890 athletes coming from 86 countries will compete in the 2011 ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup Stage which kicked off today at the 1972 Olympic Shooting Range of Munich, through the 23rd of June.
A record number of 1482 starts (with athletes competing in multiple events), makes of this competition the biggest ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup Stage ever.
Athletes from all around the world will compete in the 10 Olympic events of Rifle and Pistol shooting, aiming at the 24 Olympic Quota Places to be awarded here. This is indeed one of the last chances to qualify for the 2012 London Games, before the continental championships.
The first medal matches, the 10m Air Rifle Men and Women finals, will take place tomorrow afternoon, starting from 2 PM (German time, GMT+1)
“Numbers are incredible!” The ISSF Secretary General Franz Schreiber said, commenting on the turnout of athletes of the fourth and last Rifle and Pistol World Cup Stage of the year.
“Munich’s is a big range, one of the best shooting sport venue of the world, but even here we are on the edge. It’s the first time that we record such a high participation in a world cup stage, since the series was launched in 1986.” Mr. Schreiber added.
The 2011 ISSF World Cup Series travelled from Sydney (AUS) to Changwon (KOR), passing through Fort Benning (USA) before landing here in Munich, where the last Rifle and Pistol Stage is conducted. The ISSF World Cup Series will then be closed in September, with the Rifle and Pistol World Cup Final taking place in Wroclaw, Poland.