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Finals Trap Men

GBR’s Heading wins Trap Men match defeating 7-time World Cup champ Pellielo

ISSF World Cup Shotgun · Al Ain, UAE

Great Britain’s Aaron Heading won the Trap Men event at the 2013 ISSF Shotgun World Cup held in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, today.

It has been Aaron Heading’s day, today, at the ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Al Ain.

 

The 25-year old shooter from Lincolnshire, England, climbed atop of the podium after beating the seven-time World Cup champion Giovanni Pellielo of Italy by 13 to 11 hits in the Gold medal match.

 

“It feels great to win this medal. It has been tough. Pellielo one of the best shooters out there.” Heading said.

 

Heading won with the new ISSF Finals rules. After the qualifications, conducted over 125 targets, the best 6 shooters advance to the semi-final, and the qualification score is not carried forward. The 6 semi-finalists start from zero. The best 2 advance to the Gold medal match, the third and the fourth to the Bronze medal match, and the fifth and the sixth drop out of the competition.

 

Heading qualified for today’s match with 121 hits, and had to pass through a shoot-off against six other athletes to get into the semi-final.

 

Then, the young English shooter zeroed in, clearing all the 15 semi-final’s targets, advancing to the Gold medal match, where he met Italy’s three-time Olympic medallist Giovanni “Johnny” Pellielo.

 

Pellielo had just equalled the current World Record by hitting 125 out of 125 targets in the qualifications. But today’s it was Heading’s day, and Aaron beat the 43-year old Italian by two targets, securing his first ISSF World Cup Gold medal ever.  

 

“Today had to be my day. I passed through hard times lately; this is why this medal has a special meaning. I would like to dedicate it to a friend who’s not with us anymore.” Heading said.

 

Today’s Bronze medal went to Austria’s 42-year old athlete Andreas Scherhaufer, who beat Slovakia’s Erik Varga 11 to 10 hits in the Bronze medal match, after hitting 13 targets in the semi-final.

 

Great Britain’s Michael Wixey and Turkey’s Oguzhan Tuzun placed fifth and sixth with 11 and 10 hits in the semi-final, respectively.

 

More than 350 shooters from 50 countries are competing in the second leg of this year’s ISSF Shotgun World Cup Series, held in Al Ain from the 17th through the 24th of April. The event will continue now with the Double Trap and the Skeet events. Check the schedule on www.issf-sports.org

Marco Dalla Dea

 

ISSF Partners