Asian Games shooting venue enforces dress code for photographers, TV cameramen

At the Asian Games shooting range, it is not just the athletes who have to keep an eye on the rules. The photographers and TV cameramen covering the competition have a dress code to follow, too - and at the Aichi Prefectural General Shooting Gallery, there is little chance of anyone missing the message.The dress code has long been part of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) rule book, but it is not something that is usually spelt out in such stark terms at international competitions or plastered across soft boards around a venue.The Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games Organising Committee (AINAGOC), however, has made sure there is no ambiguity for those accredited photographers and TV cameramen who have access to the field of play. The message is simple: they are working in the public eye and are expected to maintain a respectable, professional standard of appearance.At the picturesque shooting gallery in the hills, around 70-75 km from central Nagoya, signs carrying the instruction are hard to miss. "All media covering shooting events must follow the dress code," one poster declares.There is, however, a small case of overenthusiasm in the wording. The rule is primarily aimed at photographers and TV cameramen working on the field of play, but the signage broadly refers to "all media". That distinction became apparent when a video journalist was recently asked to change from blue jeans into black jeans, which are considered more formal under the dress code.There was just one problem: the shooting venue is deep in the hills, and getting back to Nagoya, changing and returning would have meant a journey of roughly four hours -- effectively ending the journalist's working day before the competition did.The matter was subsequently clarified: the restriction on blue jeans applies to photographers and TV cameramen, not journalists.The poster itself leaves little room for interpretation. It lists the prohibited clothing as "Blue jeans (black jeans are allowed), camouflage clothing, very short shorts (shorts must be of an appropriate length)," followed by the reminder: "Please follow the ISSF dress code at all times."The ISSF code is more detailed. For photographers, it restricts sleeveless shirts or tank tops, cut-offs, ragged clothing, trousers with patches or holes, gym or running shorts, and open-toed footwear such as sandals and flip-flops. Shoes must be fully closed for safety reasons.There is also a sporting logic behind some of the restrictions.One athlete explained that camouflage clothing can give the impression that shooting is associated with hunting, rather than being presented as a sport in its own right. The restriction on blue jeans, meanwhile, is less about sporting aesthetics and more about maintaining a professional appearance for photographers and TV crews working prominently in front of spectators and television cameras.It may seem like a small detail in the larger machinery of the Asian Games, but the dress code is also a reflection of the Japanese approach to organising major events: spell everything out, put up the signs and leave as little to interpretation as possible.- EndsPublished By: Saurabh KumarPublished On: Sep 23, 2026 18:53 IST