Bullseye shooting is a category of

shooting sport Shooting sports is a group of competitive and recreational sporting activities involving proficiency tests of accuracy, precision and speed in shooting — the art of using ranged weapons, mainly small arms (firearms and airguns, in forms such ...

disciplines where the objective is to score points with carefully placed precision fire by hitting a

target Target may refer to: Physical items * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artillery, fi ...

as close to its center as possible. The name refers to the target center's nickname — the " bull's eye". In

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and S ...

, this type of shooting competition is referred to as Range-Shooting ( da, baneskydning, no, baneskyting, sv, banskytte), as it usually takes place at dedicated

shooting range A shooting range, firing range, gun range or shooting ground is a specialized facility, venue or field designed specifically for firearm usage qualifications, training, practice or competitions. Some shooting ranges are operated by military ...

. A large emphasis is put on accuracy and precision through steady breath, sight picture and trigger control, and fixed and relatively long time limits give competitors time to concentrate for a perfect shot. An example of bullseye shooting competitions is the ISSF pistol and rifle events, but there are also many other national and international disciplines which can be classified as bullseye shooting, e.g.,

NRA Precision Pistol NRA Precision Pistol, formerly known as NRA Conventional Pistol, is a national bullseye shooting discipline organized in the United States by the National Rifle Association of America. Emphasis is on accuracy and precision, and participants shoot ...

competitions in the United States. Matches are normally held at permanent

s where the competitors are lined up beside each other and shoot during the same predetermined time period at their own stationary targets which are placed at the same fixed distances from match to match. Distances in bullseye shooting disciplines are typically given in round numbers such as 10, 15, 25, 50, 100, 200 or 300 meters, depending on

firearm A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

type and discipline. During competition, the line consisting of shooters is called the ''firing line'', while the line consisting of targets is called the ''target line''. Due to its simple format, bullseye shooting is often recommended for beginners in shooting sports in order to learn the general fundamentals of marksmanship. Bullseye shooting is a part of the

olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

, and considerable training is needed to achieve a high level of proficiency.

Examples of bullseye disciplines

Rifle disciplines

Bullseye shooting with rifles can refer to several disciplines: *

ISSF 10 meter air rifle 10 metre air rifle (N.B. For "Meter" in this article – read "Metre") is an International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF) shooting event, shot at a bullseye target over a distance of using a calibre air rifle with a maximum weight of . It ...

is an

air rifle An air gun or airgun is a gun that fires projectiles pneumatically with compressed air or other gases that are mechanically pressurized ''without'' involving any chemical reactions, in contrast to a firearm, which pressurizes gases ''chemical ...

discipline shot with 4.5 mm (0.177 in) caliber air rifles. * Small-bore shooting competitions are a set of several disciplines usually shot at distances of 10, 15 or 50 meters, usually only for small-bore rifles in

.22 LR The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smooth ...

caliber. **

ISSF 50 meter rifle prone 50 meter rifle prone (formerly known as one of four free rifle disciplines) is an International Shooting Sport Federation event consisting of 60 shots from the prone position with a .22 Long Rifle The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or ...

** ISSF 50 meter rifle three positions ** National Norwegian Small-Bore competitions (''miniatyrgevær'' or ''innendørsskyting'') are shot at 15 meters by both the Norwegian Shooting Association and the

National Rifle Association of Norway Det frivillige Skyttervesen (DFS) (), known in English as the National Rifle Association of Norway, and by DFS themselves as the Norwegian Civilian Marksmanship Association since 2020, is a civilian marksmanship association in Norway and the lar ...

, but at different target sizes. * Fullbore rifle shooting usually refers to disciplines where one uses intermediate (such as

.223 Remington The .223 Remington (designated as the 223 Remington by the SAAMI and 223 Rem by the CIP) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It was developed in 1957 by Remington Arms and Fairchild Industries for the U.S. Continental Army Command ...

6mm BR This is a list of firearm cartridges which have bullets of a caliber between and . *''Length'' refers to the cartridge case length *''OAL'' refers to the overall length of the cartridge Measurements are in millimeters then inches, i.e. ''mm ( ...

) or battle rifle cartridges (such as the

.308 Winchester The .308 Winchester is a smokeless powder rimless bottlenecked rifle cartridge widely used for hunting, target shooting, police, military, and personal protection applications globally. It is similar but not identical to the 7.62×51mm NATO ...

or the

.30-06 Springfield The .30-06 Springfield cartridge (pronounced "thirty- aught-six" ), 7.62×63mm in metric notation, and called the .30 Gov't '06 by Winchester, was introduced to the United States Army in 1906 and later standardized; it remained in military use ...

) which comparably are larger and more powerful cartridges than the small-bore .22 LR cartridge. ** ISSF 300 meter standard rifle **

ISSF 300 meter rifle prone 300 m rifle prone (formerly known as one of four free rifle disciplines) is an ISSF shooting event. It was added to the World Championship program in 1982, and was based on the English Match but shot with the same full-power rifle as in 300 metre r ...

** ISSF 300 meter rifle three positions ** ICFRA Palma and F-Class, and various national

fullbore target rifle Fullbore Target Rifle (TR) is a precision rifle shooting sport governed by the International Confederation of Fullbore Rifle Associations (ICFRA). The sport evolved as a distinct British and Commonwealth of Nations discipline from Service rifle ...

disciplines in

Commonwealth nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

. ** High power rifle, a fullbore rifle discipline arranged in the United States by the

National Rifle Association of America The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while conti ...

. ** Nordic Bullseye Rifle-Shooting (Danish: ''baneskydning'', Norwegian: ''baneskyting'', Swedish: ''banskytte'') is fired at 100, 200 and 300 meters depending on class, and either with the small-bore .22 LR cartridge at 100 meters, or fullbore calibers at distances 100, 200 or 300 meters. Matches are usually held in the summer season, and are arranged by the

(DFS), the Danish Gymnastics and Sports Associations (DGI Shooting) and the Swedish Shooting Sport Association (SvSF).

Handgun disciplines

Bullseye shooting with handguns can refer to several disciplines: * Airgun: ** ISSF 10 meter air pistol is an air pistol discipline shot with 4.5 mm (0.177 in) caliber air pistols. * Small-caliber (.22 LR): **

ISSF 25 meter pistol 25 meter pistol, formerly and unofficially still often known as sport pistol, is one of the ISSF shooting events. It was devised as a women's event in the 1960s, based upon the rules of 25 meter center-fire pistol but shot with a .22-caliber spo ...

** ISSF 25 meter standard pistol **

ISSF 25 meter rapid fire pistol 25 meter rapid fire pistol is one of the ISSF shooting events and is shot with .22 LR pistols. The event has been a part of the Olympic program ever since the beginning in 1896, although its rules changed greatly before World War II, after whic ...

** ISSF 50 meter pistol **

* Large-caliber: ** ISSF 25 meter center-fire pistol allows many centerfire cartridges, but the most popular one is the .32 S&W Long. **

centerfire matches require pistols of caliber 32-45. Typical cartridges include .32 S&W Long,

.32 ACP .32 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol, also known as .32 Automatic) is a centerfire pistol cartridge. It is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled cartridge developed by firearms designer John Browning, initially for use in the FN M1900 semi-automatic pi ...

.38 Special The .38 Special, also commonly known as .38 S&W Special (not to be confused with .38 S&W), .38 Smith & Wesson Special, .38 Spl, .38 Spc, (pronounced "thirty-eight special"), or 9x29mmR is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & ...

9×19mm Parabellum The 9×19mm Parabellum (also known as 9mm Parabellum or 9mm Luger or simply 9mm) is a rimless, tapered firearms cartridge. Originally designed by Austrian firearm designer Georg Luger in 1901, it is widely considered the most popular handgun ...

, and

.45 ACP The .45 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol) or .45 Auto (11.43×23mm) is a rimless straight-walled handgun cartridge designed by John Moses Browning in 1904, for use in his prototype Colt semi-automatic pistol. After successful military trials, it ...

Comparing to other shooting disciplines

While many shooting sport disciplines share the same fundamental characteristics, bullseye competitions can be set apart from other disciplines in many ways. * In

Clay pigeon shooting Clay pigeon shooting, also known as clay target shooting, is a shooting sport involving shooting a firearm at special flying targets known as clay pigeons, or clay targets. The terminology commonly used by clay shooters often relates to time ...

target scoring is not graduated by rings or "scoring areas", but rather scored either a hit or miss. *

Long range shooting Long range shooting is a collective term for shooting disciplines where the distance to target is significant enough that shooter has to put effort into calculating various ballistic factors, especially in regards to the deviating effects ...

competitions puts a larger emphasis on knowledge and application of ballistics in different weather conditions, mostly to compensate for wind drift on longer ranges. Rifle shooting disciplines with distances beyond 300 meters are often distinctively referred to as long range shooting, even though some of these disciplines also fulfill all the characteristics of the bullseye shooting disciplines which however are shot at shorter distances. Among long range disciplines are the ICFRA Palma and F-Class competitions, where competitors shoot from the same line, at fixed target ranges between 300 and 900 meters (or 300 to 1,000 yards) during the same predetermined time period. However, disciplines referred to as long range shooting differ from those simply referred to as bullseye in that

external ballistics External ballistics or exterior ballistics is the part of ballistics that deals with the behavior of a projectile in flight. The projectile may be powered or un-powered, guided or unguided, spin or fin stabilized, flying through an atmosphere o ...

is of much larger importance. * Speed shooting competitions, which puts a large emphasis on time since a course must be shot with the most points in the shortest amount of time. * Field-shooting or ''terrain-shooting'' (Danish: ''terrænskydning'', Norwegian: ''feltskyting'', Swedish: ''fältskytte''Swedish: Fältskytte gevär förklarat , Sandvikens Skyttegille
/ref>) differ in that they usually are shot from temporary shooting ranges in the terrain at varying distances, rather than permanent shooting ranges at fixed distances. * Other disciplines differ for instance in that targets are moving (such as in

running target shooting Running target shooting refers to a number of target shooting sports and events involving a shooting target—sometimes called a boar, moose, or deer—that is made to move as if it is a running animal. Competitions are shot at known target dist ...

), or that the competitors shoots one and one at a time (such as in

clay pigeon shooting Clay pigeon shooting, also known as clay target shooting, is a shooting sport involving shooting a firearm at special flying targets known as clay pigeons, or clay targets. The terminology commonly used by clay shooters often relates to time ...

and

practical shooting Practical shooting, also known as dynamic shooting or action shooting, is a set of shooting sports where the competitors try to unite the three principles of precision, power, and speed, by using a firearm of a certain minimum power factor to sc ...

sports).

References

{{Reflist Shooting sports Sport in Scandinavia

Examples of bullseye disciplines

Rifle disciplines

Handgun disciplines

Comparing to other shooting disciplines

See also

References