Archerfish.org

The 36-year old shooter celebrated with his 15-year old daughter, competing here in her first world cup. Olympic Quotas went to Greece’s Nikolas Mavrommatis (silver) and Denmark’s Jesper Hansen (bronze).

The Cypriot shooter Antonakis Andreou, 36, won today’s Skeet Men event at the ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Beijing, China.

Andreou finished on the highest step of the podium by equalling the world record, hitting 125 out of 125 targets at the qualifications.

Entering the medal match with two targets of advantage on his followers, the Cypriot athlete scored 22 out 25 targets, closing the competition in first with a total score of 147 hits.

“This victory pays off all these years of hard work!” A 20-year long hard work: Andreou said. Shooting since 1990, had never won an ISSF World Cup medal, before.

“I have a special teammate: my daughter. Panaiyota is 15-year old, and this was her first World Cup.” The proud father explained.

“It’s like a family team!”

“Every time she’s with me I win something: I secured an Olympic Quota Place, last year, at the world championship in Munich, while she was competing there as a junior.” Andreou had indeed already secured the Olympic qualification by finishing in fourth at last year’s ISSF World Championship in Munich.

Five shooters had qualified for the final behind him, with a tie score of 123 hits. It was Nikolas Mavrommatis of Greece who won the hurdle claiming the Silver medal with a total score of 146 (123+23) targets. The 30-year old shooter also pocketed an Olympic Quota Place, a pass to the next Olympics.

And an Olympic Quota Place also went to the Bronze medallist, Denmark’s Jesper Hansen, 30, who won his first ISSF medal with 145 (123+22) hits, after outdoing Norway’s Tore Brovold and Cyrpus’ Gerogios Achilleos in a shoot-off with 4 hits.

The 2008 Olympic Silver medallist Brovold ended up in fourth place, with a total score of 145 + 3 hits, while the second Cypriot shooter, the 2007 World Champion, placed fifth with 145 + 1 targets.

Ivo Hilser of Czech Republic, a firs time finalist, closed the round in sixth and last place. After making it into the final with 123 targets, he shot 21 clays, for an overall score of 144 hits.

The 2011 ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Beijing is taking place on the layouts of the 2008 Olympic Clay Target Field of Beijing from the 19th through the 28 of April. More than 350 athletes compete in these days, trying to secure one of the ten Olympic Quota places, the passes to London 2012, awarded here.

With 150 hits the Czech shooter equalled the Final World Record and secured an Olympic Quota Place. Brovold, earning the second quota, said he could be shooting Trap at the next Games.

Czech Republic’s Jan Sychra won the Skeet Men event at the ISSF World Cup in Concepcion, Chile, with a great score of 150 hits out of 150 targets: an equalled final world record. The Czech shooter also secured an Olympic Quota Place, a qualification spot at the 2012 London Games.

“I did not believe the 150 record was possible! – The Czech shooter said after the award ceremony. The record had been established in 2007 by the current Olympic Champion, Vincent Hancock of the USA. Since then, it had been tied just twice, both times by Norway’s Tore Brovold.

“It’s too cold to shoot, in my country. It’s very early in the season, and I could not train that much before coming here in Chile.” Sychra added. “That’s why I am surprised about the outcome of this match.”

“The sun helped me a lot. The background is great, and I was in a good mood. That’s how I shot a perfect match. 150 hits: this is my first time!” Sychra said, wearing the Gold. “I had shot 125 targets twice in my life, but I had never made it to the end.”

“I want to leave space to younger shooter, now that I have got an Olympic Quota. They should have their chance as well.” The 42-year old athlete said. “I will most probably go to London, and I have to get ready for that.” Said the Czech shooter, who competed in the 1996, 2004 and 2008 Games.

Norway’s Brovold secured the second Quota Place awarded today, by finishing in second place with a total score of 148 hits. The 40-year Olympic Silver medallist of Beijing is now looking forward to London, where he could surprise his fans “I will try to shoot Trap as well” he said, half-jokingly.

“I will try to convince my coach to let me shoot Trap at the World Cup in Maribor. If I will get the MQS, I could extend my stay at the Games…” he said smiling.

“The Quota makes it easier for me. I will be shooting at the next two ISSF World Cup Stages in Sydney and Beijing. Then we will decide how to proceed on the path to London.”

Norways’ coach, Per Moen, celebrated two medals, as the Bronze went to the second Norwegian shooter, Ole Eilif Undseth, third with 147+13 targets after shooting-off Cuba’s veteran Guillermo Torres (a 52-year old 1980-Olympian) who closed the match in fourth with 147+12 hits.

USA’s Frank Thompson, and Denmark’s Andres Golding, followed in fifth and sixth place, with 146 and 145 hits, respectively.

The ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Concepcion, Chile, will continue tomorrow with the last final match, the Trap Men competition. The final round is scheduled at 16.30. Don’t miss the match, on www.issf-sports.org

Russia’s Vitaly Fokeev won the Double Trap Men Gold medal setting a new World Record. Great Britain’s Wilson followed him securing Silver “Thanks to the coaching of Dubai’s Al Maktoum”. Both were awarded an Olympic Quota Place, an entrance ticket to the next Games.

The first ISSF Shogun World Cup of the year started in the best possible way, with a new World Record set by Russia’s Vitaly Fokeev, who won today’s Double Trap Men final also securing an Olympic Pass for London.

The 37-year old Russian athlete turned out to be unstoppable, today.  With a qualification score of 148 hits, Fokeev set indeed a new World Record, shattering the previous 147 marked by Australia’s Olympic Champion Diamond back in 1998.

Then, walking into the final with a head-start of 5 targets, Fokeev turned out to be unreachable, and finished on the highest step of the podium with a total of 194 hits. Next to the Gold medal, the Russian shooter was awarded an Olympic Quota Place, a ticket to the next Olympics.

“This is the best possible outcome: a Gold medal, the record and a Quota Place! – The winner said right after the final. – I am glad that the Russian team has now two Quotas (the first one won by Fokeev teammate’s Mosin at the 2010 ISSF World Championship). It’s going to be easier for us, from now on.”

The second Olympic Quota spot went to Great Britain’s Peter Robert Russell Wilson, from Dorset. The 25-year old athlete secured the Silver medal with a total score of 190 (142+48) hits.

Wilson, who has squeezed into the final by winning a four-way shoot-off with eight hits, shot the highest score of today’s final, 48 hits. “I have been shooting great in these days. I marked 148 targets yesterday. So I was hoping for such a result.” Wilson said.

The young shooter, who started competing internationally just four years ago, shared the merit of today’s final with his coach, the 2004 Olympic Champion Ahmed Al Maktoum, the Prince of Dubai “When I first met him, we talked about squash.” Wilson said “He was a professional squash player, before winning the Olympics in 2004. And I was playing squash a lot.”

“He started coaching me after the 2008 Games, when he decided to stop shooting. – Wilson added –  I have been training in Dubai a lot, and you have seen the results, today.”

Bronze went to USA’s Joshua Richmond, with 189 hits. The American shooter, had already secured an Olympic Quota Place last Augus, as he had won the 2010 ISSF World Championship in Munich. Following him, Italy’s Marco Innocenti and Francesco D’Aniello finished in fourth and fifth place, with 187 and 184 points respectively, while it was Hungary’s Roland Gerebics who closed the match in sixth with184 hits.

The 2007 Asian Champion, China’s Pan Qiang, won the Double Trap Men Final, equalling the World Record with a qualification score of 147 hits.

The Chinese athlete Pan Qiang won today’s Double Trap Men Final, winning his first ISSF World Cup Gold medal by shooting a record qualification score o f147 hits.

The 25-year old Chinese finalist, ranked eighteenth in the World, equalled the current World Record by hitting 147 targets during the qualifications, and walked into the final match with a three-target margin on his followers. Pan scored then 46 out of 50 targets during the final, claiming Gold with a total score of 193 hits, just three targets shy of equalling the Final World Record.

The 2006 World Champion Vitaly Fokeev of the Russian Federation followed him in second place, securing Silver with 190 hits, while the two American teammates Jeffrey Holguin and Joshua Richmond ended up in third and fourth place with 189 and 188 hits, respectively. Holguin had already won a Bronze medal at the first World Cup Stage of the year, in Acapulco (MEX), when Richmond had finished on the highest step of the podium.

The Olympic Silver medallist of Beijing Francesco D’Aniello, from Italy, closed the match in sixth and last place with a total of 180 targets, after qualifying for the medal match with the lowest qualification score (141 hits). The home shooter Peter Robert Wilson, 23, competing for the first time in a World Cup final match, preceded D’Aniello by finishing in fifth with a total score of 182 hits.

Competing in the 50m Rifle Prone Men event at the ISSF World Cup in Sydney, Australia’s Potent equalled the 600-point world record, winning Gold on the lined of his home range.

Australia’s Warren Potent won the applauses of the final hall of the Olympic Shooting Range of Sydney, today, by winning Gold at the 50m Rifle Prone Men final.

Spotlights were on the home shooter since the qualification rounds, as the Olympic Bronze medallist of Beijing had equalled the World Record to walk into the final in first with 600 points.

Nobody could then stop him during the medal match. In spite of being close-followed by India’s Joydeep Karmakar, Potent shot in the lead from the first right to the last shot, ending up on the highest step of the podium with an unreachable final score of 703.7 (600+103.7) points.

“It’s great to win a Gold medal here, on the lines of my home range. – Exclaimed Potent after the award ceremony, celebrated by a number of Australian fans - This is my second time on the highest step of this podium. I had won my first ISSF World Cup Gold medal here in Sydney, in 2007!”

“I was really nervous this morning, before shooting the record. – Kept on explaining Potent – This is my home range, but it’s never easy… I had been closed to it several time, but I had never scored 600 points in an international match before, for some reasons.”

“The final itself hasn’t been that easy too: the way in which the wind affects the shots here in the final hall is quite different than in the qualification building.” Concluded Potent, smiling as somebody reminded him that the 2007 World Cup Gold medal had been his first step on the road leading to the Olympic Podium of Beijing.

“I am now looking forward to the ISSF World Championship in Munich, – He said  - I heard that more than 2500 shooters are going to be there, because of the Olympic Quotas… That’s the first Qualification for the 2012 Games in London, it’s going to be challenging!”

The Silver medal went to India’s Joydeep Karmakar, 30-year old, a first time finalist. The Shooter from Calcutta had indeed participated in a single ISSF World Cup Stage, in Resende (BRA), four years ago, placing far behind the medal placements.

Karmakar made it to the final round with an excellent qualification score of 599 points, just one point lower than the world record equalled by Potent. By shooting 103.4 points during the final, he could not make up the disadvantage he had from the leader. His total score of 702.4 points landed him in second place, winning his first international medal ever.

“This was my first time in an ISSF World Cup final round… I have been shooting for fifteen years, but I could not reach these results, something was missing on the psychological side, which is really important in shooting. “ Said the Indian athlete right before the award ceremony.

“I started to dedicate more and more time to shooting in 2007, and these are the results. – continued Karmakar – My next goals? The Olympic Games, of course! Since Bindra’s victory at the 2008 Games, shooting has become more and more popular in India. He showed us that it is possible to get there. And I will try to get there!”

It was the expert Belarusian shooter Sergey Martynov who took today’s Bronze medal, ending up in third place with 700.7 points. The three-time Olympic Bronze medallist, and ten-time World Cup Gold medallist, shot 103.7 points in the final match, overtaking the American shooter Michael McPhail to finish on the podium with a total score of 700.7 points.

USA’s McPhail, 28-year old, missed the podium by a few tenths. The American athlete, who had claimed two World Cup Bronzes last year, could not recover from a 9.0 he fired on his sixth final shot, and ended up in fourth place with 700.5 points. Following him, Switzerland’s Marcel Buerge took the fifth spot with 699.2 points, while the second American finalist Eric Uptagrafft landed in sixth place with 697.1 points.