# Free rifle at the Olympics

The free rifle is a group of events held at the Olympics, beginning in 1896 and continuing to the current programme. Current nomenclature drops the "free" and refers to the event type as the "rifle." The women's 50-metre version has also been called the "standard" and "sport" rifle. The "free" rifle is distinct from the military, air, and small-bore rifle events.
The current Olympic program includes two free rifle events: the ISSF 50 meter rifle three positions for both men (since 1952) and women (since 1984; women were nominally allowed to compete with the men from 1968 to 1980, although very few women participated these years). Two other events were held for numerous Games: the 300 m rifle three positions for men from 1900 to 1920 and from 1948 to 1972 and the ISSF 50 meter rifle prone for men from 1912 to 2016 (excluding 1920 and 1924). The 300 m rifle prone is a shooting discipline held at the world championships but never consistently at the Olympics.
In 1896, a 300-meter free rifle event was held without position requirements. In 1900, medals were awarded for each of the three positions in the 300-metre free rifle competition, using the scores from the full individual event. Four team events were held, with individual scores summed to give a team result in 1900 and 1920 and separate team shooting in 1908 and 1912. A 600-meter event for men was held in 1912, a 600-meter prone event for men in 1924, and a 1000-yard event for men in 1908.

## 50 m rifle three positions
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1952 Helsinki details | Erling Kongshaug Norway | Vilho Ylönen Finland | Boris Andreyev Soviet Union |
| 1956 Melbourne details | Anatoli Bogdanov Soviet Union | Otakar Hořínek Czechoslovakia | John Sundberg Sweden |
| 1960 Rome details | Viktor Shamburkin Soviet Union | Marat Nyýazow Soviet Union | Klaus Zähringer United Team of Germany |
| 1964 Tokyo details | Lones Wigger United States | Velichko Velichkov Bulgaria | László Hammerl Hungary |
| 1968 Mexico City details (mixed) | Bernd Klingner West Germany | John Writer United States | Vitaly Parkhimovich Soviet Union |
| 1972 Munich details (mixed) | John Writer United States | Lanny Bassham United States | Werner Lippoldt East Germany |
| 1976 Montreal details (mixed) | Lanny Bassham United States | Margaret Murdock United States | Werner Seibold West Germany |
| 1980 Moscow details (mixed) | Viktor Vlasov Soviet Union | Bernd Hartstein East Germany | Sven Johansson Sweden |
| 1984 Los Angeles details | Malcolm Cooper Great Britain | Daniel Nipkow Switzerland | Alister Allan Great Britain |
| 1988 Seoul details | Malcolm Cooper Great Britain | Alister Allan Great Britain | Kirill Ivanov Soviet Union |
| 1992 Barcelona details | Hrachya Petikyan Unified Team | Robert Foth United States | Ryohei Koba Japan |
| 1996 Atlanta details | Jean-Pierre Amat France | Sergey Belyayev Kazakhstan | Wolfram Waibel Austria |
| 2000 Sydney details | Rajmond Debevec Slovenia | Juha Hirvi Finland | Harald Stenvaag Norway |
| 2004 Athens details | Jia Zhanbo China | Michael Anti United States | Christian Planer Austria |
| 2008 Beijing details | Qiu Jian China | Jury Sukhorukov Ukraine | Rajmond Debevec Slovenia |
| 2012 London details | Niccolò Campriani Italy | Kim Jong-Hyun South Korea | Matthew Emmons United States |
| 2016 Rio de Janeiro details | Niccolò Campriani Italy | Sergey Kamenskiy Russia | Alexis Raynaud France |
| 2020 Tokyo details | Zhang Changhong China | Sergey Kamenskiy ROC | Milenko Sebić Serbia |
| 2024 Paris details | Liu Yukun China | Serhiy Kulish Ukraine | Swapnil Kusale India |

#### Multiple medalists

| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Malcolm Cooper | Great Britain (GBR) | 1984–1988 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1 | Niccolò Campriani | Italy (ITA) | 2012–2016 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | John Writer | United States (USA) | 1968–1972 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Lanny Bassham | United States (USA) | 1972–1976 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | Rajmond Debevec | Slovenia (SLO) | 2000, 2008 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Alister Allan | Great Britain (GBR) | 1984–1988 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |

#### Medalists by nation

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | United States (USA) | 3 | 5 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | Soviet Union (URS) | 3 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| 3 | China (CHN) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 4 | Great Britain (GBR) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | Italy (ITA) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | France (FRA) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Norway (NOR) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Slovenia (SLO) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | Unified Team (EUN) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | Finland (FIN) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 12 | East Germany (GDR) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 13 | Bulgaria (BUL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Kazakhstan (KAZ) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Russia (RUS) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | South Korea (KOR) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Switzerland (SUI) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Ukraine (UKR) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 20 | Austria (AUT) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 20 | Sweden (SWE) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 22 | United Team of Germany (EUA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 22 | Hungary (HUN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 22 | Japan (JPN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |

### Women

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1984 Los Angeles details | Wu Xiaoxuan China | Ulrike Holmer West Germany | Wanda Jewell United States |
| 1988 Seoul details | Silvia Sperber West Germany | Vesela Letcheva Bulgaria | Valentina Cherkasova Soviet Union |
| 1992 Barcelona details | Launi Meili United States | Nonka Matova Bulgaria | Małgorzata Książkiewicz Poland |
| 1996 Atlanta details | Aleksandra Ivošev FR Yugoslavia | Irina Gerasimenok Russia | Renata Mauer Poland |
| 2000 Sydney details | Renata Mauer Poland | Tatiana Goldobina Russia | Maria Feklistova Russia |
| 2004 Athens details | Lioubov Galkina Russia | Valentina Turisini Italy | Wang Chengyi China |
| 2008 Beijing details | Du Li China | Kateřina Emmons Czech Republic | Eglis Yaima Cruz Cuba |
| 2012 London details | Jamie Lynn Gray United States | Ivana Maksimović Serbia | Adéla Sýkorová Czech Republic |
| 2016 Rio de Janeiro details | Barbara Engleder Germany | Zhang Binbin China | Du Li China |
| 2020 Tokyo details | Nina Christen Switzerland | Yulia Zykova ROC | Yulia Karimova ROC |
| 2024 Paris details | Chiara Leone Switzerland | Sagen Maddalena United States | Zhang Qiongyue China |

#### Multiple medalists

| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Renata Mauer | Poland (POL) | 1996–2000 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 1 | Du Li | China (CHN) | 2008, 2016 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |

#### Medalists by nation

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | China (CHN) | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 2 | United States (USA) | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 3 | Russia (RUS) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 4 | West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | Poland (POL) | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 6 | Germany (GER) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 6 | Yugoslavia (YUG) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | Bulgaria (BUL) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 9 | Czech Republic (CZE) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | Italy (ITA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | Serbia (SRB) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | Cuba (CUB) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | Soviet Union (URS) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |

## 50 m rifle prone
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1908 London details | Arthur Carnell Great Britain | Harold Humby Great Britain | George Barnes Great Britain |
| 1912 Stockholm details | Frederick Hird United States | William Milne Great Britain | Henry Burt Great Britain |
| 1920 Antwerp | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1924 Paris | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1928 Amsterdam | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1932 Los Angeles details | Bertil Rönnmark Sweden | Gustavo Huet Mexico | Zoltán Soós-Ruszka Hradetzky Hungary |
| 1936 Berlin details | Willy Røgeberg Norway | Ralph Berzsenyi Hungary | Władysław Karaś Poland |
| 1948 London details | Arthur Cook United States | Walter Tomsen United States | Jonas Jonsson Sweden |
| 1952 Helsinki details | Iosif Sîrbu Romania | Boris Andreyev Soviet Union | Arthur Jackson United States |
| 1956 Melbourne details | Gerald Ouellette Canada | Vasily Borisov Soviet Union | Gil Boa Canada |
| 1960 Rome details | Peter Kohnke United Team of Germany | James Enoch Hill United States | Enrico Forcella Venezuela |
| 1964 Tokyo details | László Hammerl Hungary | Lones Wigger United States | Tommy Pool United States |
| 1968 Mexico City details (mixed) | Jan Kůrka Czechoslovakia | László Hammerl Hungary | Ian Ballinger New Zealand |
| 1972 Munich details (mixed) | Ri Ho-jun North Korea | Victor Auer United States | Nicolae Rotaru Romania |
| 1976 Montreal details (mixed) | Karlheinz Smieszek West Germany | Ulrich Lind West Germany | Gennadi Lushchikov Soviet Union |
| 1980 Moscow details (mixed) | Károly Varga Hungary | Hellfried Heilfort East Germany | Petar Zapryanov Bulgaria |
| 1984 Los Angeles details | Edward Etzel United States | Michel Bury France | Michael Sullivan Great Britain |
| 1988 Seoul details | Miroslav Varga Czechoslovakia | Cha Young-chul South Korea | Attila Záhonyi Hungary |
| 1992 Barcelona details | Lee Eun-chul South Korea | Harald Stenvaag Norway | Stevan Pletikosić Independent Olympic Participants |
| 1996 Atlanta details | Christian Klees Germany | Sergey Belyayev Kazakhstan | Jozef Gönci Slovakia |
| 2000 Sydney details | Jonas Edman Sweden | Torben Grimmel Denmark | Sergei Martynov Belarus |
| 2004 Athens details | Matthew Emmons United States | Christian Lusch Germany | Sergei Martynov Belarus |
| 2008 Beijing details | Artur Ayvazyan Ukraine | Matthew Emmons United States | Warren Potent Australia |
| 2012 London details | Sergei Martynov Belarus | Lionel Cox Belgium | Rajmond Debevec Slovenia |
| 2016 Rio de Janeiro details | Henri Junghänel Germany | Kim Jong-hyun South Korea | Kirill Grigoryan Russia |

#### Multiple medalists

| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | László Hammerl | Hungary (HUN) | 1964–1968 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 1 | Matthew Emmons | United States (USA) | 2004–2008 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Sergei Martynov | Belarus (BLR) | 2000–2004, 2012 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |

#### Medalists by nation

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | United States (USA) | 4 | 5 | 2 | 11 |
| 2 | Hungary (HUN) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| 3 | Germany (GER) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 4 | Sweden (SWE) | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 5 | Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | Great Britain (GBR) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 7 | South Korea (KOR) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 8 | West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 8 | Norway (NOR) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | Belarus (BLR) | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 11 | Canada (CAN) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 11 | Romania (ROU) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 13 | United Team of Germany (EUA) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | North Korea (PRK) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Ukraine (UKR) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | Soviet Union (URS) | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 17 | Belgium (BEL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | Denmark (DEN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | France (FRA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | East Germany (GDR) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | Kazakhstan (KAZ) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | Mexico (MEX) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 23 | Australia (AUS) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Bulgaria (BUL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Independent Olympic Participants (IOP) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | New Zealand (NZL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Poland (POL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Russia (RUS) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Slovakia (SVK) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Slovenia (SLO) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | Venezuela (VEN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |

## 300 m rifle three positions
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1900 Paris details | Emil Kellenberger Switzerland | Anders Peter Nielsen Denmark | Paul Van Asbroeck BelgiumOle Østmo Norway |
| 1904 St. Louis | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1908 London details | Albert Helgerud Norway | Harry Simon United States | Ole Sæther Norway |
| 1912 Stockholm details | Paul Colas France | Lars Jørgen Madsen Denmark | Niels Larsen Denmark |
| 1920 Antwerp details | Morris Fisher United States | Niels Larsen Denmark | Østen Østensen Norway |
| 1924 Paris | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1928 Amsterdam | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1932 Los Angeles | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1936 Berlin | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1948 London details | Emil Grünig Switzerland | Pauli Janhonen Finland | Willy Røgeberg Norway |
| 1952 Helsinki details | Anatoli Bogdanov Soviet Union | Robert Bürchler Switzerland | Lev Vainshtein Soviet Union |
| 1956 Melbourne details | Vasily Borisov Soviet Union | Allan Erdman Soviet Union | Vilho Ylönen Finland |
| 1960 Rome details | Hubert Hammerer Austria | Hans Rudolf Spillmann Switzerland | Vasily Borisov Soviet Union |
| 1964 Tokyo details | Gary Anderson United States | Shota Kveliashvili Soviet Union | Martin Gunnarsson United States |
| 1968 Mexico City details (mixed) | Gary Anderson United States | Valentin Kornev Soviet Union | Kurt Müller Switzerland |
| 1972 Munich details (mixed) | Lones Wigger United States | Boris Melnik Soviet Union | Lajos Papp Hungary |

#### Multiple medalists

| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Gary Anderson | United States (USA) | 1964–1968 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2 | Vasily Borisov | Soviet Union (URS) | 1956–1960 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 3 | Niels Larsen | Denmark (DEN) | 1912–1920 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |

#### Medalists by nation

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | United States (USA) | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 2 | Soviet Union (URS) | 2 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
| 3 | Switzerland (SUI) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| 4 | Norway (NOR) | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| 5 | Austria (AUT) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | France (FRA) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Denmark (DEN) | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 8 | Finland (FIN) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 9 | Belgium (BEL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 9 | Hungary (HUN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |

## 300 m free rifle
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1896 Athens details | Georgios Orphanidis Greece | Ioannis Frangoudis Greece | Viggo Jensen Denmark |

## 300 m rifle kneeling
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1900 Paris details | Konrad Stäheli Switzerland | Emil Kellenberger SwitzerlandAnders Peter Nielsen Denmark | Not awarded |

## 300 m rifle prone
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1900 Paris details | Achille Paroche France | Anders Peter Nielsen Denmark | Ole Østmo Norway |

## 300 m rifle standing
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1900 Paris details | Lars Jørgen Madsen Denmark | Ole Østmo Norway | Charles Paumier Belgium |

## 300 m rifle team
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1900 Paris details | Emil Kellenberger, Franz Böckli, Konrad Stäheli, Louis Richardet, Alfred Grütter Switzerland | Ole Østmo, Helmer Hermandsen, Tom Seeberg, Ole Sæther, Olaf Frydenlund Norway | Achille Paroche, Auguste Cavadini, Léon Moreaux, Maurice Lecoq, René Thomas France |
| 1904 St. Louis | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 1908 London details | Julius Braathe, Albert Helgerud, Einar Liberg, Olaf Sæther, Ole Sæther, Gudbrand Skatteboe Norway | Per-Olof Arvidsson, Janne Gustafsson, Axel Jansson, Gustaf Adolf Jonsson, Claës Rundberg, Gustav-Adolf Sjöberg Sweden | Eugène Balme, Albert Courquin, Raoul de Boigne, Léon Johnson, Maurice Lecoq, André Parmentier France |
| 1912 Stockholm details | Carl Björkman, Erik Blomqvist, Mauritz Eriksson, Hugo Johansson, Gustaf Adolf Jonsson, Bernhard Larsson Sweden | Albert Helgerud, Einar Liberg, Østen Østensen, Olaf Sæther, Ole Sæther, Gudbrand Skatteboe Norway | Niels Andersen, Jens Hajslund, Laurits Larsen, Niels Larsen, Lars Jørgen Madsen, Ole Olsen Denmark |
| 1920 Antwerp details | Dennis Fenton, Morris Fisher, Willis A. Lee, Carl Osburn, Lloyd Spooner United States | Albert Helgerud, Otto Olsen, Østen Østensen, Gudbrand Skatteboe, Olaf Sletten Norway | Gustave Amoudruz, Ulrich Fahrner, Fritz Kuchen, Werner Schneeberger, Bernard Siegenthaler Switzerland |

#### Multiple medalists

| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Ole Sæther | Norway (NOR) | 1900, 1908–1912 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 1 | Albert Helgerud | Norway (NOR) | 1908–1920 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 1 | Gudbrand Skatteboe | Norway (NOR) | 1908–1920 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 4 | Gustaf Adolf Jonsson | Sweden (SWE) | 1908–1912 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Einar Liberg | Norway (NOR) | 1908–1912 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Olaf Sæther | Norway (NOR) | 1908–1912 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 | Østen Østensen | Norway (NOR) | 1912–1920 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |

#### Medalists by nation

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Norway (NOR) | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 2 | Sweden (SWE) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Switzerland (SUI) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 4 | United States (USA) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | France (FRA) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 6 | Denmark (DEN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |

## 600 m rifle
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1912 Stockholm details | Paul Colas France | Carl Osburn United States | John Jackson United States |

## 600 m rifle prone
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1920 Antwerp details | Morris Fisher United States | Carl Osburn United States | Niels Larsen Denmark |

## 1000 yd rifle
### Men

| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 1908 London details | Joshua Millner Great Britain | Kellogg Casey United States | Maurice Blood Great Britain |