot, it s not the first time that it happens commented Gold medalist Emmons. India s hope, Air Rifle specialist Gagan Narang, closed the final round in fourth place with a total score of points. Following him, 2008 Olympic Bronze medalist Debevec of Slovenia placed in fifth place with points, while the two Chinese team-mates He and Qui finished in sixth and eighth place, separated by Italy s Niccolò Campriani, who closed the round in seventh, as he had started. 50M RIFLE 3 POSITIONS MEN SILVER HAN, Jinseop (KOR) BRONZE BAKKEN, Ole Magnus (NOR) Awards 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men GOLD EMMONS, Matthew (USA) ISSF NEWS 17

18 WCF WUXI JIN, Jong Oh (KOR) THE SIUS ASCOR AWARD BEYERLE, Jamie (USA) JIN AND BEYERLE RECEIVE THE AWARDS Unstoppable Korean Pistol shooter Jin Jong Oh and American Olympian Jamie Beyerle were the winners of this year s Champions Trophy, the traditional trophy sponsored by SIUS Ascor that awards euros to each winner. The Champions Trophy, which usually concludes the ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup Finals, confirmed to be a successful formula loved by the shooters and by the audience. All of the medalists of the World Cup Final were eligible to take part in the Champions Trophy, where they had to choose between an Air Rifle and the Air Pistol match. The competition was held in standing position, on the classical 10-meter distance, and it was mixed: Men and Women competed together for the prize in a direct elimination battle. The rules of the Champions Trophy seek to select the best of the best, in a fast and intense competition. Four shots are fired to decide a start list, and then, shot after shot, one athlete after the other, the shooter with the lowest score has to leave the competition. When only two shooters are left on the firing line, the total is set back to zero and the match turns into a duel: three shots are fired to decide the winner of the Champions Trophy, facing the additional challenge of an audience making as many noises as possible. The audience plays an active role in the match by cheering as loudly as possible: the usual rule of the silence is repealed during the Trophy, and the audience in Wuxi cheered as loud as possible, encouraged by the speaker to forget of the silence-code. Beijing s Olympic Champion Jin Jong Oh won the Pistol Champions Trophy, obtaining his third victory in this ISSF World Cup Final after the Gold medals he won in the 10m Air Pistol Men and in the 50m Pistol Men competitions. The 30-year old Korean athlete defeated all of his opponents right to the last duel against Chinese shooter Mai Jiajie. The face-to-face challenge favored Jin, who earned the euros cash awarded by SIUS ASCOR after defeating Mai in a shoot-offe, 10.5 to 9.7 points. The USA s Jamie Beyerle won the Rifle Trophy award by shooting an outstanding average of 10.4 points on her way to the prize. Her thrilling performance throughout the final suggested that she would come out triumphant in the last duel, when Bayerle defeated domestic shooter Wu Liuxi during the very last shot. Marco Dalla Dea 18 ISSF NEWS

19 BEST PERFORMANCE WALTHER SMALL BORE RIFLE WALTHER KK300 Alutec CHRISTIAN PLANER GOLD EUROPEAN CHAMPION OSIJEK 2009 Gagan Narang, IND Gold World Cup Changwon 2009 Abhinav Bindra, IND Gold Beijing 2008 World Champion 2006 Lioubov Galkina, RUS Torben Grimmel, DEN Gold World Cup Beijing 2009 Gold World Cup Milan 2008 Silver World Cup Bangkok 2008 Silver World Cup Gold WCH Zagreb 2006 Rio de Janeiro 2008 Henry Josselin, FRA Silver World Cup Beijing 2009 Silver World Cup Changwon 2009 A M E M B E R O F T H E U M A R E X G R O U P TRADITION OF INNOVATION w w w. c a r l - w a l t h e r. c o m

20 WCF BEIJING TARGETS AMONG THE SNOWFLAKES 20 ISSF NEWS