So before I start writing this post I know that some people will think me writing about Shooting Sports as insensitive after what happened in Denver last week and at Utøya last year. My thoughts are with those left behind after the shootings in Denver as I know how hard it is to loose a loved one in that way, but I also feel it's important to seperate what happened in these incidents from the sport of Shooting. The Olympic disciplines of Shooting has nothing to do with harming others or aggression or any one of the many stigmas put on the sport over the last years. People who do this sport are take safety as a number one factor and they compete in this sport to win not so much over their opponents, but rather over themselves. The sport teaches discipline, concentration and confidence as its main components and the people of the sport have in many nations spoken out for more gun control. I am myself both an athlete of this sport and someone who lost someone in gun related crime, but I feel there's a huge divide between the two that must not be forgotten. Again I would like to share my sympaties with the people both directly and indirectly involved in the Denver shootings and I honestly hope that this is the last time that guns are ever used in this way.
The sport was one of the original sports of the first modern Olympic games in 1896 and has only been of the programme two times in the 1904 St Louis and the 1928 Amsterdam games, with the women being allowed to compete from the 1984 Los Angeles games. The sports various different disciplines is practised all over the world and this is one of the sports where there truly is a mix of athletes from all corners of the world. There are three different categories of disciplines; Rifle, Pistol and Shotgun. In the Rifle and Pistol events the athletes shoot at 10-ring target either 10m, 25m or 50m away and in the Shotgun events athletes shoot at clay pigeons moving across a field. In the Rifle events depending on the discipline the athletes compete either standing, kneeling or lying down, while in the Pistol and Shotgun events the athletes stand. In London there are a total of 15 gold medals up for grabs, 9 for the Men's and 6 for the Women's competition. All athletes will go through qualifying rounds where the best, 8 - 10 depending on the event, move on to the finals where their scores are added to their qualifying score. The margins for error are extremely small and scores on the top level are insanely close, if an athlete is even so much as 1mm out of position it could end up costing them their chance at the podium.
For the Rifle shooters there are events in Men's 50m Prone, Men's and Women's 50m 3-Positions and Men's and Women's 10m Standing Air Rifle. To explain the Prone event is where athletes lie on the ground shooting and 3-Positions is where athletes shoot in every stance (standing, kneeling, prone). Ones to look out for in the Rifle competition are: Nicolo Campriani (ITA), World Champion at the Men's 10m Air Rifle and has since also become an amazing 3-Positions shooter and it wouldn't suprise me if he came away from London with two gold medals. In the Men's 50m Prone event you'll have to pry that gold medal from Sergei Martynov (BLR) who is hungry for gold after two Olympic bronze medals in this event. For the Women's competition the big name is Sonja Pfeilschifter (GER) for me is the one to beat, she has got medals in both events from every major competition except the Olympics, but she loves the venue and I think she will strike gold this time.
The Pistol events are Men's 50m, Women's 25m, Men's 25m Rapid Fire, Men's and Women's 10m Air Pistol. The ones to look out for are: Tomoyuki Matsuda (JPN), World Champion in two events and a big favourite to medal in both 50m and 10m Air. In the Women's competition have an eye out for Zorana Arunovic (SRB) who is the World Champion at 25m and silver medallist at the Air event.
The Shotgun events are Men's and Women's Trap, Men's Double Trap, Men's and Women's Skeet. These names tell how many clays and how the clays are sent across the field. Look out for home favourite Richard Faulds and Peter Wilson (GBR) who are looking to make the crowds go wild in the Men's Double Trap event. In the Women's Skeet and Tap events look out for Kimberly Rhode (USA) who has no less than four Olympic medals under her belt and is looking for more.
In Shooting events it's all about who can be at their absolute best on the day of the competition, that's the person who's going to win. Weather plays a huge part in this event so luck is also a key component.
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