The event had been dominated by China in 2023 and they placed 1-2 at the World Championships, in Baku, through Han Jiayu and Huang Yuting, but their star had fallen in the Olympic year just as that of Korea had risen. Korean shooters had won two of the World Cup events held before Paris, although Huang had won the most recent event in München. Silver medalist in München was an international rookie in 16-year-old Ban Hyo-Jin, who had only made the national team by springing a huge surprise when she won the Korean Championships in this event.
Ban’s remarkable progress accelerated in Paris, where she broke the Olympic record to qualify in the top position for the final. The final itself resolved in a head-to-head contest between Ban and Huang in which the Chinese shooter had slightly the upper hand for the first two thirds of the final. Ban fought back and she scored a full point better on the 22nd of her shots. This should have guaranteed gold for the Korean, but she faltered a little with her final brace of shots and Huang drew level. This necessitated a single shot shoot-off. Huang scored 10.3 but the Korean teenager edged to victory with 10.4.
Audrey Gogniat of Switzerland kept pace with the Asian pair for the early stages and was rewarded with a bronze medal.