Global InformationISSF 25 meter rapid fire pistol information
 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (March 2022) |
 | |
| Men | |
|---|---|
| Number of shots | 2×30 + 40 |
| Olympic Games | Since 1896 |
| World Championships | Since 1933 |
| Abbreviation | RFP |
25 meter rapid fire pistol is one of the ISSF shooting events and is shot with .22 LR pistols. The event has been a part of the Olympic program ever since the beginning in 1896, although its rules changed greatly before World War II, after which they were only slightly changed until the two major revisions of 1989 and 2005. The latter restricted the event to sport pistols, thereby banning .22 Short cartridge (last used in 2004 and replaced by .22 Long Rifle in 2005) as well as encircling grips and low trigger-pull weight. This caused a decline in results, as evidenced by a comparison of the world records under the pre-2005 rules (597) and post-2005 rules (593).
Instead of dropping specialized rapid fire pistols, manufacturers designed new pistols, such as the Walther SSP, conforming to the standard pistol requirements, but optimized for the rapid fire event.