Shooters make a beeline for the Dr. Sivanthi Adityan Trap and Skeet shooting Range of the Chennai Rifle Club at Red hills, to the sounds of shotgun fire with the sweet smell of cordite hanging in the air.
This year around, the 49th Tamilnadu Shooting Competitions 2023 – Shotgun was organised by the Chennai Rifle Club from Aug.16 to 23, under the auspices of the Tamilnadu Shooting Association.
There are three disciplines in shotgun events – Trap, Double Trap and Skeet. There were 242 entries with junior boys and girls, men, women and seniors, gunning for glory. A very keen sharpshooter amidst the contestants was none other than our honourable Minister Industries, Investment Promotions and Commerce T.R.B. Rajaa, who won a silver in Master Men ISSF Category. The qualifiers in this event move on to the South zone and then to the Nationals.
The Indian shooting team has been making colossal strides in the international arena in all disciplines.
Shotgun events are no exception with our own Sastri Nagar resident, Prithviraj Thondaiman, bagging the Bronze in Trap in the recently concluded World Cup.
The boom of the shotgun as clay targets shatter in mid-air, the tense silence before the shot, and the camaraderie among competitors – these are the defining moments of shotgun competitions. For both seasoned shooters and newcomers to the sport, shotgun competitions offer a thrilling blend of precision and passion.
J.Paul Janakan – Managing Editor of Adyar Times, and a competitor (standing 3rd from the left in the photo)
