What are Finals? Should we have Finals in our Matches?

February 24, 2026

Civilian Marksmanship Program▸Youth 3 PAR▸What are Finals? Should we have Finals in our Matches?

Shooting developed finals as a way to become more exciting for spectators and media, as well as for the athletes. In finals, the top eight athletes fire ten additional shots with qualification and final scores being added to determine medal winners. Major international competitions have had finals since 1986 and finals have been included in major 3PAR competitions for 20 years. In 2013, international finals were taken one big step further with finalists starting at zero (qualification scores are not carried forward) and firing 20 to 45 shots in the final. The International Olympic Committee is pushing all Olympic sports to move in this direction so the new start-from-zero finals are here to stay for athletes who rise to the highest levels in national and international competitions. 3PAR Rules have not yet adopted start-from-zero finals, but the use of finals that combine the top eight qualification scores with finals scores to determine medal winners is done in almost all major 3PAR competitions. Comments from junior athletes affirm that they like shooting finals and that winning in a final where there are dozens or even hundreds of spectators is far more meaningful than looking at a posted results list to see who won. For athletes who want to pursue the Olympic Path, giving them opportunities to shoot finals is absolutely essential. For most 3PAR athletes, having opportunities to qualify for and compete in finals makes those competitions more meaningful. YES, 3PAR competitions should include finals whenever practical. The National Standard Rules (Rule 10.0) describe several options for conducting finals when using paper targets. The Orion Scoring System even offers a way to conduct the newer start-from-zero finals while shooting on paper targets.