Changwon 2026: Shooting stars set sights on world glory

The stage is set for the first World Shooting Para Sport Championships in three years as Changwon welcomes the world’s leading shooting Para sport stars from 10 to 15 September.

It will be the third time Korea has hosted the WSPS World Championships, following Seoul 2002 and Cheongju 2018.

A total of 324 shooters from 53 nations are ready to test their focus and accuracy, with LA28 qualification quotas also at stake for an elite field featuring several familiar names, including Paralympic and world champions.

There will also be athletes making their first appearance at the World Championships, with nations including Bhutan, Costa Rica and Iceland set to make their debut in Changwon.

The venue

Competition will take place at the Changwon International Shooting Range, a familiar venue that has successfully hosted consecutive WSPS World Cups since 2022.

The fully accessible venue has also staged major international competitions, including the 2018 ISSF World Championships, and has witnessed several world records fall during WSPS World Cups.

Home stars

With a reputation for producing some of the world’s leading shooters, the hosts boast a strong 24-member team featuring Paris 2024 medallists and world champions. Korea topped the shooting Para sport medal table at Paris 2024, while finished second at Lima 2023 and will be looking to continue that success on home soil.

Two-time Paralympic champion Jinho Park will spearhead the home challenge in the rifle events and will be the athlete to beat in R1 - men's 10m air rifle standing SH1 and R7 - men's 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 – the events in which he claimed gold at Paris 2024. Park will also compete in R6 - mixed 50m rifle prone SH1 and R3 - mixed 10m air rifle prone SH1.

The Changwon shooting range has been a special venue for Park. He set the R6 world record (252.3) at the 2024 World Cup and collected four medals at last year’s edition, including golds in R1 and R7. He will be hoping for more success at the country’s first WSPS World Championships.

Park, however, will face strong challenges from the likes of China’s Dong Chao, the Paris 2024 silver medallist, and home shooter Lee Jangho, who claimed silver in R1 and R7 at Lima 2023.

Beijing 2008 winner Lee Yunri will carry the home hopes in the women’s rifle events and should be among the contenders in the R2 - women's 10m air rifle standing final.

A dominant force in the P1 - men's air pistol SH1 since winning gold on his WSPS World Championships debut at Al Ain 2022, Jeongdu Jo’s presence in the pistol events will further raise home medal hopes. The Paris 2024 P1 champion, who holds the qualification world record of 528 – set at the same venue during a World Cup in 2023 –  will aim to regain his world title on home soil. Jeongdu claimed bronze at Lima 2023.

Ones to watch 👀

Six pistol athletes to follow at #Changwon2026: https://t.co/rQrA9Hwiyn @issf_official @Paralympics pic.twitter.com/7kDKyJt40O

— Shooting Para Sport (@ShootingPara) September 5, 2026

China and India lead

The international line-up features several strong teams, with China and India leading the star cast with 21 and 18 members, respectively.

China’s Yang Chao is the most decorated athlete in the field with four Paralympic gold medals to his name. He arrives in Changwon ready to challenge for honours across the pistol events in the P3 and P4 - in which he is the reigning Paralympic champion. Besides he will also be in action in P1.

Chao will also be eager to continue his impressive record at the venue. His P1 world record (241.8) was also set at the Changwon International Shooting Range during the 2023 World Cup.

Among the other Chinese stars, Cuiping Zhang will be looking to live up to her reputation and challenge for several podium finishes. She has five Paralympic gold medals, including three R8 titles (London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020), one R6 gold (Rio 2016) and one R2 gold (London 2012).

Meanwhile, two-time Paralympic gold medallist Avani Lekhara and Tokyo 2020 champion Manish Narwal will lead India's charge.

Lekhara, also a shooting icon in her country, will be aiming for her first World Championships title in the R2 and R8.

👀 Ones to watch: rifle edition

Between them, they have won 30 Paralympic medals. Some, tho, have never won a world title.

Read more: https://t.co/iZHJwSrWmM@issf_official @Paralympics pic.twitter.com/kDlqe0fNRB

— Shooting Para Sport (@ShootingPara) September 7, 2026

The road to gold, however, will not be easy, with challengers including China’s Paralympic legend Zhang, Korea’s Paris 2024 silver medallist Yunri and Lima 2023 world champion Anna Benson from Sweden standing in her way in the R2 and R8 events.

Benson claimed her first gold medal of the season with a world record performance in the R8 - 50m rifle 3 positions women SH1 at the season opener in Novi Sad.

Narwal, meanwhile, will aim to defend the P1 title he claimed at Lima 2023.  Among his biggest challengers will be home favourite and Paralympic champion Jeongdu, who edged Narwal to gold at Paris 2024.

Other stars to watch

All eyes will be on Iran’s Sareh Javanmardi as she returns to the World Championships for the first time in seven years. A three-time Paralympic P2 champion (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020, Paris 2024), Javanmardi will be among the favourites in the event. She also holds the qualification record in P4 – mixed 50m pistol SH1, set at the Changwon WSPS World Cup in April 2024.

Another name eager to shine in Changwon is Turkiye’s Aysel Ozgan, the back-to-back P2 world champion and world record holder with 240 at the Chateauroux 2022 WSPS World Cup. She also has a European title from Granada 2024.

Slovakia’s Veronika Vadovicova, another shooting Para sport great with five Paralympic titles, will be looking to continue her impressive form this year following her world record performance in R10 – mixed team 10m air rifle prone SH1 in Novi Sad.

Among the other stars to watch in Changwon are Germany’s double Paris 2024 gold medallist (R6 and R8) Natascha Hiltrop; Paris 2024 R9 champion Dragan Ristic of Serbia; and Lima 2023 champion in R7 Radoslav Malenovsky of Slovakia.

The two youngest disciplines and the eight athletes to follow.

VI: Ager Solabarrieta 🇪🇸, Barbara Moskal 🇵🇱, Fran Skracic 🇭🇷

Para trap: Mohammed Alhebsi 🇦🇪, Hella Lajili 🇫🇷, Filip Marinov 🇸🇰, Gabriele Nanni 🇮🇹, Muaz Erdem Madran 🇹🇷

Read more: https://t.co/4RY5n8JA4W pic.twitter.com/bBoieG0Fob

— Shooting Para Sport (@ShootingPara) September 6, 2026

Para trap and VI events

Exciting competition is also expected in the Para trap and vision impaired (VI) categories, with Changwon set to host four VI events and six Para trap events.

The star-studded field includes Italy’s three-time world champion Gabriele Nanni, who will be the athlete to beat in the PT3 category. UAE’s Mohammed Alhebsi’s breakthrough victory at the Brno 2025 Para Trap World Championships makes him one of the favourites for gold in the PT1 category.

Slovakia’s Filip Marinov will be aiming to make his Changwon debut a memorable one after becoming the Granada 2024 champion in the PT2 event. He also has a silver from Al Ain 2022 and bronze from Brno 2025.

The VI category will feature several leading names, with Spain’s Ager Solabarrieta heading the field. With three world titles from Lima 2023 and Al Ain 2022, Solabarrieta is the most decorated VI athlete in WSPS World Championships history. The European VIP title in Osijek last year added another major honour to his collection, and he arrives in Changwon ready to challenge for more success.

European champion Barbara Moskal from Poland is another athlete to watch as she chases her first VIP medal in Changwon.

How to follow?

You can watch the action from Changwon 2026 World Championships live on the ISSF YouTube channel, while results will be available here.