AIR RIFLE
With separate events for men and women, air rifle shooting joined the Olympic program in 1984. Competitors stand and shoot lead pellets from .177 caliber guns at targets 10 meters away. The bulls eye, or 10 ring, is one-half millimeter wide, the size of the period at the end of this sentence.

The Guns: Air rifles can be either air or gas-powered and weigh up to 12 pounds by international regulation. World-class guns (e.g. FWB 601, Anschutz 2002) typically retail for $1500-$2000.

Course of Fire: Men take 60 shots in one hour and 45 minutes, while women have one hour and 15 minutes for 40 shots.

Perfect Match Score: For men, 600 is perfect and 590 is world-class. For women, 400 is perfect and 393 is world-class.

Finals: The top eight competitors advance to a 10-shot final round, with 75 seconds allowed per shot. The final is calculated in tenths of a point and added to the match score to determine winners. A perfect final score is 109.0.

Perfect Aggregate (Match + Final) Score: 709.0 for men, 509 for women.

Last U.S. Olympic Medal: Nancy Johnson won the women's gold medal at the 2000 Games in Sydney, Australia. Pat Spurgin won the women's gold at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. U.S. men have not won an Olympic medal in this event. Roger Withrow brought home the gold medal in the 1984 Paralympics held in Salsbury, England

THREE-POSITION RIFLE
In three-position, athletes fire .22 caliber smallbore rifles from the prone, standing, and kneeling positions at targets 50 meters downrange. The bullseye is 10.4 millimeters in diameter, smaller than a dime. Though today there are separate events for men and women, from 1952 to 1980, three-position rifle was an open Olympic event, meaning that men and women competed head-to-head.

The Guns: Men and women use different types of smallbore rifles. Women fire used to fire "standard" rifles, which weigh up to 12 pounds and cannot be modified in any way. Now both men and women shoot free rifles (up to 17.6 pounds for men only), which can be customized with special accessories and/or alterations that fit the shooter's needs and comforts. Both men's and women's guns have metallic sights. World-class standard rifles (e.g. Anschutz 2007) cost $1900-$2000; free rifles (e.g. Anschutz 2013) run about $2400-$3000.

Course of Fire: Men fire 40 rounds per position for a total of 120 shots. Time limits for men are one hour for prone, one hour and 30 minutes for standing, and one hour and 15 minutes for kneeling. Women shoot 20 rounds per position for a total of 60 shots. They have a total of two and one-half hours for all three positions.

Perfect Match Score: For men, 1200 is perfect and 1165 is world-class. For women, 600 is perfect and 580 is world-class.

Finals: For men and women, the top eight performers advance to a 10-shot final round, fired entirely from the standing position with 75 seconds allotted per shot. The final is calculated in tenths of a point and added to the match point total to determine winners. A perfect final score is 109.0.

Perfect Aggregate Score: 1309.0 for men, 709.0 for women.

Last U.S. Olympic Medals: Launi Meili won the women's gold and Bob Foth won the men's silver at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.

FREE RIFLE PRONE
This men's event has been on the Olympic program since 1908. Athletes lie on their stomachs and shoot .22 caliber rifles at bulls eye targets 50 meters downrange. The target's center is 10.4 millimeters wide, smaller than a dime.

The Guns: Athletes use free rifles, which have metallic sights and can be customized with special accessories and/or alterations to fit the shooter's needs and comforts. World-class free rifles (e.g. Anschutz 2013) weigh up to 17.6 pounds and run about $2400-$3000.

Course of Fire: 60 shots in one hour and 30 minutes.

Perfect Match Score: 600 is a perfect score, 597 is world-class.

Finals: The top eight shooters advance to a 10-shot final, with a 45-second time limit per shot. The final is scored in tenths of a point and added to the match score to determine winners. A perfect final score is 109.0.

Perfect Aggregate (Match + Final) Score: 709.0 points.

Last U.S. Olympic Medal: Ed Etzel won the gold at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles.