Classifier Match Langedijk Netherlands 2026
1st Overall + 1st Senior
100% Match Score
Sightmark Competition Team
Richard van der Wel
🇳🇱 The Netherlands
Open & Production Optics IPSC Competition Shooter
“I am very competitive and hate to be second, third, or worse, fourth. That keeps me pushing.”
01 / 08
About
Built Through Resilience
One evening in 1993, a friend invited Richard to a shooting range “just for one night of fun.” That night changed everything.
Richard van der Wel has spent three decades turning a spontaneous evening into a decorated competitive career — four European titles, multiple Presidents Medals, and podiums across Europe and beyond.
What sets him apart is not just the results. It is the resilience behind them. A serious car accident in 2019 left him with three broken vertebrae and ongoing physical limitations. He kept competing anyway — and kept winning.
Richard van der Wel · Track Record
Competition Highlights
Decades of competitive experience, national titles and international podiums — driven by the refusal to settle for second.
Sportshootercup Germany L3 2026
2nd Senior
78.33% Match Score
Dutch IPSC Nationals 2025 L3
1st Senior National Champion
77.78% Match Score
IPSC Classifier Match Langedijk 2025
1st Overall + 1st Senior
100% Match Score
Walther Cup Germany L3 2025
1st Senior
89.98% Match Score
Camprocup Germany L3 2025
2nd Senior
86.39% Match Score
Tenerife Masters Frontera L3 2025
3rd Overall + 2nd Senior
95.28% Match Score
Bracara Match Portugal L3 2025
3rd Senior
78.72% Match Score
Eigercup France 2025
2nd Senior
74.94% Match Score
IPSC Classifier Match Langedijk 2024
1st Overall + 1st Senior
100% Match Score
Walther Cup Germany L3 2024
1st Senior
90.18% Match Score
Gugaribas Cup 2023 L3
1st Senior
85.69% Match Score
Northern Ireland Nationals L3
1st Overall
Presidents Medal · 100%
Story
Three Decades Of Competition
The Beginning
Born in 1972 in Haarlem and now living in Heerhugowaard, Richard's relationship with shooting began almost by accident. In 1993, a friend invited him to try a shooting range for one evening. That single night sparked a passion that never left him. Though life pulled him away for over a decade, he returned in August 2015 with a clear focus — IPSC. From that point, he never looked back.
The Rise
By 2016 Richard was competing seriously. Two years later came a defining moment — traveling to the Northern Ireland Nationals L3 IPSC Match and winning Open Overall, claiming his very first Presidents Medal. That result confirmed what he had suspected: he was not just back in the sport. He was here to win.
Overcoming Setbacks
In 2019, a serious car accident left Richard with three broken vertebrae and a whiplash injury that continues to affect his daily movement. There are days when he must accept he cannot function at full capacity. But rather than stepping away, it forced him to become smarter — about how he trains, how he competes, and how he manages the balance between a demanding career and an equally demanding sport. Resilience became one of his defining qualities.
Beyond the Range
Few people know that Richard is not only a competitor but a successful entrepreneur. He builds interiors for commercial vehicles, runs a webshop for shooting gear, and serves as European representative for Gugaribas. His life is busy by design — and that pressure, he says, is what keeps him sharp on the range.
What It Takes
Patience. The willingness to learn from every mistake. And the competitive fire that refuses to settle for anything less than first.
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What It Takes
Patience Learn Improve Compete Win
“Don't try to win your first match. Learn to remember the stage plan, shoot Alphas, and the speed will come later. Always learn from your mistakes.”
Optics
Competition-Proven Sightmark
Richard's path to Sightmark was one of trial and genuine discovery. After years with other brands — including a Leupold red dot that failed under warranty with no satisfactory resolution — he tried a Sightmark sight on his Steel Challenge pistol. The bright dot and perfectly placed adjustment buttons were exactly what he had been looking for. That trial led to a conversation with the Sightmark team and a full switch to the Mini Shot M-Spec — an optic he has trusted in competition ever since.
“Sightmark is one of the best products on the market.”
Competition Optic
Sightmark Mini Shot M-Spec
A bright, competition-ready red dot with intuitive adjustment controls — the optic Richard chose after testing multiple brands.
View Product →
Richard's Competition Setup
Tanfoglio Domina Xtreme .38SA Open pistol
Tanfoglio Stock II Xtreme 9mm Production Optics
Tanfoglio Stockmaster 9mm Production Optics
M-Arms grips and basepads
Reload Swiss RS12 and RS24 gunpowder
Essing Sprengtechnik and Bunker501
Ariya Bullets 137Gr and 145Gr
Gugaribas holsters, magazine pouches and belts