IPSC recognizes all the shooting disciplines - Handgun, Rifle, Shotgun, and Action Air.

IPSC shooters need to blend accuracy, power, and speed into a winning combination. Multiple targets, moving targets, targets that react when hit, penalty targets, or even partially covered targets, obstacles, movement, competitive strategies, and other techniques are all a part of IPSC to keep shooters challenged and spectators engaged.

IPSC Motto






Designed in 1980 and featuring the IPSC shield centered on a field of white with a blue border, the IPSC flag passes during the Closing Ceremonies from World Shoot to World Shoot.

IPSC Competition

IPSC CompetitionIn IPSC shooting, no course of fire is ever the same from one competition to the next. Diversity is encouraged to keep the sport from becoming too formalized or standardized and typically, competitors do not know in advance what to expect in any given match.


IPSC targets have a 15-centimeter center representing the "A zone" or bullseye. Most shooting takes place at relatively close distances, with rare shots out to 50 meters. Hitting a 15-centimeter zone might seem easy to an experienced pistol shooter, but in IPSC only full power handguns are used (9mm or larger).

Mastering a full power handgun is considerably more difficult than shooting a light recoiling target pistol, especially when the competitor is trying to go as fast as possible. Time is a key factor. Target points are divided by the time taken to achieve them, adding to the challenge.

Handgun shooters may enter one of five different Divisions depending on the style of firearm used.

Shooting all the IPSC disciplines
can be seen as the pinnacle of
marksmanship and overall shooting skill.

Shotgun and Rifle

IPSC Shotgun and Rifle disciplines are similar to Handgun but differ in many details. Only minor differences are found in the competition rules.

Although the roots of IPSC are martial in origin, IPSC shooting matured from those beginnings, just as karate, fencing, and archery developed from their origins.