Hillsdale College's John A. Halter Shooting Sports Education Center hosted the 2026 USA Shooting Pistol National Championships June 5-10. YanXiao Gong, a Hillsdale College student and Paralympic silver medalist who trains at the Halter Center, took gold in all three para disciplines.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to train at a place that shares both my values and my passion for the shooting sports," Gong said. "The Halter Center is one of the top shooting facilities in the United States, and it was exciting to have shooters come here from all across the country for this competition."
The competition was an open match, bringing together shooters of varying experience levels. It was the first USA Shooting event held at the Center's new Nimrod Complex. Gong won first place in 25m Pistol P3 SH1, 50m Free Pistol P4 SH1, and 10m Air Pistol Men P1 SH.
Gong competed in the 2021 Paralympic games in Tokyo, and in 2023 he became the world champion and ParaPan American champion in his division. At the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, he earned a silver medal, the first Paralympic pistol medal for the U.S. since 1984.
Gong competes on and helps coach Hillsdale's precision shooting team, which competes against other club teams in the Western Intercollegiate Rifle Conference. The team practices at Hillsdale's new Nimrod Shooting Sports Complex, a 62,000-square-foot facility featuring lanes for precision shooting, archery, smallbore, and centerfire pistol, as well as a classroom and a mezzanine viewing area overlooking the ranges.
For photos from the competition, click here. For photos of the Nimrod Complex, click here. For photos from previous Halter Center events, click here. For photos of Hillsdale College, click here. For a high-resolution copy of the Hillsdale College clocktower logo, click here.
About the John Anthony Halter Shooting Sports Education Center: The Halter Center is a state-of-the-art shooting facility located five miles from the Hillsdale College campus. The Center boasts 125 range acres, four international skeet fields, a 25-station sporting clays course, eight American trap fields, five international bunkers, an action shooting range, an enclosed and climate-controlled five-stand range, an international archery range, and a 62,000-square-foot indoor/outdoor rifle and pistol building. The Center is also home to the AcuSport Lodge and Grille and six cottages to accommodate overnight lodging.
Opened in 2008, the Center aims to introduce individuals to shooting sports and encourage interest across all levels of experience. The home of the USA Shooting National Team since 2019, the Halter Center hosts USA Shooting skeet and trap nationals and Junior Olympic development camps and championships. The Center is also the home of Hillsdale's national championship-winning shotgun and action shooting teams. The Center is open to the public, offering range memberships as well as classes, camps, and other programming focused on the shooting sports and the principles of the Constitution. For more information, visit shootingsports.hillsdale.edu.
About Hillsdale College: Hillsdale College is an independent, nonsectarian, Christian liberal arts college located in southern Michigan. Founded in 1844, the College has built a national reputation through its classical liberal arts core curriculum and its principled refusal to accept federal or state taxpayer subsidies, even indirectly in the form of student grants or loans. It also conducts an outreach effort promoting civil and religious liberty, including a free monthly speech digest, Imprimis, with a circulation of more than 7.5 million. For more information, visit hillsdale.edu.