Shooter blocked by a paperwork error gets a Fairness Medal from ISSF

Choi Ye-in missed the World Championships over a registration slip. Now the ISSF is giving her a Fairness Medal, and Korea's federation is paying out 25 million won.

7 Nov 2026, 12:502 min read

A young female air rifle shooter in a Korean team jacket stands at a shooting range with her rifle lowered. — Image: 연합뉴스

South Korean teenage shooter Choi Ye-in never got to fire a shot at the World Championships. Now the sport's world governing body is sending her a medal for it.

The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) will present Choi with a Fairness Medal and a personal letter of consolation from its president, Luciano Rossi, the Korea Shooting Federation said on Saturday.

What happened?

Choi, a student at Juyeop High School, was due to compete in the women's 10m air rifle event in Doha, Qatar, on 3 November. She never made it to the firing line. The Korean federation's registration for her was missing.

The federation believes someone entered her details into the online system but never saved them. Officials asked for a late registration on site, but the entry list had already been finalised, so the request was refused.

The mistake cost more than one place. Choi was also left out of the women's 10m air rifle team event, which ended the hopes of her teammates Ban Hyo-jin and Kwon Eun-ji. In that event, the top-three scores from each country are added together.

What are they getting?

Qatar's shooting federation will give all three athletes an honorary gold medal for the championships. Choi will also receive a letter from its president, a participation certificate and a commemorative coin.

The Korea Shooting Federation, taking responsibility, will pay the three shooters and their coach prize money at the world-championship gold-medal rate. That comes to 25 million won in total: 20 million for the athletes and 5 million for the coach.

What's next?

The ISSF says it will fix the system. Secretary General Alessandro Nicotra di San Giacomo told Korean officials in Doha that the ISSF is going through the system's logs and promised improvements so this cannot happen again.

Federation president Kang Yeon-sul apologised to the athlete, her family and shooting fans. He promised to hire experts with international event experience and to overhaul the federation's administration.

#shooting#choi ye-in#issf#world championships#south korea#fairness medal

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