In an effort to offer an additional opportunity to compete in the new mixed team events, the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) announced that the mixed team events will be organized at this year’s World Cup Final in October in New Delhi.
The new mixed gender events in air rifle, air pistol and trap have been included in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Programme. The step follows the guidelines of the IOC Agenda 2020, embracing gender equality at sport level.
This year, test competitions in the three new mixed gender team events were conducted at two ISSF World Cup Rifle/Pistol stages and at three ISSF World Cup Shotgun stages. Furthermore, a trap mixed gender team event be held at the Shotgun World Championship in Moscow in September.
In a move to ensure as many chances as possible to showcase the new events, the ISSF decided to include them in the 2017 World Cup Final program.
The four best 10m Air Rifle and 10m Air Pistol teams out of each of the two Rifle/Pistol test events will be selected to participate in the World Cup Final in New Delhi. The two best Trap teams out of each of the three Shotgun World Cup test events will qualify, along with the three medal-winning teams of the forthcoming ISSF Shotgun World Championship in Moscow.
This is a good-will act of the ISSF, which aims at maximizing media exposure, foster international recognition and offer testing opportunity for the new events, that will become part of the ISSF competitions program in 2018, after the approval of the provisional regulations by the ISSF Administrative Council, later this year.
“The World Cup Final has always been the highlight of our seasons, and it’s the right place to showcase Mixed Gender Team events. All athletes will be invited by the Organizing Committee, and the winners will have a chance to defend their titles at next year’s ISSF World Cup Final,” said the ISSF President Olegario Vazquez Raña.
The Indian pair of Jitu Rai and Heena Sidhu have won the Air Pistol Mixed Team title on both the occasions at the ISSF World Cup in Gabala and at New Delhi.
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