The Diary of a Team GB Olympic Clay Shoot Champion

Witham Group is proud to support Team GB Olympic Trap Shooting team member William Gilbert, with our gun care range.  Here, we hear about what William has been up to recently in the shooting world…

I started clay shooting over 10 years ago, after I was encouraged to have a go by my father, who had just returned to the sport after a long break. Since winning my first competition aged 12, I have never looked back. I take my shooting very seriously, but it does have to fit around my time at The University of Nottingham, where I have been studying for a Law degree for the past two years. During term-time I compete for the University Shooting Club in the Sporting competitions. This year I was elected to the position of Men’s Team Captain, and as a committee member, I am involved in organising taster sessions for prospective members. I also help to support and encourage existing club members during competitions and our weekly training sessions at Doveridge Clay Sports Club.

My 21st birthday was in July, so this is my last year as a Junior. I fully accept that my studies and exams have to take priority over my shooting, but I have tried to make the most of my summer holiday, when not helping out on the family farm. This year I attended three British Shooting Shotgun Series events. I came away with a minimum consideration score, and two Gold medals in the Junior Men’s finals, which qualified me to compete for Team GBR in the Junior World Championship in Lima, Peru. I am pleased to say that I came 10th in the Junior Men’s category, with a score of 115. This was just one point short of qualifying for the shoot-offs for the final. I then competed in the Mixed Pairs competition where I came 9th with teammate Leah Southall.

My qualification scores at these events also enabled me to gain selection for the England Team, which competed at the Home Countries International Tournament, hosted by Scotland at the National Shooting Centre near Falkirk. Despite the rather miserable cold, wet and windy conditions, England triumphed, winning all the team trophies.

This November I will be travelling to New Delhi to compete in the FISU World University Championships, which is sanctioned by BUCS and supported by British Shooting. I am also planning to compete in the BUCS Clay Shooting Championship, which will be held at Doveridge.

Whilst my focus during this competition season has been on Olympic Trap, I still enjoy other trap disciplines, and recently won the Regional Automatic Ball Trap Championship at Nottingham & DGC. This title is always keenly contested, and I am thrilled to have won it for the first time after a 3-way shoot-off. I have also just won my 10th successive Junior and 3rd successive Senior/Open Norfolk County ABT Champion titles.

I attribute much of my success to my careful choice of equipment. I have always used Eley Hawk cartridges and am grateful for the sponsorship and support that I have received from them over the past 5 years. My competition guns are a Beretta SO5 Trap gun and an SO5 Sporter, which were both presents from my parents. To clean and protect my guns I use Witham’s Estate Range Gun Barrel & Choke Cleaner, and Gun Oil. They are quick and easy to use, and don’t leave any sticky residues behind. This ensures that my guns stay in the best condition, which has definitely been a challenge during the harsh weather conditions that we have often experienced this year.