Olympedia – Free Pistol, 50 metres, Men

This event was shot at a target of 50 cm in diameter with 10 scoring rings. The shooters took 60 shots for a possible 600 points. The event was conducted concurrently with the team free pistol event, with four teams, and 20 shooters taking part.

For the first and only time, the World Championships were held concurrently with the Olympics and the Olympic Champions also became World Champions. It was the fourth staging of the World Championships, having previously been held in Lyon (France) in 1897, Turin (Italy) 1898 and Loosduinen 1899 which, since 1923 has been a district of Den Haag (Netherlands). But, as all three editions were for rifle events only, Paris hosted the first pistol championships.

Switzerland’s Conrad Karl Röderer won the gold in this event and also in the team event. He beat Achille Paroche of France into second place by 37 points. Paroche won four shooting medals in Paris, and competed again at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics, winning a third silver medal.