Preparations for the Precision Rifle World Championship

Preparations for the Precision Rifle World Championship

Before my first World Championship, I had no idea what to prepare for, other than assuming it would be like any other major match, which ended up going surprisingly well.

I believe it could have gone even better if I had prepared a bit differently, which has become my goal this time. I've divided my preparations into three parts: practical preparations, physical preparations, and mental preparations. Throughout this season, I've experimented to find the optimal solution in each category. Some things have worked very well, while others needed to be adjusted.

Here are my preparations for the 2024 World Championship:

Practical Preparations:

I like to have control over everything, from my suitcase to the batch of bullets I use. That’s why I started my preparations well in advance; travel, rental car, and accommodation were booked almost immediately once we knew the date and location. Then came all the legalities and permits required to enter the country with firearms. While all of this was being arranged, I verified the powder, casings, bullets, and primers, which were then tested and evaluated during all the matches of the season. In this sport, it's crucial to trust your equipment 100%, as you need to simultaneously shoot, locate targets, identify hits, and make ongoing assessments of weather conditions. If you have uncertainties, such as the velocity of your ammunition, you suddenly have another factor to consider, rather than simply attributing horizontal spread to wind conditions.

In preparation for this World Championship, I have fired over 12,000 rounds with my current rifle, though with different barrels, and almost exclusively using 105gr Norma Diamond Line in 6mm Norma BR. This has given me incredible confidence in both my weapon and ammunition. The ammunition has been verified out to 1400 meters. There hasn’t been a single point lost that I could blame on that bullet. The same principle applies to all the equipment I use—it gets tested throughout the season to earn a place in the World Championship.

Physical Preparations:

Don't underestimate the physical effort required to perform at your best throughout an entire day. Being outdoors all day, regardless of weather conditions, can be exhausting, especially when you need to maintain 110% focus across 10 stations while carrying heavy equipment. During the last World Championship, I truly underestimated the physical strain of standing in scorching sun and 30-degree heat. Even though I have experience with similar situations from my time in the military, it was still very challenging. That’s why this year has been filled with running, CrossFit, and yoga. I can feel a significant difference in my ability to stay mentally focused, thanks to my body now handling the physical strain much better.

Yoga has a dual benefit in this sport, helping not only with controlling your body and breathing, but also with improving flexibility. We shoot from a wide variety of positions, and not all of them are comfortable. If you can control your body and breathing, you’ve already gained a few extra points.

Mental preparations:

This was the biggest lesson I took from the last World Championship: the importance of mental preparation, not only for shooting at a world-class level but also for managing the relatively stressful environment filled with new impressions and people. For almost two years now, I, along with a few other shooters, have been meeting regularly with a sports psychologist to optimize our thoughts and routines for peak performance. It has been incredibly valuable, especially as the sport has evolved so quickly and the competition at the top is fiercer than ever—mental preparation cannot lag behind.

There are many different tools to use, but visualization has become one of my favorites. In short, it means mentally rehearsing how you will execute a station before you actually shoot. When the time comes, it feels like you’ve already done it once before.

Now, all that remains is to load the final rounds, pack my bags, and then it's time to fly to the USA.

To be continued,

NORMA Ambassador, Louis-Philippe Rembry
Current Precision Rifle World Champion in the MIL/LEO category.