Shooting at the 1912 Summer Olympics – Men's 300 metre free rifle, three positions

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The men’s 300 metre free rifle, three positions, was a shooting event at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm. It took place on July 2 at Kaknäs. Eighty-four shooters from nine nations competed.

Paul Colas of France won with 987 points, setting a new Olympic record. It was France’s first medal in this event. Denmark won silver and bronze, with Lars Jørgen Madsen finishing second and Niels Larsen third.

This was the third time the event had been held (1900, 1908, 1912). Madsen was competing for the third time. Other veterans from 1908 included Albert Helgerud, Ole Sæther, Julius Braathe, Olaf Sæther, and Léon Johnson. Russia and South Africa made their debuts. Denmark, France, and Norway were the only nations to have appeared at every edition of the event to date.

Competition format: each shooter fired 120 shots, 40 in each of three positions—prone, kneeling, and standing. Targets were 1 metre across with 10 scoring rings, set at 300 metres. The maximum possible score was 1200. Any rifle could be used with open front and rear sights, and any ammunition.

Tie-breaking was decided first by the number of hits on targets, then by center hits, then by 10s, 9s, and so on.

Records: before the event there were existing world and Olympic records. The top ten shooters in 1912 all beat the old Olympic record, and Colas set the new Olympic record at 987 points.