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USA Finishes Third in Medal Standings at ISSF World Clay Target Championships
Watch the full final video from the first to the last shot below.

USA Shooting

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. --(Ammoland.com)- The USA Shooting Team gave its all at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Clay Target Championships.

The Team returns home with a total of two individual open medals, three individual junior medals and three junior team medals.

Two of those medals included new world records as the Junior Men’s Double Trap trio of Billy Crawford (Johnstown, Ohio), Private First Class Derek Haldeman (Sunbury, Ohio) and Ian Rupert (Muncy, Pa.) smashed the team world record by 13 targets. The American’s total of 428 targets broke a record that had held since 1998. Crawford also raised the standard by setting a new junior world record of 147 out of 150 targets in Junior Men’s Double Trap.

Another notable performance came from Sergeant Glenn Eller (Katy, Texas) in Men’s Double Trap. Eller, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist, reminded the crowd of the definition of tenacity as he charged through 36 shoot-off targets to advance to the final. After nearly shooting an entire round, Eller attacked the final to the tune of 45 out of 50 targets to find himself in a shoot-off yet again, but this time the prize up for grabs was the bronze medal. Eller silenced Vitaly Forkeev of Russia after only four targets to bring home the bronze.

Four-time Olympic medalist Kim Rhode (El Monte, Calif.) asserted herself as a serious medal contender in 2012 as she also won the bronze in Women’s Skeet. Rhode shot 72 match targets to tie four other shooters for three spots in the final. After four shoot-off targets her fate-and place-in the finals was sealed. Known for her consistency in the final round, Rhode fired a perfect 25 targets to place herself in line for a spot on the podium. Tied with China’s Wei Ning at 97 out of 100 targets, Rhode hit seven targets to Ning’s eight targets in the shoot-off. As last year’s world champion, and again finding the podium in 2011, shooting fans are expecting great things from Rhode in 2012.

In Junior Women’s Skeet, MorganCraft (Hughesville, Pa.) fired 68 out of 75 match targets to tie with Lucie Anastassiou of France for the silver and bronze medals.

Craft shot one target to Anastassiou’s two targets in the shoot-off to claim the bronze medal for the red, white and blue. Not only did this add to the USA’s medal count, but this was Craft’s first overseas trip and first international medal. Her teammates Brandy Drozd (Bryan, Texas) finished in fourth place with 67 targets and Riley Moody (Collinsville, Okla.) shot 58 targets for eighteenth place. The Women’s Junior Team scored the team bronze medal.

Delivering the performance of her career was Janessa Beaman (Elbert, Colo. Beaman ) as she earned the title of Junior Women’s Trap Champion. Beaman finished with 70 out 75 targets for the uncontested gold medal and a new personal best. Teammate Miranda Wilder (Diana, Texas) performed to the tune of 67 targets to tie with Lucie Rylichova of the Czech Republic. Making short work of her competition, she claimed the fifth place spot in a one target shoot-off. Rounding out the trio was Ashley Carroll (Solvang, Calif.) with 64 targets for tenth place. With all three juniors in the top ten, the junior women secured the team gold medal.

The ISSF World Clay Target Championship is unique in that junior shooters are afforded the opportunity to compete on the international stage against the best juniors in the world. The USA Shooting Team’s junior presence would not be possible without funding from the Dallas Safari Club. National Shotgun Coach Bret Erickson said, “We are grateful for the support of the Dallas Safari Club of the Junior World Clay Target Championship Team. Without their assistance, many of these juniors would not be able to attend and represent the United States. With a total of six junior medals, it’s safe to say that the future of shooting is in good hands-and trigger fingers.”

Overall, the United States finished third in the medal standings behind Russia and China with eight total medals. Russia scored 12 and China had six medals (more silver than the U.S.).

In the closing ceremony, Mr. Medhat Wahdan, the ISSF Vice President and Technical Delegate for the championship, said, “I have on my report nine new or equaled world records; numbers are telling us that this has been a great competition.”

Members of the USA Shooting Team are returning to prepare for the first leg of the U.S. Olympic Trials for Shotgun from Sept. 22 to Oct. 2 in Kerrville, Texas. Don’t forget to check out the ISSF YouTube Channel for full-length finals, highlights and interviews from the ISSF World Clay Target Championship.

Janessa Beaman (center), Photo ISSF

About USA Shooting:
USA Shooting, a 501c3 non-profit corporation, was chartered by the United States Olympic Committee as the National Governing Body for the sport of shooting in April 1995. USA Shooting’s mission is to prepare American athletes to win Olympic medals, promote the shooting sports throughout the U.S. and govern the conduct of international shooting in the country. Check us out on the web at www.usashooting.org and on Twitter at twitter.com/USAShooting.

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SCTP Athlete Billy Crawford Captures Gold
Sets a new World Record in Double Trap at the ISSF World Cup Championships in Belgrade, Serbia.

Billy Crawford (center), Photo ISSF

AmmoLand Gun News

Shelby Township, MI --(Ammoland.com)- The Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) announced today that SCTP athlete, Billy Crawford, an 18-year-old senior attending Northridge High School in Johnstown, Ohio set a new World Record and captured the Individual World Champion Title by scoring 147 hits in Junior Men’s Double Trap at the ISSF Shotgun World Championships currently being held at the Kovilovo Shooting Range in Belgrade, Serbia.
Billy Crawford (in center)

Crawford, along with USA Shooting Team Members, Derek Haldeman (Sunbury, OH) and Ian Rupert (Muncy, PA), also secured the Team Gold Medal and set a new Team World Record in Men’s Junior Double Trap with an overall score of 428 hits, shattering the previous 415-hit record held by Italy, which was set back in 1998.

“Everything just felt right for me today,” said Crawford, who is coached by Craig Hancock, considered by many to be one of the top coaches in the world.

According to Coach Hancock, “Billy has been increasing the level of his game for several months. This is proof that hard work and determination pays off.” Coach Hancock continued, “Billy Crawford is a first class individual and his desire to compete at the highest level is now known to the world. He is a prime example of the type of individuals that are progressing through the ranks in the Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP).”

This past summer, Billy Crawford spent several months training at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

SCTP is the Official Youth Development Clay Target Program for USA Shooting, the National Governing Body for Olympic shooting sports in the United States.

The Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation (SSSF) is responsible for all aspects of the Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) across the United States, including participant registration, coaches, state coordinators, state and national championships, promotion, communications, websites, public relations and growth strategies The Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation exists to raise funding and other resources for Youth Development Programs in the shooting sports industry.

SCTP is a youth development program where adult coaches and volunteers model sportsmanship, responsibility, honesty, ethics, integrity, and team work while using shooting sports programs to teach these and other positive life skills to SCTP athletes.

To learn more about SCTP call (586) 737-0805 or visit their website at www.shootsctp.org.

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