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Changwon 2025 World Cup: Preview, stars and how to follow

A galaxy of Paris 2024 champions including double gold medallist Park Jinho and Avani Lekhara to lead the star-studded field of 192 athletes from 26 nations from 31 May to 5 June in South Korea 30 May 2025
An athlete lifts his fist in air
South Korea's Jinho Park will be among the biggest stars in Changwon, hoping to start the season on a strong note after his double gold medal show at Paris 2024 .
ⒸMateusz Szklarski / World Shooting Para Sport
By World Shooting Para Sport

The 2025 season is set to roll in Changwon, South Korea this weekend right at the venue that will be hosting the World Championships next year.

Changwon 2025 is the first World Shooting Para Sport World Cup since Paris 2024 and thus a strong line-up of 192 athletes from 26 nations, including reigning Paralympic champions, will be ready to showcase incredible precision and control over the next six days in Changwon. 

The venue

The Changwon International Shooting Range is a world-class venue and is a familiar range for the top shooters in the world having hosted the World Cup for the past four years (2022-2025).  

The venue previously held the ISSF World Championships in 2018 and the ISSF World Championships Juniors in 2023. 

 

Home stars 

South Korea, who topped the shooting medals table at Paris 2024, will have the biggest team at home and comprising all their three titleholders and six medallists from the Games competing in Changwon.

Their main star, Jinho Park will compete in three team and four individual events at the home World Cup, including the R1 - men's 10m air rifle standing SH1 and the R7 - men's 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 in which he is the reigning Paralympic champion.

Park will be joined by Jeongdu Jo, who is the Paris 2024 champion in the P1 - men's 10m Air Pistol SH1 and will face India’s Manish Narwal, the Tokyo 2020 champion in P4 - mixed 50m pistol SH1, who had to settle for silver in Paris behind the Korean.

Jo will be competing in four individual events and four team events on home range.

Among other Korean medallists in Paris who are set to open the season in Changwon are Yunri Lee (silver medallist in R2 - women's 10m air rifle standing SH1), Jungnam Kik (bronze medallist in P3 - mixed 25m pistol SH1) and Huntae So (bronze medallist in R4 - mixed 10m air rifle standing SH2).

 

International presence

Led by their double Paralympic champion Avani Lekhara, India will be fielding the second largest team (23 athletes) after Korea (53) in Changwon.

Lekhara, who had already made history in Tokyo 2020 winning the women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 gold, went on to defend her gold in Paris further elevating her status as a legend in the country. Her Paris gold also made her the first Indian woman to win two Paralympic gold medals. She also has a bronze from Tokyo in the R8- 50m rifle 3 positions SH1.

The 23-year-old rifle star will be accompanied by other Paris 2024 medallists including Mona Agarwal (bronze medallist in the R2 - women's 10m air rifle standing SH1), Rubina Francis (bronze medallist in the P2 - women's 10m air pistol SH1) in the women’s field. 

In men’s event, India will rely on the likes of promising Rudransh Khandelwal, Worlds and Asian Para Games medallist besides Narwal.

 

Other Paris 2024 stars

There will be other nations as well who would be hoping to make a strong start to the season riding on the skills and talent of their Paralympic stars.

France’s biggest star Tanguy de La Forest might be missing from action; but their 10-strong team will be led by Jean-Louis Michaud, the bronze medallist in the R6 - mixed 50m rifle prone SH1 at last year’s Games.

Brazil, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Japan picked their first-ever Paralympic medal in shooting at Paris 2024. And all these nations will be led by their new Paralympic stars in Changwon.

Brazil’s Alexandre Galgani and Japan’s Mika Mizuta will meet again in the R5 - mixed 10m air rifle prone SH2, after they settled for silver and bronze for their respective nations, last September in France.

Vladimer Tchintcharauli put Georgia on the Paralympic podium with his second place in the R9 - mixed 50m rifle prone SH2. He will be competing in this event and other two in Changwon.

Kazakhstan’s Yerkin Gabbasov will be one of the main contenders in the R1 - men's 10m air rifle standing SH1 challenging local star Jinho Park. 

The other two Paris medallists competing are Poland’s Marek Dobrowolski, bronze in the R7 - men's 50m rifle 3 positions SH1, and Spain’s Juan Antonio Saavedra, bronze in the R3 – mixed 10m air rifle prone SH1.

 

Thrilling action in Para trap

In Para trap events to be held on 3 and 4 June, Italy’s Gabriele Nanni will be the one to watch out for. He is a three-time world champion in the PT3 - mixed trap standing SG-U and will be keen to add a fourth title to his collection at September’s Para Trap World Championships in Brno, Czech Republic.

Back in the pistol range, Singapore will have Theresa Goh, a four-time Paralympian in Para swimming, making her international debut in shooting Para sport in Changwon in the P2 - women's 10m air pistol SH1. The 38-year-old has a Paralympic bronze medal from the Rio 2016 Games.

Kenya’s only athlete at the World Cup, Brian Oroka Ochieng will be making his debut in Changwon. It is his first World Cup appearance since Al Ain 2023, and he will be competing in the P1 - men's 10m air pistol SH1.

How to follow?

All results from the Changwon World Cup can be found here.

Also keep an eye on our social media channels to get updates of the action from Changwon as it happens as well.

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