The quesiton can not be answered without knowing what type of competition discipline you are undertaking.
Mrs.Chloe was planning to kill herself, Hope, and the Africans with the mystery pistol. There was 6 of them and when she asked how many bullets were in the mystery pistol and Elijah said 6, she said "perfect".
There is no one "best" for everything. A Hammerli Olympic grade target pistol may be an excellent firearm for one specific competition, and fare poorly in another. A Ruger Mk III may be the leader in another competition, but is far to big for easy concealed carry as a defensive firearm. Depends on what you want the pistol to do.
It will depend on what discipline, your pocket book, your skill level, etc..
$100-$500, depending on EXACT model and condition.
About $150-300, depending on condition.
Biathlon, skeet shooting, trap shooting, USPSA Pistol competition, CMP marksmanship competition, 3 gun competition, long range precision shooting, silhouette target shooting, and hunting.
Yes. Not the best choice, but yes.
A good pistol for a beginner would be a 22 cal. pistol. The ammo is cheap to purchase and this will allow you to get lots of practice without breaking the bank. A 357 Magnum is another good choice.
There is no ONE best for everything. A small .22 carried as a defensive firearm would do poorly in Olympic slow fire pistol competition, and the Olympic pistol would be a poor choice for carrying concealed. You would need to refine your question a bit. And then it will still be a matter of opinion. Some people like strawberry, some like chocolate, some like Ruger, some like Hammerli, and some like revolvers!
3 gun is a competition where shooters use 3 types of weapons. Pistol, shotgun, and rifle.
It depends on the competition regulations but typically it will be: 25ft or 50ft from the shooter to the target
Typically they are 10 and 25 yard competitions. But competitions can vary widely depending on the type.