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What You Need To Know About The NRA Intercollegiate Rifle And Pistol Club Championships

by Victoria L. Walker - Wednesday, March 15, 2017

The goal of every organization is to grow so exponentially word of their mission will spread naturally. The NRA Collegiate Shooting Program is no different. Year after year, it is our hope that the NRA Intercollegiate Rifle and Pistol Club Championships will grow and strengthen competitive rifle teams on campuses across the nation.

With the Rifle Championship scheduled for March 17-19 and the Pistol Championship scheduled for March 20-24, Fort Benning, Georgia is sure to be filled to the brim with excited participants and spectators!

While this may be a well-known event to those in the competitive shooting community, those not immersed in this culture may have a few questions…

What are the NRA Intercollegiate Rifle and Pistol Club Championships?

When attending the NRA Intercollegiate Rifle and Pistol Club Championships, you can expect to see collegiate-level participants from NRA College Clubs, ROTC Teams and collegiate-level independent shooters competing in nearly every variety of the sport. The purpose of the championship: to award the top three scoring competitors in each discipline.

To determine the National Collegiate Pistol Team Champions and Individual champions, shooters must compete in Intercollegiate Free Pistol, Standard Pistol, Open Air Pistol, Women's Air Pistol and Women's Sport Pistol.

Similarly, to determine the Rifle Champions, shooters must compete in Intercollegiate Air Rifle and Smallbore Rifle Championships. Throughout the rifle championship, all participants and coaches will also have an opportunity to participate in Smallbore Rifle and Air Rifle competitions and training summits.

With the abundance of different events and competitions, collegiate athletes will have to compete at challenging distances in every category.

Pistol Competition Distances:

Free Pistol: Rule 3.6 Event Distance 50 meters
Standard Pistol: Rule 3.5 Event Distance 25 meters
Air Pistol: Rule 3.7   Event Distance 10 meters
Sport Pistol:    Rule 3.5 Event Distance 2.5 meters

Rifle Competition Distances:

Smallbore Rifle: Rule 7.5. Event Distance: 50 meters
Air Rifle: Rule 7.1    Event Distance: 10 meters

Who can compete?

Competitors must be a full-time undergraduate student to compete and qualify for this championship. Shooters can compete for a maximum of four years during their undergraduate career. Their final semester is the only exception, in which they may attend 12 credit hours or fewer.

If an undergraduate student goes to graduate school directly after graduation and has one or more years of eligibility remaining, the graduate student may compete during their first year of school.

How does one qualify?

Rifle competitors who achieve the minimum qualifying score (MQS) in the 2017 NRA Intercollegiate Rifle/Pistol Sectionals are invited to compete in the 2017 NRA Intercollegiate Rifle/Pistol Club Championship.

Qualifications for the Rifle Championship:

Individual MQS:
Smallbore Rifle - 450
Air Rifle - 495

Team MQS:
Smallbore Rifle - 1800
Air Rifle - 1980

Once the athlete has qualified for the Rifle Championship, only one team per institution per event may qualify to compete.

However, once the teams are selected, the same team members who fired in the sectional do not have to compete on that team in the Championships. Any shooter from that school who fired in an Intercollegiate Rifle Sectional may fire as a team member at the Championship.

(Photo courtesy/Shooting Sports USA)

To qualify for the Intercollegiate Pistol Championship, individuals and teams must compete at a certain caliber in the 2017 NRA Intercollegiate Pistol Sectionals.

Individual Women:
Air Pistol: Top 20 Women
Sport Pistol: Top 20 Women

Women’s Teams:
Air Pistol: Top 7
Sport Pistol: Top 7

Individual Men:
40 Shot Air Pistol: Top 15
Sport Pistol: Top 15

Teams qualifying in one of the two team events for both rifle and pistol are allowed to participate in both team events, but only in order to compete for national aggregate championship awards.

Team members must be qualified and listed prior to the start of the competition on Friday, March 17.

How much does it cost for both pistol and rifle competitors?

Each individual competitor firing in the matches will pay an entry fee of $35 per match event to the NRA. Each team will pay $60 per match event to the NRA.

The NRA waives the entry fee for the top qualifying team and the top qualifying individual from the overall results in the 2017 Intercollegiate National Rifle Sectionals. Talk about an incentive!

First up is the NRA Intercollegiate Rifle Club Championship beginning Friday, March 17 through Sunday, March 19!

Upcoming: NRA Intercollegiate Rifle Club Championship - Schedule of Events

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