Following the fourth and final stage of the standard ISSF World Cup season, the first seven athletes have been confirmed for the men's 50m rifle 3 positions competition for the 2025 ISSF World Cup Final in Doha, Qatar.
Qualification Rules
4 Winners of each 2025 ISSF World Cup event, or next best unqualified athlete if repeated winners.
1 2024 ISSF World Cup Final Title Defender.
2 Highest-ranked athletes not qualified from the 2025 ISSF World Cup rankings. This can become more if athletes qualify through two different routes.
To be confirmed
3 2025 ISSF World Championships medallists.
2 Wild cards from the host nation can be submitted.
Qualification Rules
4 Winners of each 2025 ISSF World Cup event, or next best unqualified athlete if repeated winners.
1 2024 ISSF World Cup Final Title Defender.
2 Highest-ranked athletes not qualified from the 2025 ISSF World Cup rankings. This can become more if athletes qualify through two different routes.
To be confirmed
3 2025 ISSF World Championships medallists.
2 Wild cards from the host nation can be submitted.
Istvan Peni
Nation: Hungary
World Cup Ranking: 3
Qualification: ISSF World Cup Final Title Defender
Earlier this year, Istvan Peni left South America on top of the world. He left with one gold, one silver and two bronzes from his four individual events. With silver and bronze in the 10m air rifle, he added a bronze in Lima in the 50m rifle 3 positions, after winning the gold medal in Buenos Aires.
Once he reached the standing section, he was in a world of his own, taking a lead he refused to lose back to Tian Jiaming of China. His usual good form in the standing section could not be repeated in Lima, finishing third. His streak of podiums ended when he finished fifth in Munich, and 10th in the 10m air rifle event. But five finals from six is an incredible run of form. He would go on to win the European title this year in Chateauroux too.
In his eight competitions this year, he would make the final on six occasions. Although his lowest finish of the season would come in the 50m rifle 3 positions - finishing 20th - he would place fourth in the 10m air rifle.
But he qualifies for Doha as the ISSF World Cup Final title defender, his second gold after 10m air rifle success in 2017. He has made the podium five times at the event too and is set to make his fifth appearance. An excellent athlete who continues to show why he is one of the best rifle shooters in the world.
Nation: Hungary
World Cup Ranking: 3
Qualification: ISSF World Cup Final Title Defender
Earlier this year, Istvan Peni left South America on top of the world. He left with one gold, one silver and two bronzes from his four individual events. With silver and bronze in the 10m air rifle, he added a bronze in Lima in the 50m rifle 3 positions, after winning the gold medal in Buenos Aires.
Once he reached the standing section, he was in a world of his own, taking a lead he refused to lose back to Tian Jiaming of China. His usual good form in the standing section could not be repeated in Lima, finishing third. His streak of podiums ended when he finished fifth in Munich, and 10th in the 10m air rifle event. But five finals from six is an incredible run of form. He would go on to win the European title this year in Chateauroux too.
In his eight competitions this year, he would make the final on six occasions. Although his lowest finish of the season would come in the 50m rifle 3 positions - finishing 20th - he would place fourth in the 10m air rifle.
But he qualifies for Doha as the ISSF World Cup Final title defender, his second gold after 10m air rifle success in 2017. He has made the podium five times at the event too and is set to make his fifth appearance. An excellent athlete who continues to show why he is one of the best rifle shooters in the world.
Tian Jiaming
Nation: China
World Cup Ranking: 26
Qualification: ISSF World Cup silver (Buenos Aires)
Tian Jiaming found himself with the silver medal in the Land of Silver, finishing behind the World Cup Final title defender, Istvan Peni. He was in a two-way fight for the title that day, and looked great for his first podium. Previously he had finished seventh and eighth in his only other appearances, back in 2023.
Tian is somewhat an unknown entity with a short resume at 24 years old. He has a silver medal to his name in the 50m rifle 3 positions event from the 2023 Asian Championships. In a competitive Chinese team, he may not have had as many opportunities to compete on the circuit as some of his peers, but with three top 10 finishes from three World Cup appearances, he is a serious podium contender.
Nation: China
World Cup Ranking: 26
Qualification: ISSF World Cup silver (Buenos Aires)
Tian Jiaming found himself with the silver medal in the Land of Silver, finishing behind the World Cup Final title defender, Istvan Peni. He was in a two-way fight for the title that day, and looked great for his first podium. Previously he had finished seventh and eighth in his only other appearances, back in 2023.
Tian is somewhat an unknown entity with a short resume at 24 years old. He has a silver medal to his name in the 50m rifle 3 positions event from the 2023 Asian Championships. In a competitive Chinese team, he may not have had as many opportunities to compete on the circuit as some of his peers, but with three top 10 finishes from three World Cup appearances, he is a serious podium contender.
Jiri Privratsky
Nation: Czechia
World Cup Ranking: 1
Qualification: ISSF World Cup gold (Lima, Ningbo)
With eight ISSF World Cup gold medals to his name, Jiri Privratsky, much like Peni, is always a contender coming into any competition. 12 World Cup podiums in total, the Czech has also made the top three at the World Cup Final on three occasions - once in the 50m rifle 3 positions with a silver medal and bronzes in the 10m air rifle event the past two years.
Privratsky took the win this year in Lima, beating Norway's Henrik Larsen to the gold in his first World Cup event of the season. He would follow this up with bronze in Munich. Although not his best day, he made the final of the European Championships in the 50m rifle 3 positions, finishing eighth. He recovered from that to take the World Cup gold in Ningbo in the longer distance after a close fight with Dmitrii Pimenov. A statement heading into the tale end of the season.
He has came close to even more glory a few times in his career - fourth at Paris 2024 in the 50m rifle 3 positions, fifth at 2022 ISSF World Championship, silver at 2024 ISSF World Cup Final - and it feels he could add more medals to his cabinet every time he competes.
Nation: Czechia
World Cup Ranking: 1
Qualification: ISSF World Cup gold (Lima, Ningbo)
With eight ISSF World Cup gold medals to his name, Jiri Privratsky, much like Peni, is always a contender coming into any competition. 12 World Cup podiums in total, the Czech has also made the top three at the World Cup Final on three occasions - once in the 50m rifle 3 positions with a silver medal and bronzes in the 10m air rifle event the past two years.
Privratsky took the win this year in Lima, beating Norway's Henrik Larsen to the gold in his first World Cup event of the season. He would follow this up with bronze in Munich. Although not his best day, he made the final of the European Championships in the 50m rifle 3 positions, finishing eighth. He recovered from that to take the World Cup gold in Ningbo in the longer distance after a close fight with Dmitrii Pimenov. A statement heading into the tale end of the season.
He has came close to even more glory a few times in his career - fourth at Paris 2024 in the 50m rifle 3 positions, fifth at 2022 ISSF World Championship, silver at 2024 ISSF World Cup Final - and it feels he could add more medals to his cabinet every time he competes.
Jon-Hermann Hegg
Nation: Norway
World Cup Ranking: 2
Qualification: ISSF World Cup gold (Munich)
Another athlete to have a solid showing at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games was Norwegian Jon-Hermann Hegg, who finished fifth in the 50m rifle 3 positions final, ninth in 10m air rifle qualification and fifth in mixed team air rifle. Although he again, just missed the podium in the 50m event for the second Games in a row, he has not let those near misses faze him.
He returned with top 10 finishes in all of his World Cup events this season, most notably winning the mixed team 10m air rifle final in Lima and then the 50m rifle 3 positions event in Munich. Despite his great consistency, it was his first individual gold medal on the World Cup circuit after a few close calls, including his bronze in Munich from the previous year.
Munich all in, was a great week for Hegg, who also took silver in the 10m event and bronze in the mixed team. His lowest result was a 10th place finish in Lima in the 50m distance, narrowly missing out on qualification. In a competitive European Championship, he was also fourth in the 50m rifle 3 positions final. Signing off before the World Championship, he won the bronze medal in Ningbo.
Hegg, much like Peni and Privratsky, pops up in the results sheet regularly, and could do so again in Doha. The Norwegian is set to compete in his second World Cup Final after bronze in Qatar two years ago.
Nation: Norway
World Cup Ranking: 2
Qualification: ISSF World Cup gold (Munich)
Another athlete to have a solid showing at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games was Norwegian Jon-Hermann Hegg, who finished fifth in the 50m rifle 3 positions final, ninth in 10m air rifle qualification and fifth in mixed team air rifle. Although he again, just missed the podium in the 50m event for the second Games in a row, he has not let those near misses faze him.
He returned with top 10 finishes in all of his World Cup events this season, most notably winning the mixed team 10m air rifle final in Lima and then the 50m rifle 3 positions event in Munich. Despite his great consistency, it was his first individual gold medal on the World Cup circuit after a few close calls, including his bronze in Munich from the previous year.
Munich all in, was a great week for Hegg, who also took silver in the 10m event and bronze in the mixed team. His lowest result was a 10th place finish in Lima in the 50m distance, narrowly missing out on qualification. In a competitive European Championship, he was also fourth in the 50m rifle 3 positions final. Signing off before the World Championship, he won the bronze medal in Ningbo.
Hegg, much like Peni and Privratsky, pops up in the results sheet regularly, and could do so again in Doha. The Norwegian is set to compete in his second World Cup Final after bronze in Qatar two years ago.
Dmitrii Pimenov
Nation: Individual Neutral Athlete
World Cup Ranking: 7
Qualification: ISSF World Cup silver (Ningbo)
Dmitrii Pimenov made his ISSF World Cup debut by mixing it up with the best in the world in the men's 50m rifle 3 positions final. He nearly didn't make it to the final, qualifying by the narrowest of margins. Tied on 588-35x with Romain Aufrere, he would take the last spot based on his last round, where he scored 193 to the Frenchman's 192.
In the final, he was up at the front, moving into the lead after the prone section. He would be outscored by Jiri Privratsky in the standing section, but was handed a lifeline going into the penultimate shot. Still just 0.1 between them with a shot to go, Pimenov could not capitalise, but would have also struggled to better the Czech's 10.7 that secured him the gold.
A silver medal on your debut is tremendous. An added bonus for him was securing a spot at the ISSF World Cup Final, as Privratsky already qualifying from his win in Peru.
Nation: Individual Neutral Athlete
World Cup Ranking: 7
Qualification: ISSF World Cup silver (Ningbo)
Dmitrii Pimenov made his ISSF World Cup debut by mixing it up with the best in the world in the men's 50m rifle 3 positions final. He nearly didn't make it to the final, qualifying by the narrowest of margins. Tied on 588-35x with Romain Aufrere, he would take the last spot based on his last round, where he scored 193 to the Frenchman's 192.
In the final, he was up at the front, moving into the lead after the prone section. He would be outscored by Jiri Privratsky in the standing section, but was handed a lifeline going into the penultimate shot. Still just 0.1 between them with a shot to go, Pimenov could not capitalise, but would have also struggled to better the Czech's 10.7 that secured him the gold.
A silver medal on your debut is tremendous. An added bonus for him was securing a spot at the ISSF World Cup Final, as Privratsky already qualifying from his win in Peru.
Ilia Marsov
Nation: Individual Neutral Athlete
World Cup Ranking: 4
Qualification: ISSF World Cup rankings
Ilia Marsov left Munich a changed man. He entered the range having never stood on the ISSF World Cup podium. By the day of departure, he was bringing home a gold medal in the 10m air rifle event and a silver in the 50m 3 positions.
He deserves a lot of credit for his season, having opened it by making the final of the 10m in Buenos Aires, finishing fifth. In the longer distance, he just missed out in 10th. Following his Munich heroics, he finished sixth in a very tight 10m field in Ningbo. A couple of slightly awry shots was the difference that day between a medal and just missing out. He would miss out to compatriot Dmitrii Pimenov in qualification for the 50m rifle 3 positions final, placing 11th due to having a slightly lower number of shots hitting the centre.
He took European silver in the 10m distance too, while placing ninth in the 50m rifle 3 positions. All statistics show Marsov likely favours the 10m air rifle, but he is one of a few capable of winning in both events. He is set to make his ISSF World Cup Final debut and having a berth in both events means he has two bites of the cherry to win.
Nation: Individual Neutral Athlete
World Cup Ranking: 4
Qualification: ISSF World Cup rankings
Ilia Marsov left Munich a changed man. He entered the range having never stood on the ISSF World Cup podium. By the day of departure, he was bringing home a gold medal in the 10m air rifle event and a silver in the 50m 3 positions.
He deserves a lot of credit for his season, having opened it by making the final of the 10m in Buenos Aires, finishing fifth. In the longer distance, he just missed out in 10th. Following his Munich heroics, he finished sixth in a very tight 10m field in Ningbo. A couple of slightly awry shots was the difference that day between a medal and just missing out. He would miss out to compatriot Dmitrii Pimenov in qualification for the 50m rifle 3 positions final, placing 11th due to having a slightly lower number of shots hitting the centre.
He took European silver in the 10m distance too, while placing ninth in the 50m rifle 3 positions. All statistics show Marsov likely favours the 10m air rifle, but he is one of a few capable of winning in both events. He is set to make his ISSF World Cup Final debut and having a berth in both events means he has two bites of the cherry to win.
Zhao Wenyu
Nation: China
World Cup Ranking: 5
Qualification: ISSF World Cup rankings
Early season form kept Zhao Wenyu in contention for a spot at the ISSF World Cup Final, and making those finals in Buenos Aires and Lima was the difference between going, and having a nervous wait for the outcome of the ISSF World Championship.
In Argentina, he opened his season with an eighth-place finish on his debut. Later in the month, he improved to sixth in Lima. Munich would not go to plan for the Chinese athlete, who was down in 24th - far from qualification. Much like Ilia Marsov, Zhao would miss out on the final in Ningbo by virtue of less perfect shots. Placing 15th, a solid conclusion to the series made sure he would move back into a spot via the rankings.
He has had some late-season results go his way though. He took the Asian silver medal in the event and now will prepare for his debut at the ISSF World Cup Final.
All qualifiers for the ISSF World Cup Final can be found here and all World Cup rankings here.
Highest-ranked non-qualifiers still in contention: Chain Singh (India), Islam Satpayev (Kazakhstan), Lucas Kryzs (France).
Nation: China
World Cup Ranking: 5
Qualification: ISSF World Cup rankings
Early season form kept Zhao Wenyu in contention for a spot at the ISSF World Cup Final, and making those finals in Buenos Aires and Lima was the difference between going, and having a nervous wait for the outcome of the ISSF World Championship.
In Argentina, he opened his season with an eighth-place finish on his debut. Later in the month, he improved to sixth in Lima. Munich would not go to plan for the Chinese athlete, who was down in 24th - far from qualification. Much like Ilia Marsov, Zhao would miss out on the final in Ningbo by virtue of less perfect shots. Placing 15th, a solid conclusion to the series made sure he would move back into a spot via the rankings.
He has had some late-season results go his way though. He took the Asian silver medal in the event and now will prepare for his debut at the ISSF World Cup Final.
All qualifiers for the ISSF World Cup Final can be found here and all World Cup rankings here.
Highest-ranked non-qualifiers still in contention: Chain Singh (India), Islam Satpayev (Kazakhstan), Lucas Kryzs (France).