The International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) kicks off a shooting tournament in Mombasa pitting participants from the African Intercontinental championship with those from other parts of the world.

Speaking with the media in Mombasa Sammy Onyango Chairman National Gun Owners Association said that IDPA is a shooting discipline all over the world with this year's championship set to be a land marking event, featuring 14 stages with a minimum round count of 245 and attracting over 200 participants from across the globe.

Onyango said for the first time the event will be open to the public starting from February 19th for safety officers shoot and February 22nd for handgun and Pistol Caliber Carbine (PCC) shoot, providing a unique opportunity for spectators and media to witness world-class shooting sportsmanship. "Kenyans are lucky because the event does not only capture shooting of African countries but it is a tournament that is held with the title of Africa with invitees from all over the world," he said.

He noted that in the African championship there are eight divisions competing in the tournament which includes; the revolver division, the bug which is a back-up division, Compact Carry Pistol (CCP), the Enhance service pistol, Stock Service Pistol, Pistol Caliber Carbine, Carry Optics, among others.