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Striving for Great Standing Scores

Striving for Great Standing Scores

By Gary Anderson, DCM Emeritus

THE STANDING POSITION IS THE MAKER OF CHAMPIONS IN ALL POSITION RIFLE EVENTS

BB Gun Sporter Precision Rimfire Smallbore Highpower

Air Rifle Air Rifle Sporter 3-Position Rifle
A well-known rifle manufacturer advertises itself as the
DEFINITIONS OF TERMS USED “Meistermacher,” the maker of champions. Having a well-
designed, high performance rifle is indeed important for
IN THIS ARTICLE marksmanship success, but in position rifle shooting, the
real maker of champions is the standing position. Standing
• Hold. The magnitude of front sight movements is part of all of the position rifle events in which junior
over the aiming bull while attempting to shooters regularly participate. No competitive rifle position
shooter will become a real champion without shooting great
fire a shot. standing position scores. By most measures, standing is
• Canting. Rotating the rifle to the right or left to the most important part of position rifle success because
facilitate aiming or an improved head it is where the most points are lost and conversely where
athletes stand to gain the most points by working to improve
position and balance. their scores.
• Body-Rifle System. Understanding the athlete’s The objective of this article is to examine the primary
body and rifle as a single unit. aspects of standing position performance to help coaches,
junior athletes and their parents understand what must
• Visual Focus. The application of intense be done to become a great standing shooter. To achieve
visual concentration on reducing sight that objective, the athlete’s position, shot technique and
picture movements while aiming. training methods must fulfill the following objectives:
1. Position Stability. The most important factor in
• Inner Position. The outer position is what shooting great standing scores is stability, how steady the
is seen by others; the inner position athlete can hold the rifle while aiming and attempting to fire
is what athletes feel inside their bodies the shot. With today’s standing position scores now rising
nearly as high as prone and kneeling scores, athletes who
while attempting to fire shots. want to become champions must strive to develop prone-
• Position Descriptions. All position descriptions like “holds” with their standing positions.
in this article are given for right-handed
2. Position Preparation. A key to achieving a great
athletes; for left-handed athletes, simply
standing position hold is disciplining oneself to take special
reverse right and left. steps and extra time to prepare the position and ensure
its consistency before proceeding with the actual firing of
the shot.
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3. Shot Technique. Achieving a prone-like standing
position hold is achievable, but great standing position THE STANDING POSITION – FUNDAMENTAL FEATURES
holds are fragile, shorter and easily disturbed. Excellent
shot technique that ensures consistently firing shots
during times of best hold is necessary to achieve high
standing scores.

4. Training Methods. Position stability and

consistent shot technique can only be achieved by
doing thousands of correct repetitions. How much an
athlete trains and how well they train are major factors
in determining how high an athlete’s standing scores can
climb.

This article is not about learning how to build an initial

standing position. This article is about how to improve and
perfect an established standing position. If you are new
to position rifle shooting and need information about how
to build a standing position, you can download and study
an excellent CMP instructional video titled “Building the
Standing Position” at https://vimeo.com/392210961. A
A. POSITION ORIENTATION. The feet and body are
brochure titled “Teaching Rifle Positions to New Shooters”
turned 90 degrees from the line of fire.
can be downloaded from the CMP website at https://
B. RIFLE SUPPORT. The left arm rests on the left
thecmp.org/news-media/publications/. A book published
side with the elbow directly under the rifle. The left
by the CMP, Coaching Young Rifle Shooters*, includes
hand and wrist must be configured to raise the rifle
detailed instructions for beginning standing shooters.
to target level.
C. LEG AND HIP CONFIGURATION. Feet are
RECHECKING THE POSITION shoulder width apart or slightly wider. The hips are
Stability in any position begins with having a structurally aligned with the feet. Hips are level or the forward
sound position. Thus, the first step in achieving great hip is slightly elevated.
standing scores is to recheck the fundamental features D. TORSO CONFIGURATION. The upper body bends
of the position being used now to make sure it has no slightly to the right and rear.
significant shortcomings. Standing position features to E. HEAD POSITION. The head must be nearly erect.
recheck are: This is achieved by locating the butt-plate up in the
A. Position Orientation. In structurally sound shoulder or by lowering an adjustable butt-plate.
standing positions, the feet and body must be turned 90
degrees away from the line of fire. The body must face The athletes in this illustration are Virginia Thrasher, USA, 2016
90 degrees away from the target while the left hip points Olympic gold medalist, and Istvan Peni, Hungary, a World Cup gold
medalist whose highest 50m standing international competition
at the target. Turning a little more than 90 degrees is
score is 395x400.
OK (95 degrees maximum), but anything less than that
should be corrected.
If the left arm is not relaxed down on the left side, get it
B. Rifle Support. There are three keys to achieving down. Getting the arm fully relaxed and down on the side
proper rifle support with the left hand and arm. a) The left may require using a higher hand-wrist position to raise the
arm must be down, resting on the side of the body with sights to eye level. b) The left elbow must rest on the side
the muscles of the left arm and shoulder totally relaxed. directly under the rifle. If the left elbow is not directly under
the rifle after shouldering the rifle, lift the left arm and rifle
*Coaching Young Rifle Shooters was written by the author of
up, push the left elbow further forward and lower it back
this article, Gary Anderson, and published by the CMP. Copies down onto the side. Practice doing this until fixing the left
can be ordered through the CMP E-Store “Bookstore” (From the elbow directly under the rifle becomes natural.
CMP home page, click on “Sales,” “E-Store” and “Bookstore.”)
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Striving for Great Standing Scores

c) The left hand and wrist must be configured so it raises Those variations are also OK as long as extremes are
the rifle to target level with the rear sight aperture aligned avoided. At a later stage of development, how to precisely
with the aiming eye. With precision rifles, a riser block configure the legs and hips should be the focus of serious
or palm rest can be used to aid in raising the rifle to the evaluation to determine which configuration is best for
proper height. With other rifles where such devices are not each individual athlete.
permitted (i.e., BB Gun, Sporter Air Rifle, Rimfire Sporter
Rifle), a hand and wrist configuration (i.e., resting the rifle D. Torso Configuration. A key to standing position
on the hand with the wrist bent, on the fork of the hand, on stability is having a balanced position where minimal
the fist or on the thumb and split fingers) must be selected to muscle tension is applied to keep the body in that position.
raise the rifle to aiming eye height. The hand-wrist position In standing, muscle tension in the lower back can be
must also support the rifle at a height that allows the upper relieved by bending the upper body (torso) to the right to
body to bend comfortably to the right and rear and which counterbalance the weight of the rifle, which is extended
also keeps the upper body balanced over the feet. to the front (left) of the position. Especially with a heavier
rifle, it is also necessary to bend back slightly to the rear to
C. Leg and Hip Configuration. Basic marksmanship counterbalance the weight of the rifle, which is being held
instruction simply tells beginners to step to the line and on the front of the body (see illustration below).
take up their standing position with the body turned 90
degrees away from the target. At that point, nothing is said E. Head Position. The shooter’s head position
about how wide the stance should be or whether the hips facilitates aiming and plays key roles in balancing the
should be level or shifted forward to elevate the forward position and keeping it balanced. Establishing a good
hip. What is important in the beginning is to avoid a position head position starts with fixing how the head is held so that
with extremes. Most new shooters will start with the feet it is reasonably erect. It does not have to be perfectly erect,
about shoulder width apart. That’s OK, but if the feet but it must be sufficiently
are less than a foot apart or spread extremely wide, that erect to allow the aiming
should be corrected. Some shooters will naturally shift the eye to comfortably
hips forward to elevate the left hip. This usually results in look forward through
placing a little more weight on the left (forward) leg. the rear sight. The rifle
must then be raised up
so that the aiming eye
STANDING – LEG AND HIP CONFIGURATIONS is aligned with the rear
sight aperture. This is
achieved by adjusting
the butt-plate location
and configuration of
the left (support) arm.
Getting the rifle sights
up to aiming eye level is
easier with precision air
and smallbore rifles that

Note how this athlete’s

standing position bends
to the rear to balance the
body-rifle system over
the feet. The athlete is
50m 3-position Junior
Beginning marksmen may start with either of these two
World Record holder,
basic leg and hip configurations. In the position on the
Filip Nepejchal, Czech
left, the left hip is elevated. In the position on the right,
Rep.
the hips are level.
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have adjustable butt-plates, adjustable cheek-pieces,

higher sights and fore-end risers of varying sizes. The This front view of a
guiding principle here is to establish a reasonably erect structurally sound
head position first and then adjust the rifle to the head. standing position
illustrates the vertical
If necessary, “canting” the rifle to bring the sights back
support column that
to the aiming eye is better than tipping the head over to aligns the rifle, left
see through the sights (note how the rifle is canted in the elbow, left hip and
photo on the previous page). balance point on the
feet.
Advanced Standing Position Details
After an athlete has established a structurally sound
standing position and has been able to practice and shoot tension necessary to
competitions with it, an important stage of development keep the body-rifle
will be to consider critical standing position details and system balanced over the
determine whether structural improvements are possible. position balance points is
Possible position improvements include: applied (see diagram on
1. Vertical Support Column. Standing position next page). Depending
stability and balance is enhanced by having a position upon the leg and hip
where the rifle, left elbow and left hip are aligned in a configuration used by an
vertical line that runs from the rifle down to the balance athlete, the balance point
points in the feet. This vertical column of support makes for the entire position will
it possible to balance the “body-rifle system” over the be centered between the
balance point in the feet with minimum muscular effort. feet or shifted somewhat
This vertical support column can only be achieved when forward towards the
the left elbow and left hip are directly under the rifle. This target. The weight that
is a time to make sure the hips are squarely aligned over falls on each foot is
the feet. Any twisting in the upper body must be in the normally shifted just
upper body, not in the legs. slightly forward of being
perfectly balanced.
2. Leg and Hip Configuration. Some experimenting
may be necessary to find the best solutions for how wide 5. Right Arm and
the foot stance should be, and whether the hips should Hand Position. The
be kept level or shifted forward to elevate the forward hip. purpose of the right arm
A good way to start considering alternatives is to study the and hand is to place the right hand and index finger in
photos of the positions used by champion junior and senior the proper position to press the trigger directly to the rear.
athletes included in this article. Great standing athletes have adopted a variety of right
arm positions with some dropping the arm down almost
3. Relaxed Left Arm and Shoulder. Muscle tension to the side while others lift it up so the upper arm is nearly
in the left arm and shoulder as they support the rifle can horizontal. The one common feature that all right arm
cause hold movements. Minimizing those movements is positions have is that they keep the forearm and wrist
achieved by developing the ability to relax the left arm and straight. Hand tension on the pistol grip varies according
shoulder muscles. An effective way to do this is to focus to the discipline. Precision air rifle and smallbore rifle
attention on those muscles while breathing and bringing shooters who usually use triggers in the three- or four-
the rifle down onto the target. Each time the lungs exhale, ounce range can have very light hand grips. Highpower
tell those muscles to “let go-relax.” rifle shooters who must fire with 4.5-pound triggers and
Rimfire Sporter shooters who have 3.0-pound triggers
4. Position Balance. Muscle tensions required to should use firm grasps on the pistol grip. They may also
keep the body-rifle system in position can also cause hold use the hand to pull the rifle back into the shoulder as
movements. Reducing those movements can be achieved a technique for controlling the rifle better when wind is
by balancing the position so that only the minimum muscle blowing on the shooters’ positions.
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Striving for Great Standing Scores

JUNIOR CHAMPIONS' STANDING POSITIONS

These international junior champions display a variety of standing positions that have all been used to produce
winning or world record scores. All positions incorporate 90-degree body turns, left elbow locations under their rifles
and reasonably erect head positions, but other position features vary.

The athletes (l. to r.) are Aishwary TOMAR, India, 50m Junior World Record; Anna JANSSEN, Germany, 50m Junior World
Record; Elavenil VALARIVAN, India, 10m World Cup Final gold medalist; Changhong ZHANG, China, Junior World Cup gold
medalist.

6. Clothing Selection and Fit. In rifle

disciplines where athletes are permitted to
wear special shooting jackets (highpower
rifle) or shooting jackets and trousers
Rifle — Line of Fire (precision air rifle and smallbore rifle),
athletes must devote attention to taking full
b) a) advantage of this performance enhancing
equipment. Indeed, in these disciplines,
it is not possible to be competitive at the
highest levels without having special
shooting clothing. Strict regulations apply,
particularly for precision air and smallbore
rifle clothing, so no purchase should be
made without first determining that it is
= The balance point for the complete legal. Shooting clothing manufacturers offer
position and rifle should fall within this special fitting services and it is worthwhile
area. Position weight can be distributed to take advantage of this when obtaining
50%-50% (balance point at a) or as much jackets and trousers.
as 70%-30% (balance point at b).
7. Position Consistency. After
= The balance point for each foot. Position
an athlete has carefully evaluated their
weight should be shifted slightly forward.
standing position and has made any
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necessary corrections or changes, there is one more while resting the rifle on a rifle stand. It is a time for clearing
aspect of firing in that position to consider. This is that once the mind of any extraneous thoughts so that full attention
a standing position complies with the fundamental features is focused on preparing to fire another good shot.
of a structurally sound position, that same position must be
used every time the athlete trains or competes. Athletes 2. Consistent Butt-Plate Location. When
must avoid temptations to try different position variations shouldering the rifle, the butt-plate must be placed in the
just because they are having a bad day or because another same, precise location in the shoulder for each shot. Many
athlete is firing great scores while using a different position advanced shooters visually check the butt-plate location
variation. The surest path to improvement in any shooting while shouldering the rifle to be sure (note how the athlete
position is performing consistent, correct repetitions of dry in Step 2 below is doing this).
and live fire shots, in the same position and with the same
shot technique. 3. Consistent Left Elbow Position. Each time the
rifle is shouldered, it is also critical to fix the left elbow in
POSITION PREPARATION the same location. If the left elbow position changes, this
A key to making consistently good shots in the standing changes how the position is balanced and typically results
position is taking extra time to prepare the position before in bad shots to the left or right.
starting to aim. This must be done for every shot. What
is to be avoided here is simply throwing the rifle up into 4. Pre-Shot Checks. An important pre-shot check
position and immediately starting to aim and fire the shot. is to be sure the position feels right. Many relaxation
Instead, the athlete should go through a step-by-step checks consider the left arm and shoulder—are they
preparation routine that concludes with lowering the head really relaxed? Other checks consider the muscles in
to the cheek-piece and starting to aim. Careful position the legs where consistent light tension is usually applied
preparation takes an extra five or ten seconds to shoulder to maintain balance. A critical pre-shot check considers
the rifle and prepare the position before starting to aim but how the position is balanced. Advanced athletes know
doing this will make a big difference. how correct balance must feel for their position and they
1. Mental Preparation. Position preparation begins discipline themselves to check their balance before they
with loading the rifle for the next shot. Most athletes do this lower their eye to begin aiming, before each shot.

POSITION PREPARATION — IN STEPS

STEP 1 – loading and focusing attention on position preparation steps;

STEP 2 – fixing the butt-plate location in the shoulder;
STEP 3 – lifting the rifle into position and checking the left elbow location;
STEP 4 – checking and balancing the position before starting to fire.
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Striving for Great Standing Scores

SHOT TECHNIQUE
Shot technique is a vital part of shooting great standing
scores, but this is a detailed topic that merits full, separate
consideration. Two previous On the Mark technical
articles analyzed shot technique and should be studied
by anyone seeking to learn more about shooting great
standing scores. “Developing Great Shot Technique, Part
I” and “Developing Great Shot Technique, Part II” can be
downloaded at https://thecmp.org/news-media/gary_otm/.

TRAINING METHODS
Developing a structurally sound position combined with
disciplined position preparation and correct shot technique
is essential to shooting great standing scores. However,
the most significant difference maker in developing
superior hold stability and great shot technique in standing
is training. The athlete’s work ethic--how hard he/she is
willing to work--is what really makes someone into a great
standing position shooter.
The effectiveness of an athlete’s training methods
is measured by their scores, especially scores fired in
competitions. There are two keys to how much progress
will be gained from any training method. They are a)
training volume and b) training integrity. Within limits that
are seldom exceeded by any young athlete, the more
training repetitions that are performed the more an athlete
will improve. Training integrity looks at whether training
repetitions are performed correctly and with full focus and
Yutian FU, China, is the 50m 3-position Junior Women World
Record holder. She makes her pre-shot checks while pausing attention to details. When training repetitions are performed
in this position. hastily and with lackadaisical effort, scores will not improve
and may even regress.
A key to standing position progress requires
5. Consistent Head Position. If the location of the establishing priorities. Since more points can be gained
head on the cheek-piece changes, this changes the balance by improving standing scores than by improving kneeling
of the position. This, in turn, can have an adverse impact or prone scores, standing practice should have the highest
on hold stability. Athletes must control their technique for priority. More training time should normally be dedicated to
placing the head down on the cheek-piece so that the head standing. As a general rule, training plans should allocate
is always in the same location with respect to the rear about 10 percent of available training time to prone, 30
sight. Advanced technique must also pay attention to how percent to kneeling and 60 percent to standing.
much pressure is placed on the cheek-piece. Some will Four different training methods are employed by
have light cheek pressure; some with have more cheek athletes to steadily improve their standing position scores.
pressure. The key once again is doing this the same way, In addition to a) live fire training on the range and b) dry fire
for each shot. training that can be done on the range or at home, two other
training methods are especially effective in contributing to
6. Approach to Target. When aiming at the target standing position improvement:
begins, the last inhale-exhale cycle is made as the aligned c) Dry Holding. Holding drills can be done on the
sights are brought onto the target. For standing, the range with an actual target but are more frequently
approach to the target is usually from above, although the done during home training by placing an aiming bull at
important thing is to always approach the target from the an appropriate height on a wall. In this training method,
same direction and in the same way, for each shot.
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Athlete warm-up areas at ISSF World

Cup venues are popular places where
both rifle and pistol shooters practice
aiming exercises to prepare their positions
for peak performance.

Doing aiming exercises without a target is an excellent training method for developing standing’s inner position.

athletes go through the initial steps of position preparation are position preparation, shot technique and, most of all,
and shot technique and then attempt to hold the front sight training, how hard an athlete works.
as steady as possible over the bullseye or aiming point
while focusing full attention on the sight picture. Holding
repetitions should last about 10 to 12 seconds each.
About the Author
Gary Anderson, Director of Civilian Marksmanship
Holding drills offer effective ways to learn how to apply Emeritus, retired as the full-time CMP Director at the end
intense “visual focus” on reducing hold movements of 2009. He continues to work with the CMP as the senior
and to sense whether there are tensions or balance marksmanship instructor. During his remarkable career, he
problems with the position that are preventing the hold won two Olympic gold medals, seven World Championships
from becoming steadier. and 16 National Championships. He served as a Vice
d) Aiming Exercises. Doing aiming exercises, President of the International Shooting Sports Federation
with or without dry firing, on blank targets or with no (ISSF) from 1990 through 2018. He is a former Nebraska
target at all can often be an even better way to develop State Senator and Past President of USA Shooting. He
served as a Technical Delegate for Shooting during the 2012
a feel for how the body is working to hold the rifle still.
and 2016 Olympic Games as well as for the 2014 and 2018
The work of the athlete’s body in trying to hold the body- World Shooting Championships.
rifle system as still as possible is sometimes referred to In 2012, the International Olympic Committee awarded
as the “inner position.” Without an aiming bull, attention Gary Anderson with the Olympic
can be shifted to this inner position and how the muscles Order, its highest honor “for
and system balance are working to make the body feel outstanding services to the
like it is in calm, quiet control. Many rifle and pistol Olympic Movement.”
shooters now use aiming exercises as a training method In 2014, the CMP expanded its
as well as a way to warm up and prepare their bodies world-class air gun center at Camp
for optimal performance before they move to the range Perry and renamed the facility the
Gary Anderson CMP Competition
to begin shooting.
Center, in honor of Anderson’s
Developing the ability to shoot great standing contributions to the organization
scores in competitions begins with having a structurally and the marksmanship community.
sound physical position, but the real difference makers