National Junior Olympic Shooting Championships Preview Nation’s Best Meet in Colorado
BY TYLER ANDERSON, COMPETITIONS COORDINATOR THE NATIONAL JUNIOR
OLYMPIC PROGRAM has been growing in size and stature to become the elite youth shoot- ing competition in the country, allowing athletes to gather for a one-of-a-kind experience. This year’s State Junior Olym-
pic Championships included 47 of our 50 states hosting, with a total of 80 different USA Shoot- ing clubs involved. The 2013 competition consisted of over 2,200 individual participants in rifl e and pistol events. This shows the effectiveness of the program in creating a fi rm foundation for shooting sports to continue their growth. State champions and those
who qualify via high scores are invited to Colorado Springs to compete in the National Junior Olympic Shooting Champion- ships (NJSOC). The competition takes place over a three week period with over 500 of our fi nest junior shooters in attendance. It is a tremendous opportunity for young athletes to compete in a high-profi le match. It allows the athletes to experience pressure like never before with a potential spot(s) on the National Junior Team up for grabs to the top shooter(s). The 2013 competi- tion is packed full of returning notables and new faces alike. In the Women’s Air Pistol competition, last year’s third- place fi nisher Darian Shenk (Annville, Pa.) and runner-up Ala- na Townsend (Kalispell, Mont.) are looking for redemption as they are both set to return. Standing in their way is last year’s cham- pion Taylor Gallegos (Prosper,
score of qualifi cation. Deanna Binnie (Hollsopple, Pa.) has been practicing in the off-season after her 19th place fi nish from 2012 by posting the highest state qualifying score of 584 points. Similarly, in the men’s com-
Texas) who is also set to return. After fi nishing fourth last year, Lydia Paterson (Kansas City, Kan.) is also looking to take her place on the podium, posting the high- est qualifying score of 379 in her State JO Competition. The men’s competition is highlighted by returning silver medalist Wyatt Brown (Twin Falls, Idaho) who will be looking to im- prove on last year’s fi nish. South- ern California continues to pro- duce young, talented shooters. Keep an eye out for last year’s high J3 shooter Paul Chong (Fon- tana, Calif.) or newcomer Joshua Yoo (Los Angeles, Calif.). Alexan- der Chichkov (Tampa, Fla.) made a statement by posting the top qualifying score of 568 in his state championships, and will likely be turning heads yet again this year. Starlin Shi (Potomac, Md.)
highlights the Women’s Sport Pistol competition by returning to defend her 2012 gold medal. Looking to avenge last year’s fourth and fi fth place fi nish are Erin Coscia (Zionsville, Ind.) and Cindy Chung (Diamond Bar, Calif.) who posted the top two state qualifying scores of 554 and 550 points respectively.
16 USA Shooting News | Spring 2013 There will be many new faces
looking to garner their share of NJOSC glory in the Men’s Sport Pistol competition. Brian Kim (Los Angeles, Calif.) is one of few re- turning hopefuls and looks like the man to beat after earning last year’s high J2 and posting the second highest state qualify- ing score. Newcomer Frank Czerda (Annapolis, Md.) looks to make a name for himself after posting the third highest qualifying score with Chichkov again posting the highest state qualifying score of 576 points. If these stimulating pistol competitions don’t create enough excitement there is no need to fret as the rifl e events look to be just as competitive. The women’s three-position
Smallbore event features sev- eral past competitors including the 2012 NJOSC bronze medal- ist Mackenzie Martin (Fairhaven, Mass.) looking to move up the podium this year. In the battle to see which Martin will reign supreme, Rachel Martin (Peralta, N.M.) looks to improve on her sixth-place fi nish from last year. Ready to rain on the Martin pa- rade is last year’s 14th place fi n- isher Alyssa Gestl (Palmyra, Pa.) who posted the second highest
petition, returning bronze med- alist Timothy Sherry (Highlands, Colo.) looks to add more med- als to his collection. There are a plethora of top returning athletes that are looking to upset Sherry on his home turf. Garrett Spurgeon (Canton, Mo.) and Patrick Sunder- man (Farmington, Minn.) both
fi nished just shy of the podium and are looking to change that this year. Also of note is Con- nor Davis (Shelbyville, Ky.), who turned some heads with his top qualifying score of 588 and will be a challenger for the returning hopefuls. In the Women’s 10m Air Rifl e competition, the bronze medal redemption theme continues with Hannah Black (Richmond, Va.) returning to compete. She will be joined by top state quali- fi er Meredith Carpentier (Wauke- gan, Ill.) who only dropped one point for an impressive score of 399 points. Men’s 10m Air Rifl e has a