Clay Shooting January 2021

It’s that time of year when we look back and reflect on the past twelve months – although for many 2020 will be the year they’d prefer to forget! The Covid pandemic has cast a shadow over every aspect of our lives, not just our shooting. So I was surprised when we started compiling our review of the year to see just how much has happened in the world of shooting despite lockdowns, tiers and restrictions. OK, so we are still awaiting the postponed big events like the Tokyo Olympics and World English Sporting Championships. But for much of the year, grounds have been able to open for practice and competitions, we’ve been able to enjoy ourselves despite restrictions on squad sizes and distancing, and we’ve seen some exciting events with…

With the prospect of putting Covid-19 behind us, plans are coming together for the big shooting shows and game fairs to return in 2021. The British Shooting Show has announced it will be held from 23 to 25 April at a new venue, the East of England Events Centre near Peterborough. The 2021 Game Fair is full steam ahead for Ragley Hall in Warwickshire from 23 to 25 July. At the time of writing, there have been no announcements about CPSA championships, but EJ Churchill are planning to run the postponed World English Sporting and Sportrap Championships from 5 to 11 July at their ground near High Wycombe. And our very own Clay Shooting Classic is scheduled for 26 to 30 May at Orston Shooting Ground near Nottingham – see p32 for…

Anthony Matarese won the World Fitasc Sporting held at Providence Hill Farm in Mississippi, USA, from 9 to 15 November. He joins an exclusive club of shooters who have won both the World English and the World Fitasc championship titles – Ben Husthwaite, George Digweed and Richard Faulds. Matarese took the title outright with a score of 192 ex-200, which included three 25-straights and three 24 ex-25s. Closest behind him were Jonathan Goedrich and Trevor Jensen tied on 186, and Goedrich won the shoot-off 21-20 to take silver. Fourth equal were Gebben Miles, Zachary Kienbaum and Joseph Fanizzi with 185. Diane Sorantino took the ladies title, Joseph Fanizzi juniors, Will Fennell seniors, Raymond Brown veterans, and John Hackethorn masters. The event had been scheduled for July 2020, but was postponed due to…

Italian gunmaker Zoli has added two rising stars to its team of sponsored shooters: Chloe Applin and Ollie Keates. Chloe, 18, won The Schools Challenge (TSC) in 2018, and is a first year agribusiness student at the Royal Agricultural University in Cirencester. She was introduced to shooting aged 10 by her father and has been competing for four years, with Fitasc her favourite discipline. “The sponsorship from Edgar Brothers and Zoli has given me an opportunity to work with two brilliant brands and will push my shooting on to the next level. I’m very grateful!” she commented. Ollie, from Wiltshire, has just turned 15. He too began shooting at the age of 10, and is in his third year of competitive shooting. He defeated several older shooters to win the UK…

Three CPSA coaches were appointed Musto ambassadors earlier this year – Simon Arbuckle, Mhairi-Ann Troup and Max Tarr. Musto has been a valued partner of the CPSA for some time, supporting CPSA events, championships, and the membership in many ways. Musto already ran a similar programme for their partners in sailing and riding, but this was the first of its kind for shooting. Unfortunately, a week after the appointment the pandemic took hold, events were postponed and lockdown commenced. With the country coming to a standstill, so did plans for the ambassadors. They’ve been busy in the meantime, fitting in as much instructing as they could while following Covid guidelines. Max says he will be game shooting in the winter, along with a few days loading and instructing. “It is also a…

CPSA directors Three new directors will take up their positions on the CPSA board immediately after the AGM to be held at the Chesford Grange Hotel in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, on Saturday 20 March. They are: Peter Saich (South East Region), John Leightley (North Region) and Jaymie Sole (National, one year. Jaymie will be co-opted to the board immediately as the position is vacant. These were the only nominations received by the deadline on 6 November, and were elected unopposed. The position of three-year National Director is contested, so a ballot will be held. EJ Churchill’s Bothy EJ Churchill have built a brand-new gun cleaning facility at their shooting ground at West Wycombe. Called ‘The Bothy’, it is ideal to clean your gun after shooting at the ground. It has four cleaning stations, equipped…