NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
Incorporated 1871
11250 Waples Mill Road - Fairfax, VA 22030

For Immediate Release For More Information, Contact:
February 15, 2006 Jorge Amselle (703) 267-1595

NRA Collegiate Pistol Championships Set for Fort Benning, GA

Fairfax, VA-Some of the nation’s finest young competitive shooters will vie for national honors at the NRA’s 26th Intercollegiate Pistol Championships, March 14 - 18 at Fort Benning, GA. As in previous years, the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit will host the tournament. In addition to naming national champion teams and individuals, NRA will announce the 2006 Collegiate All-Americans in pistol shooting. NRA All-Americans must meet a set of qualifying criteria that include marksmanship skill, grade point average, coaches' recommendations, and leadership qualities. NRA has been naming All-American competitive shooters since 1936.

NRA Intercollegiate Pistol competition comprises three open individual and team events, plus two events for women only. Free Pistol, Standard Pistol and Air Pistol events are open to any qualified entrant or team. Sport Pistol and Women’s Air Pistol events are open only to qualified women and women’s teams. All contests are governed by NRA International Style Pistol Rules.

International pistol contests are conducted at one of three distances. The Free Pistol event is conducted at 50 meters. Standard and Ladies Sport Pistol are fired at 25 meters, and Air Pistol matches are conducted at 10 meters. Except for Women’s Air Pistol, all courses of fire, both open and for women only, include 60 shots, fired in strings of five or 10 shots according to the contest. Women’s Air Pistol matches are 40-shot courses. Results of the Free Pistol match, both Air Pistol contests and Women’s Sport Pistol, are determined by a “final”10-shot round held among the top-scoring eight shooters in each contest. The process is similar to that used in Olympic competition and the shooter with the highest total of preliminary and final scores is declared the winner.

Last year shooters from just three of the country's most highly regarded universities earned most of the individual and team victories. Both team and individual championships went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, ahead of The U.S Naval Academy, and Ohio State.

The NRA Collegiate Shooting Department helps colleges and universities start and maintain collegiate rile, pistol and shotgun programs. Call 703-267-1473 or email collegiate@nrahq.org for more information.

NCAA Rifle Championships Set for Colorado Springs

Fairfax, VA-From March 10 to 11, America’s top collegiate rifle marksmen will meet at the 2006 NCAA Collegiate Rifle Championships at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO, to determine this year’s national champions. One of the highlights of the matches will be the announcement of the NRA Collegiate Rifle All-Americans for 2006.

The tournament involves two disciplines - Three-position Smallbore Rifle and International Air Rifle. Both team and individual winners are named in each match, plus team championships are awarded for the highest overall aggregate. Competitors are selected according to the results of a series of qualifying matches held prior to the championships, and the competition is conducted according to rules published by the NCAA.

In last year’s championship, the U.S. Military Academy won the aggregate team championship for the first time, unseating the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, which was striving for its seventh consecutive title.

This will also be the second year that the course of fire has been altered to more evenly match air rifle and smallbore rifle (.22 caliber) competition. Competitors must fire 60 shots in each discipline, 20 shots in each of three positions (prone, kneeling and standing) using smallbore rifles, and 60 shots in the standing position using air rifles. Two other changes introduced last year bring the event closer to Olympic competition. These include the use of electronic scoring and the addition of a final 10-shot round in which the highest eight scorers battle it out for the top individual spot.

NCAA has sponsored collegiate rifle championships since 1980. The NRA has selected Collegiate All-American shooters annually since 1936, and currently operates a Collegiate Shooting Department to help colleges and universities start and maintain collegiate rifle, pistol and shotgun programs. Call 703-267-1473 or email collegiate@nrahq.org for more information.

Jorge Amselle
Media Relations Coordinator
National Rifle Association
11250 Waples Mill Road
Fairfax, VA 22030
Direct Line (703) 267-1567
FAX (703) 267-3994
jamselle@nrahq.org 

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