With shooting off the schedule for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, one has to ask how many other sports provide the opportunity for a 67-year-old to compete in a partnership with someone 42 years his junior? In what other sport could a 79 year (and 9 months to be precise) old make his debut at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games?
Canadian fullbore shooter Robert Pitcairn shot yesterday at GC2018 as the oldest athlete in Commonwealth Games history. Aged 79 and 9 months, he competed in the Queens Prize Pairs finals with his partner Nicole Rossignol where they finished a very respectable 8th. He is due to compete again in the singles fullbore event.
Representing the home nations, Northern Ireland’s David Calvert has just shot in his record breaking 11th Commonwealth Games. He has gone from strength to strength in his shooting career with four golds and four bronzes under his belt and has won all three of his record-equalling Queen’s Prize trophies in the last 8 years. He and partner Jack Alexander, aged 25, secured 7th place in the final of a very competitive Queen’s Prize contest.
Whilst these results may not be headline grabbing or the fairytale ending, they do wonderfully demonstrate the all-encompassing mindset of shooting, something that an outsider who is not familiar with the sport may not necessarily assume. And this is why it is imperative that the shooting fraternity, as a whole, does not batten down it’s hatches as it faces modern challenges and cuts. It must do the opposite, as the hunting community has tried very hard to do, throw open its doors, target and attract newcomers and actively promote the fact that everyone is welcome. The very future of the sport may depend on it.