Munich, May 27, 2026 – After a slow start for the German men’s air rifle and air pistol teams on the opening day of the Munich World Cup (May 26-30), the women’s team stepped up on the second day, bringing home two medals. Anna Janßen (Kevelaer) claimed a bronze medal in the rifle 3-positions event, followed by Sport Pistol European Champion Doreen Vennekamp (Ronneburg) securing a silver medal. Upcoming finals will be streamed live on Sporteurope.TV.
Rifle 3-Positions Women: Anna Janßen Fights for Bronze
The final of the top eight shooters, broadcast live on BR24Sport, featured some of the biggest names in international shooting sports, including Jeanette Hegg Duestad (NOR), Seonaid McIntosh (GBR), Sagen Maddalena (USA), and Emely Jaeggi (SUI). Anna Janßen commented on the tough competition, stating, “This is an incredibly strong field, that’s how it looks on the world circuit right now!” Janßen, who previously won the first World Cup of the season in Granada, Spain, once again contended for the title.
However, the German Shooting Federation (DSB) athlete had a less than promising start. After the prone position, she was in seventh place with a score of 100.4 points. “Kneeling was really anything but a good start. I didn’t have my emotions completely under control, and after the start, I thought, ‘pull yourself together now,'” Janßen admitted. She aimed to shoot more aggressively, focusing on active shots rather than waiting, and this strategy paid off. She achieved the third-best result in the prone position (103.6) among all finalists, climbing to sixth place, close behind the athletes in fourth and fifth. Only Duestad, McIntosh, and Jaeggi had significantly pulled ahead of the field.
The crucial position in the 3-positions event is always standing, and this competition was no exception. Janßen, along with American Maddalena, was the best shooter in this position, moving up to third place after ten shots. “I can often rely on my standing position!” she noted. The subsequent single shots in the standing position further showcased Janßen’s quality, as she remained the most stable among the remaining competitors. Four scores between 10.3 and 10.7 secured her first individual medal at a home World Cup. “It’s incredibly nice to have won bronze. Especially because the final hall was so full. It was my first individual final in Munich, and to have fought my way up like that was wonderful.” The victory went to Duestad, who edged out McIntosh by 0.1 points with her final shot.
In the qualification round, the German trio of Janßen, Lisa Grub (both 297), and European Champion Nele Stark (295) were well-positioned after the kneeling and prone stages. As often happens, the decision came down to the standing position. Janßen kept her fans on edge until the very last minute of the competition; two nines in shots 58 and 59 made it thrilling again before she secured her spot in the final with a perfect 10.9. “The last shot was rather lucky; I didn’t shoot that many high tens today,” she said afterward, surprisingly confessing, “I’ve actually never been in an individual final at a home World Cup. I’m very happy; there are many acquaintances here.” Grub was on course for the final for 59 shots, a ten in the last shot would have meant a final spot thanks to a higher number of inner tens. However, the shot went completely wrong, showing a devastating 7.8. Instead of a final entry, she finished in 26th place with 587 points. “It was annoying, of course, but generally, standing was very erratic today. I aborted the first attempt on the last shot, but on the second, I was too early, and there was another jerk. Even though it was super annoying, I had to laugh about it.” Stark had some problems in the standing position, shooting an eight in the first series and starting the final series with four nines. Although she finished with six tens, her 586 points were only enough for 34th place. Larissa Wegner, who shot as an RPO (Ranking Points Only), scored 584 points (43rd place).
Sport Pistol: Vennekamp Bows Only to New World Record Holder
While the rifle final was almost exclusively European, Doreen Vennekamp had to contend with six Asian shooters in the sport pistol final. Among them was Jiin Yang (KOR), an Olympic champion, world champion, and current world number one. However, the final was dominated by another shooter: 21-year-old Esha Singh took the lead from the first series, remained flawless in five of the ten five-shot series, and ultimately broke the world record by one hit, achieving a total of 43. Vennekamp attributed some of this to their training together: “I trained with her this week in Suhl and told her that I probably trained her too well.”
The only shooter who could keep up with the Indian athlete was the European Champion. Vennekamp hit four targets in each of the first three series, and in the fifth series, she scored a perfect five, reducing the gap to three hits. Although she continued to shoot well, she couldn’t close the gap further. “I aim for a four-hit average when I’m in good form. I just barely missed that because there were too many threes.” However, her silver medal ahead of Miroslava Mincheva (BUL) was never in doubt. “It’s a nice follow-up to the European Championship title, to show that it wasn’t a one-hit wonder, but that things are looking up again. I’m happy that the measures are bearing fruit.” To ensure a positive future, Vennekamp and the coaching team led by Claudia Verdicchio-Krause also looked to the past: “In the past, I wanted to do everything perfectly. We want to open that up again. It’s important to perfect everything in training, but in competition, you have to be able to put it all together,” said Vennekamp.
In the qualification round, Vennekamp had led the field after the precision part with an excellent 297 points. In the rapid-fire part, she aimed to secure her final spot, which she did confidently, even if she wasn’t entirely satisfied with her 294 points. “I’m not really happy with the rapid-fire, but that’s complaining at a high level when you shoot over 590.” Her total score of 591 points was absolutely world-class, placing her second behind Olympic champion Jiin Yang (KOR). Josefin Eder, who returned this year after her maternity leave, shot a very good 295 points, placing 29th (578), and expressed satisfaction with her progress. “It was a nice competition; the shots were very consistent and confident. I wanted to focus on my technique and need to continue working on my execution reliability. Yesterday felt better than the final result; I shot a lot around the ten, next time they’ll go in.” While Michelle Skeries (48th place, 573) left too many points behind in the rapid-fire part (285), it was the exact opposite for Monika Karsch. After 294 points in the rapid-fire part, she had to settle for 49th place (573), exactly ten points better than Svenja Berge (77th place, both RPO).
The German Team in Munich
Rifle: David Koenders (Neubiberg), Max Ohlenburger (Idstein), Maximilian Ulbrich (Wilzhofen), Maximilian Dallinger (Freising), Daniel Bühlmeyer, Hanna Bühlmeyer (both Weiltingen), Lisa Grub (Weingarten), Anna Janßen (Kevelaer), Nele Stark (Güglingen), Hannah Steffen-Dix (Ohlweiler), Larissa Wegner (Mannheim), Lea Ruppel (Herbstein)
Pistol: Josefin Eder (Müllrose), Monika Karsch (Regensburg), Doreen Vennekamp (Ronneburg), Michelle Skeries (Potsdam), Svenja Berge (Bad Camberg), Susanne Neisinger (Wien), Sarah Tauermann (Grasleben), Andreas Köppl (Lampenricht), Oliver Geis (Bad Camberg), Emanuel Müller (Pfullingen), Florian Peter (Obertshausen), Fabian Otto (Heringen), Christian Reitz (Regensburg), Robin Walter (Reichenbach), Paul Fröhlich (Hitzhofen), Michael Schwald (Lörrach)
Support Staff: Wolfram Waibel, Claudia Verdicchio-Krause, Detlef Glenz, Marco Hilger, Sven Martini, Sandro Schrüfer, Steffen Jabin, Thomas Zerbach, Sandra Reitz, Marco Spangenberg, Hans-Jörg Meyer, Victoria Nolte, Benedikt Schuster, Marco Kleer
Source: https://www.dsb.de/aktuelles/artikel/news/weltcup-muenchen-medaillenglanz-fuer-dsb-schuetzinnen
