In the qualification rounds, competitors shoot at a 10-ring target.  The eight-highest scoring competitors advance to the finals — each rifle event has separate, specific rules regarding how many shots are to be taken. In the finals, the 10 rings are subdivided into 10 score zones, 10.0-10.9, with 10.9 being the highest point total. 

In the skeet and trap events, athletes shoot at a clay object — measuring just 10 cm in diameter — flying at over 62 mph. Each successful shot at each clay is worth one point. 

In Paris, the shooting program will include 15 events.

Men's events

• 10m Air Rifle
• 50m Rifle 3 Positions
• 10m Air Pistol
• 25m Rapid Fire Pistol
• Trap
• Skeet

Women's events

• 10m Air Rifle
• 50m Rifle 3 Positions
• 10m Air Pistol
• 25m Pistol
• Trap
• Skeet

Mixed team events

• 10m Air Rifle
• 10m Air Pistol
• Skeet

The three Olympic shooting disciplines are rifle, pistol and shotgun. 

Rifle and pistol events take place on shooting ranges and some require athletes to fire at targets in three positions: kneeling, prone and standing. Shotgun events take place outdoors and athletes shoot at flying targets fired from different angles and directions. 

Rifle events

In the qualification rounds, competitors shoot at a 10-ring target. The eight-highest scoring competitors advance to the finals -- each rifle event has separate, specific rules regarding how many shots are to be taken. In the finals, the 10 rings are subdivided into 10 score zones (10.0-10.9, with 10.9 being the highest point total). 

Pistol events

Scored the same way as rifle events, pistol events have two separate types of targets being used. The precision events (e.g. air and sport pistol) use a 10-ring system similar to the rifle events. The men-only rapid fire event uses a larger 10-ring target, but only the five highest-scoring rings are used. Pistol shooters stand and must use just one hand, unsupported, while competing. Eight competitors advance to every pistol final except in the men's 25m rapid fire pistol, which has just six finalists.

Shotgun events

In the shotgun events, the shooters stand at designated stations and fire at clay targets that are released on or after the shooter's command. A referee must see one visible piece fall from the target for it to be a hit and to award a point to the shooter.

Each discipline has its own set of qualification rules, but each discipline has a qualification round. The qualification round features every athlete. In rifle and pistol competitions, the top-eight competitors from the qualification round advance to a much shorter 10-shot final. In rapid fire pistol, there are only six finalists. Shotgun is similar, and only six advance from the qualifying round to a 25-target final and 50 in double trap.

Qualification Round 

Men's events

Rifle

• 10m air rifle: 60 shots
• 50m rifle 3-positions: 120 shots

Pistol

• 10m air pistol: 60 shots
• 25m rapid fire pistol: 60 shots

Shotgun

• Trap: 1st Day- three rounds of 25 targets, 2nd Day- two rounds of 25 targets
• Skeet: 1st Day three rounds of 25 targets, 2nd Day- two rounds of 25 targets

Women's events

Rifle

• 10m air rifle: 40 shots
• 50m rifle 3-positions: 60 shots

Pistol

• 10m air pistol: 40 shots
• 25m pistol: 60 shots

Shotgun

• Trap: three rounds of 25 targets
• Skeet: three rounds of 25 targets

Men's 10m air rifle, 10m air pistol; Women's 10m air rifle, 10m air pistol

• Two series of three shots each fired in 150 seconds per series (100 seconds for 50m rifle prone)
• 14 singles shots, each fired in 50 seconds (30 seconds for 50m rifle prone)
  • Total of 20 shots
• The lowest-ranking finalist is eliminated after eight shots and then after every two shots until the gold and silver medals are decided

Men's 50m rifle 3-positions; Women's 50m rifle 3-positions

• 15 shots in each position- kneeling, prone and standing
• 3 x 5 shots kneeling with a time limit of 200 seconds per series
• 3 x 5 shots prone with a time limit of 150 seconds per series
• 2 x 5 shots standing with a time limit of 250 seconds per series
• The two lowest-ranking finalists are eliminated after 10 (2 x 5) shots standing
• The finals continue with five single shots standing, each in 50 seconds, with the lowest ranking athlete being eliminated after each shot until two athletes remain to fire the last shot and decide the gold-medal winner
  • Total of 45 shots

Men's 25m rapid fire pistol

• Eight series of five shots
• Four seconds per series
• The elimination of the lowest-scoring finalists begins after the fourth series and continues until the eighth series when the gold and silver medals are decided
• Scoring in the finals is hit or miss
  • Each hit counts as one point
  • Each miss counts zero points
  • The size of the hit zone is within the 9.7 zone

Women's 25m pistol

• Two stages- semifinal and two medal matches
  • Semifinal- five-shot rapid-fire series
  • Medal matches- the first and second-place athletes from the semifinal compete for gold and silver medals, while the third and fourth-place athletes compete for the bronze medal
    • Each medal match is fired on a series-by-series basis, where the athlete with the highest hit total in each series receives two points. A tie scores one point each.
• All scoring is hit or miss
  • The size of the hit zone is within the 10.2 zone

Men's trap, skeet; Women's trap, skeet

• Two stages: semifinals and two medal matches
  • The first and second-place athletes advance to the Gold-Medal Match, while the third and fourth-place athletes advance to the bronze-medal match
• Trap
  • Each semifinal and medal match stage consists of 15 targets
• Skeet
  • Each semifinal and medal match stage consists of eight doubles

Rifle and Pistol Tiebreaking

Tiebreakers in the rifle and pistol events are as follows:

• The highest number of inner tens.
• The highest score of the last 10-shot series works backward by 10-shot series in full-ring scoring — not inner tens or decimals — until the tie is broken.
• If any tie remains, scores are compared on a shot-by-shot basis using inner tens — an inner ten outranks a 10 that is not an inner ten — beginning with the last shot, then the next to the last shot and so on.
• If any tie remains, scores are compared on a shot-by-shot basis using decimal ring scores beginning with the last shot, then the next to the last shot and so on.
• When decimal scoring is used for 10m air rifle elimination or qualification events, ties are broken by the highest score of the last 10-shot series, and then by comparing decimal scores on a shot-by-shot basis beginning with the last shot, then the next to the last shot, and so on.

Shotgun Tiebreaking

When more than six athletes qualify for the finals because of tied scores, the ties for the last place in the final must be broken by a shoot-off in accordance with the rules of trap, double trap or skeet. After the shoot-off decides the six athletes, the shoot-off results determine the ranking of all athletes who participated in the shoot-off. Any athletes with the same shoot-off result must have their rankings determined by the countback rule. 

Countback Rule

Ties are broken with this method by the following:

• The scores of the last round of 25 targets (double trap 15 doubles) must be compared, and the winner is the athlete with the highest score in that round.
• If any tie remains, the round before last must be compared and, if still not broken, the round before that, and so on.
• If the results of all the rounds are still equal, ties must be decided by counting forward from the first target of the last round (and if necessary, the next to the last round, and so on) until a zero is found. The athlete with the most hits in succession before the zero will be given the higher place.