As February comes to a close, we reflect on another month of international success, national competitions and exciting announcements.
Let’s recap February and have a look at what’s coming up. Plus, as always, some useful information and resources.
Australian Shotgun Athletes started international competition off strong at the AMIR ISSF Shotgun Grand Prix, as they looked to build their confidence and hone their skills leading into the 2026 season.
Competing against some of the world’s leading shotgun athletes at the word-class Lusail Shooting Complex in Doha, Qatar, the Australian Shotgun Trap Team produced a series of composed and confident performances, converting strong qualification rounds into multiple finals appearances and an impressive medal return.
In the Junior Men’s Trap competition, Victorian athletes Benjamin De Pedro and Lucas Furlan delivered outstanding performances to reach the final.
Both athletes posted qualification scores of 111 out of 125, ranking sixth and eighth respectively to secure their finals berths in a tightly contested field.
In the high-scoring final, and his international final debut, De Pedro rose to the occasion with an exceptional display of composure, hitting 27 of 30 targets to claim the gold medal. He finished just one target ahead of Assylkhan Aisalbayev (KAZ), who secured silver.
Of his first international medal win in the Men’s Trap event, De Pedro excitedly reflected, “Winning a medal in my first international final is an amazing feeling. I’m very proud of my result and have learnt a lot throughout this experience.”
Furlan’s performance in the Junior Men’s Trap final was equally impressive. Dropping only three targets in the final, he finished with 22 out of 25 to claim the bronze medal, completing a remarkable double podium finish for Australia in the Junior Men’s Trap event.
“Competing at the 2026 Amir Grand Prix was an invaluable experience and an important step forward in my shooting journey. Gaining international competition exposure and being immersed in a senior high-performance environment gave me an understanding of what it takes to prepare for, and perform, at major events”, Furlan said.
In the Women’s Trap event, Penny Smith and Laetisha Scanlan showcased their experience against a competitive field. Both shot a qualification score of 115 out of 125, ranking 7th and 8th, progressing through to the final. Kiara Dean narrowly missed out on the final finishing with a score of 113 in 12th place.
Into the final Scanlan delivered a composed performance, hitting 25 of 30 targets to finish level with Italy’s Alessia Iezzi. With the scores tied, a sudden-death shoot-off was required to determine the gold and silver medals. Iezzi edged ahead, shooting five targets to Scanlan’s four. Scanlan’s silver medal capped a strong campaign and added to Australia’s impressive medal tally in Doha.
Reflecting on her start to the 2026 international season, Scanlan said, “For me, Qatar was always about setting a strong foundation for the season. My main goal was to use this competition as an opportunity to really focus on my fundamentals in a high-pressure, international setting.” To get the full results from the Amir Grand Prix and to hear more from our athlete’s competition experiences, read the full article on our webpage, via the link below:
In February Shooting Australia announced the names of the 45 athletes that will comprise the 2026 National Squad.
Athletes have been identified by Shooting Australia’s Categorisation Panel in accordance with the Athlete Categorisation Policy 2026-2028. This Policy, approved by the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), provides a clear and consistent basis to:
Shooting Australia Chief Executive Officer, Adam Sachs, said of the National Squad announcement, “Congratulations to the 45 athletes that have been named in this year’s National Squad. This is important acknowledgement of their current levels of performance as well as their potential to contribute to our objectives at the LA 2028 and Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
Sachs continued, “Our 2026 National Squad includes 23 ‘current cycle’ athletes who we believe will play a significant role in Australia’s qualification for and success at the LA 2028 Olympics and Paralympics. We have also significantly increased the number of ‘future cycle’ athletes to 22 and this group will strengthen our pathways to and performances at our Brisbane 2032 Home Games and beyond.”
To see the athletes selected to the 2026 National Squad and to learn more, read the full story on or webpage, via the link below:
SEE THE FULL 2026 NATIONAL SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT
The Shooting Australia Domestic Endorsed Events Series continued strong throughout February with the first pistol and rifle competition at Sydney Cup #1 held between the 19th and 23rd.
This competition, held at the Sydney International Shooting Centre, home of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, brought together some of Australia’s best able and para-athletes to compete across pistol and rifle events.
The Sydney Cup was the first major domestic competition for Australian pistol and rifle athletes this year and comprised two out of four selection events for the ISSF Junior World Championship that will be held in Suhl, Germany, in June.
To view all the results from Sydney Cup 1, visit the results page on our website via at the link below:
During the February Sydney Cup 1, Shooting Australia completed the presentation of its 2025 Awards of Excellence.
Awards were presented across the Precision High Performance Program, as well as Community Awards in acknowledgement of the tremendous contributions officials and volunteers make to the sport.
We congratulate the four athletes who received High Performance Awards, as well as the finalists in each of the categories:
Medals received during international Precision competitions in 2025 were also acknowledged.
Jack Rossiter
Charlotte Bland
Natalie Smith
Anton Zappelli
We also congratulate the individuals who were recipients of the community focussed awards for Precision.
Alex Maranik – ISSF Pistol/Rifle World Cup – Ningbo, China and WSPS World Cup – Changwon, Korea
Helen Johnson – ISSF Pistol/Rifle World Cup – Ningbo, China
8 Trap Shotgun athletes were selected to attend the ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Tangier, Morocco between the 25th of March and the 3rd of April.
For full competition information, check out the ISSF event page at the link below:
Men’s Rifle athlete Jack Rossiter was selected to attend the ISSF Pistol/Rifle World Cup in Granada, Spain between the 5th and 13th of April.
For full competition information, check out the ISSF event page at the link below:
8 Trap Shotgun athletes were selected to attend the ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Almaty, Kazakhstan between the 2nd – 11th May.
Skeet athletes will be announced at the conclusion of the March ACTA ISSF Skeet Nationals in Wagga Wagga.
For full competition information, check out the ISSF event page at the link below:
KAZAKHSTAN WORLD CUP EVENT INFO
PISTOL AND RIFLE FINALS AND TIMINGS
Due to a ‘without notice’ SIUS update at SISC at the commencement of Sydney Cup 1, new finals formats were enacted for 25m Rapid Fire Pistol (from 6 to 8 finalists) and 50m 3 Positions Rifle (primarily timing adjustments). We therefore used this as an opportunity to educate both officials and athletes.
BISC Cup 1 in March will be run under the new rules, including finals and any changes to timings. Further education and information will be provided to athletes leading into competition.
RIFLE EQUIPMENT CONTROL
For rifle equipment control (clothing), from June we will look to implement the ‘buttons’ adjustments and then in 2027 (date to be confirmed) the wider thickness and stiffness changes.
SHOTGUN FINALS
For Shotgun finals formats, the new 8 person Skeet finals format will be introduced during the ACTA Skeet nationals in March. A practice final will be held at 1pm on Sunday the 15th of March.
For Trap, pending accessibility of any required equipment upgrades, the 8 person finals format will be introduced at the VIC State Titles in May.
2026 OFFICIATING SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
Shooting Australia would like to congratulate the 7 individuals who have been included in this years Officiating Scholarship Program:
ISSF CALL FOR 2027 JURY NOMINATIONS
The ISSF has invited its member federations to nominate Jury Members for Grand Prix/World Cups/World Championships in the year 2027.
Those nominated must hold the applicable current ISSF Judges’ Licence with EST Licence for all competitions (Shooting Australia is anticipating on holding an International EST course prior to the start of the 2027 season). They must also have a good knowledge of the latest version of the ISSF Rules and Regulations, which have been updated for the new Olympic Cycle 2025-2028.
Furthermore, each nation is allowed to nominate only three (3) Judges for Rifle/Pistol/RTS and to nominate two (2) judges for Shotgun and one (1) international referee; a maximum of six (6) in all. More nominations will not be accepted by the ISSF.
If you are interested in being considered for nomination to the ISSF by Shooting Australia, please email jane@shootingaustralia.org as soon as possible.
Shooting Australia will then work through the process of identifying the best fit officials to be nominated and ensure these are provided to the ISSF by the May nomination deadline.
ISSF World Cup Shotgun – Morocco
Where: Tangier, Morocco
When: 25 March – 3 April
Discipline: Shotgun
ISSF TANGIER WORLD CUP EVENT INFORMATION
ISSF World Cup Pistol/Rifle – Spain
Where: Granada, Spain
When: 5-13 April
Discipline: Pistol/Rifle
ISSF GRANADA WORLD CUP EVENT INFORMATION
ISSF World Cup Shotgun – Kazakhstan
Where: Almaty, Kazakhstan
When: 2-11 May
Discipline: Shotgun
ISSF TANGIER WORLD CUP EVENT INFORMATION
ACTA Nationals – Skeet (Tier 1)
Where: ACTA National Grounds, East Wagga Wagga
When: 15-19 March
Discipline: Shotgun
Selection Overlay: World Cup Selection Event & Junior World Championships Selection Event 1 & 2
ACTA NATIONALS – SKEET EVENT INFO
BISC Cup (Tier 1)
Where: Brisbane International Shooting Centre, QLD
When: 26-30 March
Discipline: Pistol & Rifle
Selection Overlay: Junior World Championships Selection Event 3 & 4
BISC CUP EVENT INFO
TRA Nationals (Tier 2)
Where: Melbourne International Shooting Centre, VIC
When: 15-19 April
Discipline: Rifle
TRA NATIONALS EVENT INFO
Over the next month, eSafety and Play by the Rules will be hosting a number of free educational webinars around safety and integrity in sports.
This months free upcoming webinars include:
Come join fellow MPIOs for an hour of practical, interactive discussions to improve your MPIO skills and make new connections.
The first session in this series will focus on how to be an effective MPIO. Using activities drawn from real world scenarios, we’ll unpack what is and isn’t the role of an MPIO, and when to refer people for further action.
You’ll walk away more confidence to:
When: Tuesday 31 March 2026, 7:30pm to 8:30pm (AEDT)
To learn more about this webinar and to register your interest, click the link below.
This session is for community sport leaders and volunteers who want tips to create safer online spaces and learn how to respond to online abuse.
When: Thursday 14th May, 12.30pm-1.15pm AEDT
To learn more about this webinar and to register your interest, click the link below.
This session is for athletes, coaches, officials and others in sport who want to set up safer personal social media accounts and learn strategies to respond to online abuse.
When: Tuesday 26th May, 1.00pm-1.45pm AEDT
To learn more about this webinar and to register your interest, click the link below.
ISSF Academy educational courses for coaches are back in 2026!
Check out the link below to see what’s coming up and to register for courses on the ISSF Academy website at the link below.
The Australian Sports Commission has developed courses and resources for both coaches and officials, covering the essentials to help you succeed in your role as well as masterclasses for those who want to boost their skills and make sport more enjoyable for the athletes you support.
You can find the resources and more on the Play by the Rules website or via the links below:
OFFICIATING COURSES & RESOURCES
Don’t forget to subscribe to the Shooting Australia TV on YouTube where you will be able to re-watch domestic event coverage, hear from athletes – post competition, and more! Best of all, it is free!
