ON THE ROAD TO LONDON

8 ISSF NEWS
ROAD TO LONDON
Some other athletes are living (and competing) legends of our sport,
such as schumAnn, skAnAker, wAnG, GrozdevA, sekAric
and sAlukvAdze, who are still part of the shooting world as active
shooters or coaches.
rAlF schumAnn, for example, was the only shooter able to win
three Gold medals in the same event, the 25m Rapid Fire Pistol event,
and was one of the only three pistol shooters able to win two Gold
medals in the same event back to back, in 1992 and 1996. Schumann
won three Gold and two Silver medals from 1988 and 2008, absent
from the podium in 2000 only, when he protested a score and got a
penalty of two points, missing the bronze by a few decimals.
In the same year, China’s wAnG yiFu, a 10m Air Pistol and 50m
Pistol shooter became a true Chinese hero. Earning two Olympic Gold
and a total of six Olympic medals, with a twenty-year span between
his first Bronze at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles and the Gold
won at Athens 2004, he has become one of the most famous sportsmen
in China. Currently, Wang is the head coach of the Chinese team,
and he will try to guide his athletes to the highest step of the medal
standings at the London Games as he did in Beijing four years ago.
An older champion, Sweden’s rAGnAr skAnAker, became
part of the history of Pistol shooting at the Games by being one of the
most consistent shooters of the international scene. Winning his first
Olympic Gold medal in 1972, in Munich, he maintained himself at the
top of the world rankings for thirty years. Winning another Olympic
medal at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona (a Bronze at the 50m Pistol
Men event) at the age of 58, thus also becoming the oldest medallist
of the Pistol discipline of all times.
Among the women, mAriA GrozdevA of Bulgaria and JAsnA
sekAric of Serbia have been duelling since the eighties – and continue
duelling – (we will talk about them later on). Another strong
competitor, Georgia’s Olympic multi-medallist nino sAlukvAdze,
will also be a part of the London Games. She won her last Olympic
award in Beijing, where she finished in the spotlight by hugging her
Russian competitor before of the cameras on the day Russia and Georgia
engaged in battle. She won her first Olympic medal for URS at the
1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, in the 25m Pistol Women events, and
the Bronze medal won in Beijing came after 20 years of shooting at the
highest levels and in a different event, the 10m Air Pistol Women.
NATIONS
“Top 3” at the Top of the Rankings
The “Top 3” – usA, chn and urs – head the historical medal standings
rank of Pistol events, taking into consideration all medals and
all events since the beginning of the modern Olympic era. And they
are practically invincible, if we consider number of athletes they have
been developing and preparing to participate in the Games throughout
the years. The American, Chinese and Russian pistol shooters
have always been in the spotlight during the last Olympic editions,
where their flags proudly rise behind the podium.
The uniTed sTATes oF AmericA stands at the top of the rankings,
with an outstanding total number of 22 medals won from 1896
to 2008, with 12 Gold, six Silver, and four Bronze medals. Six medals
more than those reached by the PeoPle’s rePublic oF chinA,
following in second place with an overall total of 16 medals – 8 Gold,
6 Silver and 2 Bronze. But what’s most impressive is that the Chinese
team reached the second position of the chart in about 20 years,
with their first medal won just in 1984. Considering the number of
participations and the number of medals won, China turns out to be
the fastest growing country: while the US team earns one medal each
Olympic participation in average, China wins two. At this speed, it
2. MEDAL STANDING OLYMPIC EVENTS bY
NOC FOR PISTOL
MEN and WOMEN 1896-2008
RANK NOC YEAR GOLD SILVER bRONzE TOTAL
1 USA 1896-2008 12 6 4 22
2 CHN 1984-2008 8 6 2 16
3 URS 1956-1988 5 4 5 14
4 RUS 1912-2008 4 5 4 13
5 GER 1932-2008 4 4 2 10
6 bUL 1980-2004 4 2 5 11
7 SWE 1912-1992 3 6 5 14
8 ROM 1952-2000 3 4 4 11
9 FIN 1924-1984 3 1 2 6
10 EUN 1992 3 1 1 5
11 GDR 1968-1988 2 5 1 8
12 FRA 1900-2000 2 3 2 7
13 SUI 1900-2000 2 2 3 7
14 HUN 1948-1988 2 1 2 5
15 ITA 1932-1996 2 3 5
16 POL 1968-1972 2 2
16 UKR 2004-2008 2 2
18 GRE 1896-1920 1 2 2 5
19 bEL 1908 1 2 3
19 KOR 2004-2008 1 2 3
21 JPN 1960-1988 1 1 2 4
22 bRA 1920 1 1 1 3
22 YUG 1988-2000 1 1 1 3
24 CAN 1984 1 1
24 PER 1948 1 1
26 bLR 1996-2000 2 2 4
27 CzE 2000-2004 1 1 2
27 DEN 1896 1 1 2
27 MGL 1992-2008 1 1 2
27 TCH 1964-1972 1 1 2
31 ARG 1948 1 1
31 ESP 1952 1 1
31 FRG 1968 1 1
31 IOP 1992 1 1
31 LAT 1992 1 1
31 SCG 2004 1 1
37 GbR 1908-1912 4 4
38 AUT 1972-1980 3 3
39 AUS 1984-2000 2 2
40 AzE 2004 1 1
40 GEO 2008 1 1
40 KAz 1996 1 1
40 NED 1900 1 1
40 PRK 2004 1 1
TOTAL 71 71 71 213
MEDAILLENSTAND DER NOKS BEI DEN OLYMPISCHEN SPIELEN FÜR PISTOLE
MÄNNER uND FRAuEN vON 1896-2008
CLASSEMENT DE MéDAILLES DES JEuX OLYMPIQuES PAR CON POuR PISTOLET
HOMMES ET FEMMES 1896-2008
OBTENCIóN DE MEDALLAS EN EvENTOS OLÍMPICOS POR NOC EN COMPETENCIAS
DE PISTOLA vARONIL Y FEMENIL 1896-2008
will only take a few years for China to step up to the lead. Following
the Top 2, the former urs still holds the third place, with a total of 14
awards earned from 1956 through 1988. URS athletes do not compete
anymore, but just a few medals away, the new Russian team has managed
to climb up the chart. Starting its history in the Olympics in 1912,
and returning in 1992, Russia won 13 medals, four Gold, five Silver and
four Bronze, and is listed as one of the strongest competitors in Pistol
events today. (Table 2)