The International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC) was formed in 1976 following the Columbia Conference that same year, while the United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) was formed much later in 1984.
There had always been subtle differences between the IPSC and USPSA rule-books owing in part to the length of time before USPSA became the Regional Directorate for the sport. Fourteen years later during a contentious period between the two organizations, USPSA formerly declined to adopt the 1998 IPSC rule-book that had been approved that year by the other regions during the General Assembly in Quincy, USA.
For a long time the differences were marginal, but over the past few years they have diverged significantly, particularly in regard to the recognized divisions.
