The United States has won more Olympic medals in marksmanship than almost any other sport, and Army Soldiers make up more than a third of the team. This year, five Soldiers will be competing in the Rio Olympics.The Army apparently takes this Olympic shooting stuff seriously, and provides real support to potential Olympians.
2016 Olympic Qualified Soldiers
Sgt. 1st Class Glen Eller
Earned a 2016 Olympic Team nomination in double trap
Won a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and has competed in four previous Olympic Games
Sgt. 1st Class Michael McPhail
Earned a 2016 Olympic Team nomination in men’s 50-meter rifle prone
Competed in the 2012 London Olympics
Sgt. 1st Class Josh Richmond
Earned a 2016 Olympic Team nomination in double trap during the May 2016 Shotgun Olympic Trials in Tillar, Arkansas
Competed in the 2012 London Olympics
Spc. Daniel Lowe
Earned a 2016 Olympic Team nomination in Air Rifle by winning the 2016 Air Olympic Trials June 3-5 at Camp Perry, Ohio
This will be his first Olympics
Sgt. 1st Class Keith Sanderson
Earned a 2016 Olympic Team nomination in 25-meter rapid fire pistol
Rio will be his third Olympic appearance
Marksmanship Update
Most of the US Rio golds have come from marksmanship, which isn't too surprising. America has one of the last true gun cultures in the modern world, as well as the resources to train people who come up in it to high levels of expertise. It turns out there's more of a military connection than you might have guessed from the use of air rifles, though.
I am pleased that this last week at Boy Scout Camp, my son earned his Rifle Shooting Merit Badge. Next, I've got to get him to an Appleseed event.
ReplyDeleteYay!
ReplyDeleteCurious all this shooting. Last weekend, some friends of mine dragged me out to a local range to waste some ammunition. 4 out of 5 rounds standing unsupported in the black at 50 meters with an M1A. I'll take that for being 25 years out of practice.
ReplyDeleteManaged to genrally hit the paper at 100 meters with an M1-Garand, which has quite a kick.
Was all over the place with a Finnish refurbished Moisin-Nagant captured in the winter war. Nasty Romanian ammunition. Likewise some crappy Czech folding stock AK knock-off. Piece of crap.
And for fun, a reproduction .58 cal rifle-musket, carbine sized, some confederate Enfield knock-off I think.
The other shooters at the range seemed to uniformly have some variation on AR-15s with scopes and extra handles and stuff. There was some interest in the Garand, as it was obtained through the CMP (Civilian Marksmanship Program).
Never much liked extra handles. The AR is a pretty solid rifle for anything to 300m just as it comes. You can hit man-sized targets reliably with iron sights off a standard model. Optics just make it better.
ReplyDeleteBut I mostly shoot cowboy guns, you know. Still, it's good to be in practice with the more common arms. Glad to hear you're having a chance to get back into the swing of things.