As June comes to a close, we reflect on two months full of national and international competitions and activity.
Let’s recap May and June and have a look at what’s coming up. Plus, as always, some useful information and resources
ISSF World Cup Shotgun – Kazakhstan Recap
The Australian Trap Team enjoyed a strong campaign at the ISSF World Cup Almaty, recording three finals appearances across the competition, highlighted by a standout performance from Penny Smith, who claimed gold and set a new World Record.
The second Shotgun World Cup of 2026 (2 to 11 May, 2026) was held at the Asanov Shooting Club in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and attracted 284 athletes from 42 countries and National Federations across 346 competition starts.
Represented by an 8-member team, Australia contested the Men’s Trap, Women’s Trap and Trap Mixed Team events.
In a whirlwind 48 hours of competition, Smith produced a world class performance that she described as “a very special moment”, culminating in winning gold and breaking the World Record by not missing a target in a 30 out of 30 faultless final.
Competing in the newly introduced final format, Smith said the experience of adapting to the faster, high-pressure “sprint” style of shooting added an extra layer of challenge to her victory.
Smith said “Shooting the new final format for the first time was a great experience. I knew I just had to stay in my lane and focus on each target. To come away with a World Cup win and a new World Record really topped it off.” To read the full story and to hear more from our athletes’ experiences at the Kazakhstan Shotgun World Cup, read the full article at the link below.
Men’s Rifle athlete, Jack Rossiter, represented Australia at the ISSF World Cup Pistol / Rifle event in Munich, Germany this month (24 – 31 May).
This World Cup brought together 723 world-class athletes from over 85 countries and ISSF member federations to compete across the pistol and rifle disciplines.
Rossiter was the only Australian athlete selected to travel to this ISSF World Cup, and competed across the Men’s 10m Air Rifle and Men’s 50m 3 Positions events.
In the 10m Air Rifle event, Rossiter shot a score of 627.6 in qualification to place a 61st overall. In the Men’s 50m 3 Positions event he placed 39th in Elimination Relay 2 with a score of 578.
View the full results form the ISSF Pistol / Rifle World Cup on the ISSF webpage via the link below.
ISSF WORLD CUP PISTOL/RIFLE RESULTS
This month, Shooting Australia joined the Australian Sports Commission in celebrating National Careers Week (11 – 17 May).
National Careers Week is an initiative of the Career Industry Council of Australia that aims to celebrate careers, career development, career development services and opportunities.
National Careers Week focusses on highlighting the transferable working skills athletes build through engagment in sports. To highlight this, Shooting Australia interviewed South Australian pistol athlete, Alison Heinrich.
Check out our National Careers Week Interview with Alison on the Shooting Australia Facebook page or via the link below:
NATIONAL CAREERS WEEK ATHLETE INTERVIEW
This month, Shooting Australia also joined the Australian Sports Commission in celebrating National Volunteers Week (18 – 24 May). This celebration aims to highlight the amazing volunteers who ensure that our sport remains safe, accessible and enjoyable for all.
For the second year running the Australian Sports Commission put volunteers on the map, through the launch of their interactive volunteer map of Australia, which displays the locations and stories of the unsung heroes of Australian sport. Check it out via the link below.
NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK INTERACTIVE MAP
Shooting Australia also joined the National Volunteer Week celebrations, giving ‘three cheers for volunteers’ on our Facebook Page.
Check out our interview with volunteer official Rod Sampson at the link below.
NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK INTERVIEW
The 2026 VIC State Titles were held between the 22nd and 24th of May at the Melbourne Gun Club.
A tier 1 Shooting Australia endorsed event, the VIC State Titles brought together some of Australia’s best shotgun athletes to test their skills against their peers over 4 days of fierce competition.
This competition was also Junior World Championships selection event #3 as well as World Championships selection event #1
Thank you to Melbourne Gun Club and all of the amazing volunteers who made this event possible.
To see the full results from the 2026 VIC State Titles, visit the Shooting Australia webpage at the link below.
VICTORIA STATE TITLES EVENT RESULTS
Between the 16th and 26th of June, a team of 13 junior athletes represented Australia at the 2026 ISSF Junior World Championships (Rifle, Pistol & Shotgun) in Suhl, Germany.
The Junior World Championship brought together 808 of the world’s most promising junior target shooting sport athletes from 66 different countries.
Our Australian team comprised four pistol, three rifle and six shotgun athletes, with the Championships providing invaluable international experience. The event enabled athletes to compete against some of the world’s best Junior athletes, while gaining exposure to the exceptionally high standards of international competition.
Australian pistol athletes included Tanvi Lathwal, Benjamin Paulino, Talia Woodroffe, and Lucas Wang, who made his international ISSF competition debut. Tanvi, Benjamin and Lucas competed in the 10m Air Pistol individual events (Men’s and Women’s), and all four athletes competed in the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team event. Talia also competed in the 25m Pistol Women’s event.
In the rifle component of the Championships, siblings Emily Cane and James Cane competed alongside Charlotte Bland. All three athletes competed in the 50m Rifle 3 Positions, 50m Prone and 10m Air Rifle events. Emily and James also competed in the 10m Air Rifle Mixed Teams event.
In shotgun, Jack Brandt, Riley Hughes-Gage and Aimee Norris also made their ISSF International competition debuts, competing in the Men’s and Women’s Trap events. They were joined by Benjamin De Pedro, Cameron Ford and Fletcher Richardson.
Both Jack and Aimee recorded personal best scores at the end of their qualification, with Jack shooting 118 out of 125 targets to finish 17th in the Men’s Trap, and Aimee shooting 111 out of 125 to finish 16th in the Women’s Trap event.
Making his ISSF World Cup debut in Morocco earlier this year, Cameron Ford had a standout Australian performance at his first Junior World Championships. Shooting a new personal best score of 122/125 in Men’s Trap qualification, Cameron progressed through to the final as the second highest qualifier. He went on to shoot a further 10 out of 15 targets and placed 6th overall.
Check out the full story on the Shooting Australia webpage to hear more from our athletes experiences at the 2026 ISSF Junior World Championship.
Sydney Cup #2 was held between the 5th and 7th of June at the Sydney International Shooting Centre (SISC), NSW.
A tier 1 Shooting Australia endorsed event, this competition was also World Championship Selection Event #1 & #2 for senior pistol and rifle athletes.
Thank you to SISC and all of the amazing volunteers who contributed to the hosting and officiating of this competition.
To see the full results from the 2026 Sydney Cup #2, visit the Shooting Australia webpage at the link below.
The second Tier 1 Shooting Australia endorsed event held in June, the QLD State Titles was held between the 12th and 14th at Brisbane Gun Club.
This event brought together some of Australia’s best Trap and Skeet athletes to test their skills against each other over a weekend of fierce competition.
This event was also World Championship Selection event #2 for senior shotgun athletes looking to attend the ISSF World Championships in Doha, Qatar later this year.
To see the full results from the 2026 QLD State Titles, visit the Shooting Australia webpage at the link below.
QLD State Titles Event Results
ISSF World Cup – Lonato
Where: Lonato, Italy
When: 3-13 July
Discipline: Shotgun
ISSF WORLD CUP – LONATO
ISSF World Cup – Hangzhou
Where: Hangzhou, China
When: 15-19 July
Discipline: Shotgun
ISSF WORLD CUP – HANGZHOU
BISC Cup #2 (Tier 1)
Where: Brisbane International Shooting Centre, QLD
When: 2-5 July
Discipline: Pistol & Rifle
Selection Overlay: Pistol World Championship Selection Event #3
BISC CUP #2 EVENT INFO
Adelaide Cup (Tier 1)
Where: Wingfield, SA
When: 6-9 August
Discipline: Rifle
Selection Overlay: World Championships Selection Event #3
ADELAIDE CUP EVENT INFO
PSQ State Championships (Tier 2)
Where: Brisbane International Shooting Club, QLD
When: 7-9 August
Discipline: Pistol
PSQ STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS EVENT INFO
MISC GP (Tier 2)
Where: Melbourne International Shooting Centre, VIC
When: 28-30 August
Discipline: Rifle & Pistol
MISC GP EVENT INFO
eSafety and Play by the Rules are continuing to host free educational webinars around safety and integrity in sports.
Upcoming webinars include:
When: Wednesday 8th July 2026, 11.30am-12.10pm AEST
To learn more about this webinar and to register your interest, click the link below.
When: Wednesday 9th September 2026, 12.30pm AEST
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!
