Shooting sports
French sport shooter Éric Delaunay at the 2024 Summer Olympics | |
| Highest governing body | Several organizations, see list |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | Shooting |
| First played | Switzerland in the second half of the 15th century |
| Characteristics | |
| Contact | No |
| Team members | Yes or no, depending on competition |
| Mixed-sex | Yes or no, depending on discipline |
| Type | Indoor or outdoor |
| Venue | Shooting range |
| Presence | |
| Olympic | 1896–1900, 1908–1924, since 1932 |
| Paralympic | since 1976 |
Shooting sports are a group of competitive and recreational sporting activities which focus on shooting accuracy, precision and speed. Shooting is the art of using ranged weapons, mainly firearms and airguns, such as handguns, rifles and shotguns, and also bows/crossbows.
Shooting sports can be categorized by equipment, shooting distance, targets, time limits and the degree of athleticism involved. Shooting sports may involve both team and individual competitions, and team performance is usually assessed by summing the scores of the individual team members. Due to the noise and high impact energy of the projectiles, which can be lethal, shooting sports are typically conducted at either designated permanent shooting ranges or temporary shooting fields in areas away from human settlements.