What do the four letters IPSC stand for and what is behind them?
IPSC stands for the International Practical Shooting Confederation, a global umbrella organisation behind a dynamic and challenging shooting sport that combines accuracy, power and speed. Shooters are pushed to their limits - but how is it actually determined who the best shooters are in an IPSC competition? There is the so-called hit factor. The hit factor measures the competitor’s performance reflecting their ability to balance speed and accuracy during a stage. It represents how many points you score per second on a given stage. The higher the hit factor, the better the shooting performance.
The IPSC hit factor is also very easy to calculate: Hit factor = total points / total time. The total number of points depends on which zone the respective hits landed in (A, C, D zone) and how many so-called "penalties" or "procedures", i.e. penalty points for missing hits or procedural errors, were achieved. The total time is determined using a timer that specifies the start time with a beep - an acoustic start signal - and records the time up to and including the last shot. In summary, the hit factor combines the accuracy on the targets, the speed of mastering the stage or parkour, and how many penalty points or procedural errors a shooter has collected during his or her "Course of Fires". The best IPSC shooters are therefore not only fast, but also very accurate. The four-digit letter abbreviation is not the only reason why the established German ammunition brand GECO and the comparatively young global umbrella organisation IPSC are a good match. Accuracy is one of the success factors of a good shooter and GECO ammunition is the perfect and reliable choice for this.
Eduardo de Cobos and GECO – a perfect match with great commitment to the sport of IPSC
The new member of the GECO IPSC team and his previous successes: Eduardo de Cobos was born in August 1974 and started shooting in 1990. His breakthrough came in 1997 when he won his first national title at the IPSC Spanish Handgun Championship. Since then, he has been on the road to success, collecting more than 15 Spanish national titles, as well as bronze in the Production Division at the 2017 IPSC Handgun World Shoot and two gold and one bronze medal at several IPSC European Handgun Championships. He has been part of Beretta Team since 2019 and represents the brand more than successfully in competitions. With his Beretta 92X Performance, he is well equipped to ensure accuracy, power and speed in IPSC competitions. De Cobos works full-time as a shooting instructor and tactics trainer for the Spanish Police Academy. He has also been a member of the Spanish national team since 1998.
Like GECO, Eduardo de Cobos is also very involved in the IPSC community, making him a perfect addition to GECO Team. He is the Vice President for Pistol Shooting at MISIA (Master International Shooting Safety Instructor Association). What is MISIA? MISIA grew out of the IPSC shooting sport and is an international structure for the training and accreditation of shooting instructors. The aim of MISIA is to create a uniform standard of training for IPSC shooters and law enforcement. A standardised curriculum helps to achieve this. Yuraima Diaz – de Cobos' wife – also plays an important role within MISIA. Together with her husband, she is involved in MISIA seminars around the world and is also an excellent shooter who takes part in international competitions and is recognised for her commitment and skill in dynamic shooting sports. Together they form a real dream team.
GECO is the official ammunition supplier and sponsor of several major IPSC events such as European and World Championships. GECO's commitment goes far beyond its specialised ammunition range and is at home in the world of dynamic shooting sports. In addition to organising and participating in events, the company has generously supported the best IPSC shooters from various European countries for many years. GECO is also the main sponsor of this year's "IPSC Rifle World Shoot" in Finland and the namesake of the prestigious IPSC Level III competition "GECO Masters" in Germany. We have already reported on several sponsored events such as the European Handgun Championships 2023 in Corinth.
Who is part of the GECO IPSC team and what ammunition do these top international shooters fire?
De Cobos is therefore another high-performing IPSC shooter, alongside Dylan Keppel (Netherlands), who was newly engaged by GECO in 2024. This means that the GECO team has now grown to a total of 11 top shooters and has become even more international. Who is in the team? We have a brief overview for you:
- Cyrielle Vivo (France): Member of the French national team, uses GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr.
- Emile Obriot (France): Multiple European Championship and World Championship medallist, shoots the GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr.
- Dylan Keppel (Netherlands): Young talent known as "The Calculator" uses the GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr.
- Luis Ehrhardt (Germany): Successful Open Division shooter, favours the GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr.
- Sascha Back (Germany): Versatile IPSC shooter, shoots the GECO Target FMJ and Target HP.
- Patrick Kummer (Germany): German 3 Gun Champion 2020, uses different GECO loads.
- Stefan Rumpler (Germany): German champion in the IPSC Shotgun Open Division, shoots GECO shotgun ammunition.
- Julien Boit (France): Multiple European Championship medallist, shoots the GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr.
- Eduardo de Cobos (Spain): Experienced shooter and IPSC/police/SWAT shooting instructor, uses the GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr.
- Csaba Szászi (Hungary): Successful shooter in the Standard Division, shoots the GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr.
- György Batki (Hungary): 13-time Hungarian Standard Division Champion, shoots GECO ammunition.
- Patrick Baculard (France): French vice-champion in production optics division and in production senior division. He uses the GECO 9mm Luger full metal jacket 124 gr in competition and training.
The all4shooters.com team wishes Eduardo de Cobos, and of course all other members of the GECO IPSC team, many Alphas and a lot of DVC (Diligentia, Vis, Celeritas, i.e. accuracy, power and speed) for the upcoming competitions!
We would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate GECO team shooters Sascha Back for 1st place and Stefan Rumpler for 2nd place at the IPSC German Rifle 2024, which was held in Philippsburg, Germany, from June 21 to 23.
On the GECO website you can find out more about the sporting commitment and the portfolio of the successful German ammunition brand. And there is also a very interesting GECO IPSC MAGALOG with additional info and images.
You can also find more information about Eduardo De Cobos here on social media:
Facebook page of Eduardo de Cobos (27,000 followers)
Eduardo de Cobos on Instagram (12,200 followers)
Eduardo de Cobos YouTube channel (4150 subscribers)
