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The 27-year old shooter had to move from Denmark to Norway to train and reach his Olympic dream. He secured the brightest medal by outscoring Cyprus’ champion Achilleos at the shoot-off, after an almost perfect match.

Today’s Skeet Men Final, the closing match of the 2011 ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Maribor, was won by Andres Golding, a 27-year old shooter from Pandrup, in the north of Denmark.

Golding, ranked eighth in the world, made it into today’s final round with a qualification score of 124 hits out of 125 targets, tied to Beijing’s Olympic Silver medallist Tore Brovold of Norway and to the 2007 World Champion Georgios Achielleos of Cyprus.

Shooting a perfect final of 25 hits out of 25 targets, he ended up with a total score of 149 targets. Meeting Cyprus’ Achilleos in a shoot-off for Gold, the Danish shooter pocketed the brightest medal by beating his opponents 2 to 1 hits.

Golding, who had never won an ISSF World Cup Stage before, also secured an Olympic Quota Place, a qualification spot for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Today’s victory thrilled the Danish team, who reached a total of 5 Olympic qualification spots, two in Shotgun and three in Rifle shooting. A great step forward in comparison with the 2008 Games, when only one Danish shooter got to Beijing.

“All the hard work we have been doing, paid off today.” Golding said after the final.

“I had to move to another country to train, as in the place were I used to live I was only allowed to train once per week, due to environmental regulations.”

“I moved from Denmark to Norway, to train and to win this Olympic Quota Place.”

“After five consecutive finals, when I walked into today’s match I strongly wanted to win the Gold medal.” Said Golding, who has been climbing up the world ranking, in the last two years.

“He is a great shooter, he can get far.” His coach, the 1998 World Champion Piero Genga of Italy said.

“Golding has a good technique, and is very consistent.”

Following in second place, Cyprus’ Georgios Achielleos was awarded the Silver medal with a total score of 149+1 targets. The 30-year old shooter had secured a Silver medal also at the second world cup stage of the year in Sydney.

The Bronze medal and the second Olympic Quota Place went to Greece’s Efthimios Mitas, 26, who closed the round in third place with 146 hits. After making it into the final with 123 hits, the Greek shooter marked 23 targets, winning the second ISSF medal of his shooting career.

The Olympic Silver medallist of Beijing 2008, Norway’s Tore Brovold, finished out of the podium, in sixth place. After qualifying with 124 hits, he missed four targets during the final, ending up with a total score of 145 hits, tied to France’s Eric Delaunay in fifth and to Germany’s Ralf Buchheim in fourth.

“I could not see properly. It was simply too dark: the final took place too late.” The Norwegian shooter commented after the match, which had started at 7 PM and finished around 7.30 PM, at dusk.

The Skeet Men Final closed the ISSF Shotgun World Cup held at the Gaj Shooting Range of Maribor, Slovenia, from the 7th of July.

This was the fourth and last ISSF Shotgun World Cup Stage of the year. The best shotgun shooters of the World will now meet in the 2011 ISSF Shotgun World Championship, kicking-off in Belgrade on the 3rd of September. The season will then be closed by the ISSF Shotgun World Cup Final, taking place in Al Ain (UAE) starting from the 30th of September.

Italy’s Ennio Falco did it again. The 42-year old Italian shooter won his fifth World Cup Final title, lifting Italy atop of the medal standing of this World Cup Final in Izmir.

The 1996 Olympic Champion Ennio Falco played the protagonist’s role, at the ISSF World Cup Final in Izmir (TUR). The Italian ace shooter started the qualifications with a perfect 25-hit round, continuing then with four excellent series of 23, 24 and 25 hits, making it into the final round with the highest qualification score of 122 hits with one target of advantage on his followers.

Then, the Italian shooter took it easy “I was not nervous. I peaked for the World Championship at the beginning of August, and I secured an Olympic Quota Place there. So I was shooting without pressure, here at the World Cup Final…” The Italian shooter said immediately after the award ceremony.

Shooting with ease, Falco shattered 25 targets throughout the final match, landing on the highest step of the podium with a total score of 147 hits out of 150 targets, and securing his fifth World Cup Final title. He had won his first Final thirteen years ago, in Lima, in 1997. “It has been a few years ago… Winning the fifth World Cup Title makes me feel great. I never gave up this year, and I gave my best for this 2010 shooting season;” Falco said. “The focus is set on the next Games, now.” The Italian shooter concluded.

The Italian team celebrated his second title won here in Izmir, as the Skeet Women Gold medal went to Falco’s teammate Katiuscia Spada, yesterday. “This is a great result for our shooters and our federation. The hard work we have been doing is paying-off!” commented Mr. Luciano Rossi, ISSF Vice-President and President of the Italian Shotgun Shooting Federation.

The Silver medal went to the Danish shooter Andres Golding, who climbed upon the second step of the podium with a total score of 145+2 targets, after outdoing Russia’s Valery Shomin and Greece Nikolas Mavrommatis in a shoot-off.

It was a great satisfaction for the Danish shooter. Golding, a carpenter living in Oslo, had indeed never secured a World Cup medal, before. The 26-year old shooter, coached by the former World Champion Piero Genga, shot with determination hitting 121 targets in the qualifications and 24 targets in the final.

Winning the shoot-off for the Silver medal, he redeemed himself. He had indeed lost a determinant shoot-off and missed an Olympic Quota Place just a few weeks ago, during the final round of the last ISSF World Championship.

The winner of that final, the 2010 World Champion Valery Shomin of Russia secured today’s Bronze medal with 145+1+4 targets, outdoing the Greek shooter Nikolas Mavrommatis 4 to 3 hits. The 39-year old shooter form Moskov, competing with the colures of the CSKA club, had won a World Cup Final in 2006, and two Bronzes in 2000 and 2007.

Norway’s Tore Brovold ended up the match in fifth place with 144 hits (121+23), followed by Italy’s Luigi Lodde who closed the round in sixth with 142 hits (121+21).

Italy’s Ennio Falco won his fourth Silver medal after a perfect match. Achilleos shot-off his teammate Androu to win the Bronze, while the current Olympic Champion Hancock secured an Olympic pass at the last, breathtaking shot.

Valery Shomin of the Russian Federation is the new Skeet World Champion. The 39-year old athlete won the title and an Olympic Quota place after an outstanding final, by outdoing Italy’s Ennio Falco at the 22^nd target in a spine-chilling shoot-off for Gold.

Shomin and Falco fought neck and neck since the first competition shot. Both the shooters qualified for the final round with the same qualification score, 124 hits out of 125 possible targets, and started shooting-off from the first station.

Duelling shoulder and shoulder throughout the eight stations, the two athletes played a perfect match, hitting all of the 25 final targets, and finished the round as they had started: tied in the lead with a score of 149 total hits.

The following shoot-off (a direct-elimination tie-breaker conducted on the fourth station – the first who misses, goes out), turned in favour of Shomin, who climbed upon the highest step of the podium with 149 targets + 22 hits in the shoot-of, while Falco was left in second with 149+21 hits.

Shomin, ranked sixth in the world, finished in the spot-light every four years. He had indeed won two ISSF World Championship silver medals in 2002 and 2006, in Lahti (FIN) and Zegreb (CRO).

“After two Silver medals, it’s great to finally win a title!” Said the Russian athlete after the match “I would like to dedicate this victory to my father Kim, who passed away last April, while I was out for a shooting competition.” Continued Shomin “I was not expecting a victory here in Munich, but I am glad that I made it, especially thinking about the Olympic qualification.”

Italy’s Ennio Falco secured his fourth World Championship Silver medal. The 1996 Olympic Champion could not defeat the odds. Since 1983, when he started competing, the Italian shooter has won every title – from the Olympic Gold of Atlanta to five European titles, from four World Cup Final editions to 10 World Cup Gold medals – but the world tile.

“Unfortunately I did not make it. For the fourth time. We shot an almost perfect competition, today – said Falco after the match – 149 hits out of 150 targtes is a great result. I knew I had to be perfect, but I could not do more then this. We were tied right to the end, and I am proud of what I have done here today!” Said the 42-year old champion “I am happy with the Olympic Quota Place, this makes it easier for the next year. I knew this was going to be a long season, and I tried to peak to be competitive here in Munich, to qualify for the next Games at the first given chance, as I have always done since nineties!” concluded Falco, who has been competing in every Olympics since 1996.

The Bronze medal went to Cyprus’ Georgios Achielleos, the 2007 World Champion, who defeated his teammate Antonakis Andreou in a shoot-off for the podium. The two shooters, both trained by the 2004 Olympic Champion Andrea Benelli of Italy, started the final round with an equal score of 123 clays, and cleared the eighth station ending up with a total score of 148 hits. It was then the 29-year old Achilleos (leading the world ranking until this morning) who climbed on the podium with 10 shoot-off targets to Andreou’s 9 hits. The two teammates duelled on the range but celebrated together after the final: they both won the Olympic Quota Places for the Skeet event at the 2012 Games.

The fifth and last Olympic Quota place was taken by the Olympic Champion of Beijing 2008, USA’s Vincent Hancock, who placed in fifth after outdoing Denmark’s Andres Golding 8 to 7 hits in a shoot-off. Hancock, who had qualified for the medal match with 123 hits and had then missed a pool on the last double of station four, closed the match with a total score of 147+7 points.

The Team’s Gold Medal went to Cyprus, thanks to the great performances of the two finalists Achilleos and Andreou, and to their teammate Kyriacos Chritoforou, who finsihed on the podium with an overall score of 364 hits. Falco’s Italy finished in second on the teams’ podium, with an overall score of 363 targets hit by Ennio and his two teammates Angelo Moscariello and Velerio Luchini. Following in third place, the last medal of the 50^th ISSF World Championship in Munich went to the French team, on the podium with 362 targets scored by Anthony Terras, Eric Delaunay and Edouard Poumaillou.

Cyprus’ Achielleos finished in first beating Greece’s Mavrommatis in a shoot-off for Gold. Following them, the 2008 Olympic Champion Hancock secured Bronze outdoing Denmark’s Golding after 38 shoot-off targets

“To win two World Cup Gold medals back to back is a dream which comes true!” said the Cypriot Champion Georgios Achilleos, who claimed today’s Skeet Men Gold medal at the ISSF World Cup in Lonato, Italy. The 29-year old shooter, who had won also the previous World Cup Stage held in Dorset (UK), secured the brightest medal with a total score of 148+10 targets, outdoing Greece’s Nikolaos Mavromatis in a shoot-off.

“Three years ago, here in Lonato, I finished in second in spite of scoring 149 targets… - continued Achilleos, speaking at the ISSF TV microphones after the award ceremony – Coming here I knew that high scores were mandatory to finish on the highest step of the podium, and I prepared myself.”

Making it into the final round with a qualification score of 123 hits, the Cypriot athlete climbed up the scoreboard to the lead, hitting 25 out of 25 final targets in spite of the wind affecting the targets “The wind helped me. I handled it, while my opponents started missing. Passing through the trainings and the qualification rounds, I felt really confident.” Said Achilleos, who closed the round with a total score of 148 hits beating then the qualification’s leader Nikolaos Mavrommatis 10 to 9 hits in a shoot-off for Gold.

“Coming from a Gold medal in Dorset, I knew I was in very good conditions and well prepared to make it. I only participated in two World Cup Stages this year, trying to save some energies because I want to be ready for the ISSF World Championship in Munich.” Concluded Achilleos, speaking about the 50^th ISSF World Championship in all events, where he will face the strongest shooters of the world in a fight to secure the first 2012 Olympic Quota Places. The Cypriot shooter, ranked third in the world in the Skeet Men event, has already rose the World Championship cup twice, as a Junior competitor in 1999, and in 2007, when he won at his home range in Nicosia.

Today’s Silver medal went to Greece’s Nikolaos Mavrommatis. The 29-year old shooter, who had never made it to a World Cup final round before, qualified for the medal match in the lead with 124 hits, loosing then his head start by missing a target on station four. Tied to Achielleos with a final score of 148 hits, he lost the Gold in the shoot-off, finishing in second with 148+9 hits.

The battle for Bronze kept the spectators’ breaths, as three shooters tied in third place with a total score of 147 hits, and they had to pass through a second shoot-off to determinate the podium placements.

Russia’s expert Valery Shomin, 38, was the was the first to miss, placing himself in fifth with a total score of 147+11 hits, while the 2008 Olympic Champion Hancock (USA) and Denmark’s Andres Golding, 26, kept on shooting for the Bronze.  After an endless back and forth on station four, it was Vincent Hancock who claimed the Bronze medal with a total score of 147+38 hits, leaving Golding in fourth with a score of 147+37 targets.

Following them, UAE’s Saeed Almaktoum closed the round in sixth place with a total score of 143 hits. The 33-year old shooter, who just changed his shotgun to a spectacular custom made Holland&Holland, had participated in his last ISSF final round in 2007, at the World Cup stage held in Maribor.

Cyprus’ Achilleos secured Gold at his first World Cup Stage of the year. Preparing for the World Championship and the Commonwealth Games, the 29-year old athlete had skipped Acapulco and Beijing.

The 2007 World Champion, Cyprus’ Georgios Achielleos, secured the Skeet Men Gold medal at the ISSF Shotgun World Cup Stage in Dorset. The 29-year old athlete finished in first place with a total score of 146 (123+23) hits, coming back atop of an ISSF podium one year after his victory at the 2009 World Cup in San Marino.

Making into the final with a qualification score of 123 hits, Achielleos moved into the lead after the fourth station. Missing just two targets, the Cypriot champion cleared the final with a score of 23 hits out of 25 targets, climbing atop of the podium with a total score of 146 hits to secure the fourth ISSF World Cup Gold medal of his career.

“Today’s targets have been difficult for everybody. All the shooters complained about them: targets seem to be harder than usual.” Said Achielleos after the match.

“I was really focused anyway, I tried not to think about it… I had been working hard for this final and I think I deserved the medal!” Added Achielleos “This is my first World Cup Stage of the year. We skipped Acapulco and Beijing, as we will take part in the Commonwealth Games, in October, and therefore we started a little bit later: the season is long, this year.”

Following him, Greece’s Efthimios Mitas, 24, claimed Silver with 145 hits, outdoing by 4 to 3 targets Russia’s Valery Shomin in a shoot-off for the second step of the podium. Mitas had never won an ISSF medal before, and his best placement in an ISSF World Cup had been a sixth place at last year’s World Cup in Cairo (EGY).

Valery Shomin, who had squeezed into the final match throughout a shoot-off with a qualification score of 122+8 hits, scored 23 targets during the final match. Loosing the second shoot-off of his match against Mitas, the 38-year old Russian athlete landed in third place, securing Bronze with a total score of 145+3 hits.

Today’s final did not turn into a lucky match for the 2008 Olympic Champion, the 21-year old American shooter Vincent Hancock. Making it into the final tied to Achilleos with a qualification score of 123 hits, the young champion dropped four targets throughout the final, finishing in fourth with 144+5 hits, after outdoing China’s Wang Ying in a shoot-off.

After winning the first two World Cup Stages of the year in Acapulco and Beijing, he current number one in the world in this event, Norway’s Tore Brovold, finished in eighteenth place, with a score of 119 hits. “I had not enough time to recharge the batteries – Said Brovold – I passed a week in Beijing, after the last World Cup, due to the volcanic cloud. I could not rest and train between the two Cups.” Explained the Norwegian athlete, who will compete in the next ISSF World Cup Stage, in Lonato (ITA) in June.