“Experience helped me in coping with the wind” the American winner said, winning the 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men Final with more than 2 points of advantage on his follower, the home hero Campriani of Italy.
USA’s Jason Parker, 37, the 2011 Continental American Champion, won today’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men final at the ISSF Rifle & Pistol World Cup in Milan, Italy.
The American champion beat the home shooter, Niccolò Campriani, by almost three points, gaining his fifth ISSF World Cup Gold medal with an overall score of 1273.1 points after qualifying with 1173 points and scoring 100.1 points in the final match.
Parker had won an ISSF World Cup Gold medal here in Milan, back in 2001, as well as a Junior World Championship Bronze medal in 1994.
“I won my first international medal ever here in Milan, so it’s great to be back on this podium” Parker said right after the last competition shot.
“We have our national Olympic trials kicking off in a few days: the 2012 Olympic team will be decided there. It’s good to walk into the trials knowing that everything works fine, and that I can score well under pressure.” The American winner added.
The wind was part of the game, in Milan today. Starting with yesterday’s eliminations – conducted in one of the windiest days that the shooting range officers remember since years – and continuing with the qualifications and the finals, coping with the wind has been a real challenge.
Experience helped Parker: “I am quite confident with the wind – he stated – during the final, the wind direction changed form the sighters to the competitions. I adjusted my sights with a couple of clicks, I knew how to react and I had no problems.”
Home hero Campriani secured his second medal within two days
Finishing on the highest step of the podium, the American winner upset the home hero, Italy’s Niccolò “Nicco” Campriani, ranked first in the world in this event. The Italian shooter finished in second place with a total score of 1270.7 points, after qualifying with 1172 points and firing 98.7 points in the final, including a frustrating 8.6 on his first final shot.
“It has been difficult with the wind, and I had a very bad prone match. Also, it’s not so easy, coming form the victory in the Air Rifle.” Campriani said, mentioning his successful match of two days ago, when he finished in the spotlights by winning the 10m Air Rifle Men final on his home turf.
Winning the pre-Olympic World Cup in London in spite of the adverse weather conditions, and coming from a podium at the 2011 ISSF World Cup Final, Campriani was already listed in the favourites’ list for the 2012 London Olympics. And these days’ performances strength the feeling that he could be one of the protagonists of London 2012.
“I don’t want to think about the Games, now. In front of me there’ the 50m Rifle Prone competition, here in Milan. I will try to use that competition to understand what happened today, as I am not really satisfied of my prone round.”
Bronze to the Youth Olympics Champion Chareika
Today’s Bronze medal went to the 2010 Youth Olympic Games protagonist Illia Chareika, a 19-year old Belarusian shooter who has qualified for the 2012 London Olympics, and who won a Bronze medal at the pre-Olympic ISSF World Cup in London just a few weeks ago. Chareika made it to the final with 1167 points, and then climbed up the scoreboard by shooting 100.0 points in the final, to finish in third with 1267.0 points.
Serbia’s Mirosavljec 0.7 points far from the podium
He was followed by the Serbian champion Nemanja Mirosavljev, 42, an expert of the 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men event, who had qualified for today’s match in fourth place, with 1169 points. After scoring 97.3 points in the final and fighting to find a spot for the podium, Mirosavljev closed the match in fourth with 1266.3 points, just 0.7 far from the medals. Chasing his fourth place, Russia’s Denis Sokolov climbed from the back ending up in fifth place with 1265.4 points, while the sixth place went to the 23-year old Norwegian finalist, Ole Kristian Bryhn, (ranked second din the world in this event after winning the 2011 ISSF World Cup Final in Wroclaw) who closed today’s final with 1264.6 points. Slovenia’s Robert Markoja and Ukraine’s flag bearer Artur Aivazian closed the round in seventh and eighth place, with 1262.7 and 1262.5 points, respectively.
A penalty landed Norways Bakken in 14th
Norway’s 24-year Ole Magnus Bakken, ranked 10 in the world in this even, did not make it to the final, after being deducted 8 points. The young shooter fired too many shots during the qualifications, incurring in the penalty, and landing in 14th place with an score of 1163 points after the deduction. Bakken had been competing in a 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men final here in Milan in 2009 as well. That time, the young shooter had finished in sixth place
Next medal matches: are scheduled for tomorrow, when the 2012 ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup in Milan will continue with the 50m Rifle 3 Positions Women and 25m Pistol Women events, starting from 12.00 (GMT+1).