# ISSF 50 meter rifle three positions

50 meter rifle three positions (formerly known as one of four free rifle disciplines) is an International Shooting Sport Federation event, a miniature version of 300 meter rifle three positions. It consists of the kneeling, prone, and standing positions, fired in that order, traditionally with 3×40 shots for men and 3×20 shots for women. In January 2018, the number of shots was equalised between genders with the Women's 3x20 being abolished in favour of a 3x40 match identical to the men's event. The caliber is .22 Long Rifle (5.6 mm).
In both the men's and women's event, athletes must complete the course of fire within a single time block of 2 hours, 45 minutes. Before January 2018, the Women's 3x20 event had a time limit of 1 hour, 45 minutes. These time limits are applicable to matches conducted using electronic targets; longer times are used if the slower manual scoring system is used. Until 2018, women's rifles were limited to 6.5 kilograms (14 lb), as opposed to 8.0 kilograms (17.6 lb) for men. This was the only remaining difference between men's and women's equipment after the switch from standard rifles to sport rifles. In January 2018 with the women's event extended to a 3x40 match, the 6.5 kilograms (14 lb) limit was abolished, with Women permitted to use rifles up to 8.0 kilograms (17.6 lb). This rendered the men's and women's events identical in both number of shots and equipment permitted.
In major competitions, including World Cups and World Championships, the top eight competitors reach a finals match, where the medal positions are decided. Beginning in 2013, a new finals format was instituted, in which the qualification score is discarded, and the standings among the top eight shooters are determined by their finals scores alone. The course of fire was also changed significantly with the new rules, from the previous 10-shot program in only the standing position, into a 45-shot elimination format in all three positions. After 10 of the 15 shots of the final, standing stage, the two lowest-ranked shooters are eliminated. For the remaining five shots, the lowest-ranked shooter is eliminated after each shot, before the final shot decides the gold and silver medalists among the final two survivors.

## World Championships, Men

| Year | Place | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1937 | Helsinki | Jacques Louis Mazoyer (FRA) | Viljo Leskinen (FIN) | Gustav Lokotar (EST) |
| 1939 | Luzern | Karl Steigelmann (GER) | August Liivik (EST) | Kurt Johansson (SWE) |
| 1949 | Buenos Aires | Pauli Aapeli Janhonen (FIN) | Arthur Edwin Cook (USA) | Erling Asbjoern Kongshaug (NOR) |
| 1952 | Oslo | Erling Asbjoern Kongshaug (NOR) | Robert Bürchler (SUI) | Johan Hunæs (NOR) |
| 1954 | Caracas | Anatoli Bogdanov (URS) | Vasily Borisov (URS) | Vilho Ilmari Ylönen (FIN) |
| 1958 | Moscow | Victor Shamburkin (URS) | Marat Niyazov (URS) | Moysey Itkis (URS) |
| 1962 | Cairo | Gary Anderson (USA) | Marat Niyazov (URS) | Erwin Vogt (SUI) |
| 1966 | Wiesbaden | Gary Anderson (USA) | Marat Niyazov (URS) | Henryk Górski (POL) |
| 1970 | Phoenix | Vitali Parkhimovitch (URS) | John Writer (USA) | Lones Wigger (USA) |
| 1974 | Thun | John Writer (USA) | Lones Wigger (USA) | Lanny Bassham (USA) |
| 1978 | Seoul | Lanny Bassham (USA) | Malcolm Cooper (GBR) | Ulrich Lind (FRG) |
| 1982 | Caracas | Vladimir Lvov (URS) | Peter Heinz (FRG) | Viktor Vlasov (URS) |
| 1986 | Suhl | Petr Kůrka (TCH) | Malcolm Cooper (GBR) | Pavel Soukeník (TCH) |
| 1990 | Moscow | Eun Chul Lee (KOR) | Robert Foth (USA) | Hrachya Petikyan (URS) |
| 1994 | Milan | Petr Kůrka (CZE) | Thomas Tamas (USA) | Wolfram Waibel Jr. (AUT) |
| 1998 | Barcelona | Jozef Gönci (SVK) | Pascal Bessy (FRA) | Rajmond Debevec (SLO) |
| 2002 | Lahti | Marcel Bürge (SUI) | Konstantin Prikhodtchenko (RUS) | Péter Sidi (HUN) |
| 2006 | Zagreb | Artem Khadjibekov (RUS) | Stevan Pletikosic (SCG) | Lei Zhang (CHN) |
| 2010 | Munich | Péter Sidi (HUN) | Han Jin-seop (KOR) | Nemanja Mirosavljev (SRB) |
| 2014 | Granada | Zhu Qinan (CHN) | Sergey Kamenskiy (RUS) | Vitaly Bubnovich (BLR) |
| 2018 | Changwon | Tomasz Bartnik (POL) | Petar Gorsa (CRO) | Michael McPhail (USA) |
| 2022 | New Administrative Capital | Serhiy Kulish (UKR) | Tomasz Bartnik (POL) | Jon-Hermann Hegg (NOR) |

## World Championships, Men Team

| Year | Place | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1949 | Buenos Aires | Finland Olavi Elo Pauli Aapeli Janhonen Kullervo Leskinen Toivo Maenttaeri Vilho Ilmari Ylönen | Sweden Uno Hilding Berg Isac Holger Erben Walther Sigfrid Fröstell Kurt Johansson Jonas Jonsson | Norway Mauritz Amundsen Johan Hunæs Erling Asbjoern Kongshaug Willy Røgeberg Thore Skredegaard |
| 1952 | Oslo | Switzerland Robert Bürchler Ernst Huber Otto Horber August Hollenstein Schmid E. | Sweden Uno Hilding Berg Isac Holger Erben Walther Sigfrid Fröstell Kurt Johansson Lindquist T. | Norway Mauritz Amundsen Johan Hunæs Erling Asbjoern Kongshaug Halvor Kongsjorden Thore Skredegaard |
| 1954 | Caracas | Soviet Union Anatoli Bogdanov Vasily Borisov Moysey Itkis Grigori Kupko Boris Pereberin | Sweden Uno Hilding Berg Isac Holger Erben Walther Sigfrid Fröstell Anders Helge Kvissberg Sundberg O. | Norway Mauritz Amundsen Iver Aas Anker Hagen Erling Asbjoern Kongshaug Thore Skredegaard |
| 1958 | Moscow | Soviet Union Vasily Borisov Moysey Itkis Yuri Kudryashov Marat Niyazov Victor Shamburkin | West Germany Hans Werner Harbeck Peter Kohnke Bernd Klingner Helmut Schlenker Rudolf Sigl | United States James Carter Herr J. Daniel Puckel Gordon Taras Verle Wright Jr. |
| 1962 | Cairo | Soviet Union Vladimir Chuian Vasily Borisov Moysey Itkis Marat Niyazov | United States Gary Anderson Tommy Pool Daniel Puckel Verle Wright Jr. | Switzerland August Hollenstein Kurt Müller Hans Rudolf Spillmann Erwin Vogt |
| 1966 | Wiesbaden | United States Gary Anderson Tommy Pool Margaret Thompson Lones Wigger | Soviet Union Aleksandrs Gerasimjonoks Valentin Kornev Vladimir Konyakhin Marat Niyazov | East Germany Werner Lippoldt Guenter Lange Dieter Munzert Hartmut Sommer |
| 1970 | Phoenix | Soviet Union Vladimir Agishev Oleg Lapkin Vitali Parkhimovitch Sergei Yermilov | United States David Boyd John Robert Foster John Writer Lones Wigger | West Germany Peter Kohnke Bernd Klingner Gottfried Kustermann Klaus Zähringer |
| 1974 | Thun | United States Lanny Bassham Margaret Murdock Lones Wigger John Writer | Soviet Union Anatoli Bulgakov Gennadi Lushikov Alexander Mitrofanov Vitali Parkhimovitch | West Germany Bernd Klingner Gottfried Kustermann Wolfgang Ruehle Klaus Zähringer |
| 1978 | Seoul | United States Lanny Bassham Edward Etzel Rod Fitz-Randolph Lones Wigger | West Germany Gottfried Kustermann Ulrich Lind Werner Seibold Karlheinz Smieszek | Sweden Sven Johansson Carl-Erik Oeberg Esbjoern Svensson Stefan Thynell |
| 1982 | Caracas | Soviet Union Kirill Ivanov Vladimir Lvov Alexander Mitrofanov Viktor Vlasov | Great Britain Alister Allan Malcolm Cooper Barry Dagger John Davis | Norway Arnt-Olav Haugland Terje Melbye-Hansen Harald Stenvaag Geir Skirbekk |
| 1986 | Suhl | Czechoslovakia Milan Bakeš Petr Kůrka Pavel Soukeník | Soviet Union Kirill Ivanov Hrachya Petikyan Viktor Vlasov | France Jean-Pierre Amat Pascal Bessy Michel Bury |
| 1990 | Moscow | Soviet Union Viatcheslav Botchkarev Kirill Ivanov Hrachya Petikyan | Czechoslovakia Milan Bakeš Petr Kůrka Miroslav Varga | Yugoslavia Rajmond Debevec Nemanja Mirosavljev Goran Maksimović |
| 1994 | Milan | France Jean-Pierre Amat Michel Bury Roger Chassat | Ukraine Artur Ayvazyan Oleg Dementyev Oleg Mykhaylov | Czech Republic Milan Bakeš Vaclav Becvar Petr Kůrka |
| 1998 | Barcelona | Ukraine Artur Ayvazyan Oleg Mykhaylov Jury Sukhorukov | France Pascal Bessy Jean-Pierre Amat Roger Chassat | Russia Alexander Koudelin Artem Khadjibekov Sergei Kovalenko |
| 2002 | Lahti | Russia Artem Khadjibekov Viatcheslav Botchkarev Konstantin Prikhodtchenko | United States Michael Anti Matthew Emmons Glenn Dubis | Ukraine Jury Sukhorukov Oleg Mykhaylov Artur Ayvazyan |
| 2006 | Zagreb | Russia Artem Khadjibekov Sergei Kovalenko Viatcheslav Botchkarev | Austria Thomas Farnik Mario Knögler Christian Planer | United States Matthew Emmons Jason Parker Michael Mcphail |
| 2010 | Munich | Russia Artem Khadjibekov Fedor Vlasov Konstantin Prikhodtchenko | Norway Vebjørn Berg Ole-Kristian Bryhn Ole Magnus Bakken | Ukraine Artur Ayvazyan Jury Sukhorukov Vladyslav Hryhorenko |
| 2014 | Granada | Cao Yifei Zhu Qinan Kang Hongwei | Norway Are Hansen Ole-Kristian Bryhn Ole Magnus Bakken | Russia Nazar Louginets Sergey Kamenskiy Fedor Vlasov |
| 2018 | Changwon | Russia Nazar Louginets Vladimir Maslennikov Sergey Kamenskiy | Haoran Yang Zicheng Hui Yuncong Yao | Belarus Yury Shcherbatsevich Vitali Bubnovich Illia Charheika |
| 2022 | New Administrative Capital | Norway Simon Claussen Jon-Hermann Hegg Henrik Larsen | France Brian Baudouin Michael d'Halluin Lucas Kryzs | India Niraj Kumar Swapnil Kusale Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar |

## World Championships, Women

| Year | Place | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1966 | Wiesbaden | Margaret Thompson (USA) | Anneliese Goth (FRG) | Tatiana Ryabinskaya (URS) |
| 1970 | Phoenix | Margaret Murdock (USA) | Desanka Perović (YUG) | Lucia Fagereva (URS) |
| 1974 | Thun | Anka Pelova (BUL) | Nonka Shatarova (BUL) | Margaret Murdock (USA) |
| 1978 | Seoul | Wanda Oliver (USA) | Karen Monez (USA) | Christina Gustafsson (SWE) |
| 1982 | Caracas | Marlies Helbig (GDR) | Lessia Leskiv (URS) | Anna Malakhova (URS) |
| 1986 | Suhl | Vesela Letcheva (BUL) | Valentina Lazarova (BUL) | Angela Berger (GDR) |
| 1990 | Moscow | Vesela Letcheva (BUL) | Deena Wigger (USA) | Anitza Valkova (BUL) |
| 1994 | Milan | Anna Maloukhina (RUS) | Lessia Leskiv (UKR) | Irina Gerasimenok (RUS) |
| 1998 | Barcelona | Sonja Pfeilschifter (GER) | Xian Wang (CHN) | Nonka Matova (BUL) |
| 2002 | Lahti | Petra Horneber (GER) | Natallia Kalnysh (UKR) | Martina Prekel (GER) |
| 2006 | Zagreb | Lioubov Galkina (RUS) | Sylwia Bogacka (POL) | Sonja Pfeilschifter (GER) |
| 2010 | Munich | Barbara Lechner (GER) | Sonja Pfeilschifter (GER) | Annik Marguet (SUI) |
| 2014 | Granada | Beate Gauß (GER) | Snježana Pejčić (CRO) | Malin Westerheim (NOR) |
| 2018 | Changwon | Yulia Karimova (RUS) | Isabella Straub (GER) | Snježana Pejčić (CRO) |
| 2022 | New Administrative Capital | Miao Wanru (CHN) | Jenny Stene (NOR) | Jeanette Hegg Duestad (NOR) |

## World Championships, Women Team

| Year | Place | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1970 | Phoenix | United States Tammie Foster Margaret Murdock Diana Timberlake | Soviet Union Lucia Fagereva Tatiana Ratnikova Elena Zaharchenko | East Germany Gudrun Mehlan Marga Nabel Gabriele Riedel |
| 1974 | Thun | Soviet Union Kira Boiko Tatiana Ratnikova Baiba Zarina | Bulgaria Poliksena Kancheva Anka Pelova Nonka Shatarova | West Germany Elke Becker Elisabeth Balș Elisabeth Boehmer |
| 1978 | Seoul | United States Becky Braun Karen Monez Wanda Oliver | Sweden Anita Enqvist Christina Gustafsson Margareta Gustafsson | France Yvette Courault Dominique Esnault Elisabeth Lesou |
| 1982 | Caracas | Soviet Union Svetlana Komaristova Lessia Leskiv Anna Malakhova | East Germany Gilda Gorzkulla Marlies Helbig Marlies Moch | United States Mary Godlove Karen Monez Gloria Parmentier |
| 1986 | Suhl | Bulgaria Valentina Lazarova Vesela Letcheva Nonka Matova | East Germany Angela Berger Sabine Toth Kathrin Starkloff | United States Wanda Jewell Pat Spurgin Deena Wigger |
| 1990 | Moscow | Bulgaria Vesela Letcheva Nonka Matova Anitza Valkova | United States Launi Meili Kristen Peterson Deena Wigger | Soviet Union Valentina Cherkasova Lessia Leskiv Iryna Shylava |
| 1994 | Milan | Petra Horneber Kirsten Obel Wera Stamm | Russia Valentina Cherkasova Irina Gerasimenok Anna Maloukhina | Muhua Chen Qiuping Zhang Danhong Zhou |
| 1998 | Barcelona | Hong Shan Xian Wang Yimin Xu | United States Elizabeth Bourland Jayme Dickman Wanda Jewell | Bulgaria Ani Ivanova Vesela Letcheva Nonka Matova |
| 2002 | Lahti | Ukraine Olena Davydova Natallia Kalnysh Lessia Leskiv | Petra Horneber Sonja Pfeilschifter Martina Prekel | Russia Tatiana Goldobina Lioubov Galkina Marina Bobkova |
| 2006 | Zagreb | Russia Lioubov Galkina Tatiana Goldobina Alena Nizkoshapskaia | Barbara Lechner Claudia Keck Sonja Pfeilschifter | Bo Liu Liuxi Wu Jieyi Tang |
| 2010 | Munich | United States Jamie Beyerle Amy Sowash Sandra Fong | Barbara Lechner Eva Friedel Sonja Pfeilschifter | Serbia Ivana Maksimović Andrea Arsović Lidija Mihajlović |
| 2014 | Granada | Beate Gauß Barbara Engleder Eva Rösken | Chen Dongqi Chang Jing Zhao Huixin | South Korea Jeong Mi-ra Yoo Seo-young Kim Seo-la |
| 2018 | Changwon | Isabella Straub Jolyn Beer Jaqueline Orth | Denmark Rikke Maeng Ibsen Stine Nielsen Stephanie Laura Scurrah Grundsoee | Russia Yulia Karimova Polina Khorosheva Yulia Zykova |
| 2022 | New Administrative Capital | Germany Jolyn Beer Anna Janssen Lisa Müller | Switzerland Nina Christen Sarina Hitz Franziska Stark | China Miao Wanru Shi Mengyao Zhang Qiongyue |

## World Championships, Mixed Team

| Year | Place | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 2022 | New Administrative Capital | Norway Jenny Stene Simon Claussen | Denmark Stephanie Grundsøe Steffen Olsen | Germany David Koenders Anna Janssen |

## Current world records

Current world records in 50 metre rifle three positions :
| Men | Qualification | 1188 | Jan Lochbihler (SUI) | August 28, 2019 | Rio de Janeiro (BRA) |
| Men | Final | 466.0 | Zhang Changhong (CHN) | Aug 2, 2021 | Tokyo (JPN) |
| Men | Teams | 3549 | Norway (Claussen, Larsen, Hegg) | May 29, 2021 | Osijek (CRO) |
| Junior Men | Qualification | 1185 | Filip Nepejchal (CZE) Istvan Peni (HUN) | May 22, 2017 October 29, 2017 | Munich (GER) New Delhi (IND) |
| Junior Men | Final | 462.9 | Filip Nepejchal (CZE) | November 19, 2019 | Putian (CHN) |
| Junior Men | Teams | 3512 | Hungary (Peni, Vas, Pekler) | June 27, 2017 | Suhl (GER) |
| Women (ISSF) | Qualification | 1185 | Jenny Stene (NOR) | May 28, 2019 | Munich (GER) |
| Women (ISSF) | Final | 464.7 | Petra Zublasing (ITA) | June 19, 2015 | Baku (AZE) |
| Women (ISSF) | Teams | 3531 | Norway (Stene, Duestad, Lund) | September 21, 2019 | Bologna (ITA) |
| Women (CISM) | Individual | 1183 | Yulia Karimova (RUS) | 3 June 2018 | Thun (SUI) |
| Women (CISM) | Teams | 3499 | China (Gao, Shi, Wan) | 3 June 2018 | Thun (SUI) |
| Junior Women | Qualification | 1180 | Fu Yutian (CHN) | July 18, 2019 | Suhl (GER) |
| Junior Women | Final | 459.3 | Anna Janssen (GER) | September 15, 2019 | Bologna (ITA) |
| Junior Women | Teams | 3509 | Germany (Janssen, Ruschel, Weindorf) China (Fu, Chen, Hou) | July 18, 2019 July 18, 2019 | Suhl (GER) Suhl (GER) |