2014 was another successful year for the SSAA Action Pistol team at the Bianchi Cup. This year’s trip started with the World Action Pistol Championships in Kentucky, followed by the 35th NRA Bianchi Cup in Columbia, Missouri.

The SSAA Open Team for this event comprised Lee Webb, Geoff Matthews, Mark Blake and Craig Ginger, while the SSAA’s Richard Siebert entered the Open event individually and Greg Van Borssum entered the Metallic event individually.

The weather in Columbia was quite warm and humid, which was a stark contrast from the cold and wet weather of Kentucky. The team rotation (match order) was different from most of the other teams too, with the SSAA members starting on the Moving Target event, which is traditionally the hardest match to finish on. This actually gave the Aussies the advantage to lock in some good scores early in the event and leave everyone guessing until the end. This strategy paid off, with the team performing well in the other matches and winning the Teams event outright and also the High International Team on 7650 with 651X.

Individually, the SSAA’s Geoff Matthews placed 6th on 1916 with 164X, Lee Webb placed 10th on 1914 with 166X, Craig Ginger placed 14th on 1910 with 162X, Mark Blake placed 15th on 1910 with 159X, Richard Siebert placed 27th on 1902 with 156X, and Greg Van Borssum placed 100th on 1836 with 98X.

Overall, the SSAA handgunners have done themselves, their team and their Association very proud. The Bianchi Cup is the richest and most prestigious pistol tournament in the world, with this year’s event being the best yet, with 282 competitors participating and more than $US500,000 worth of prizes available.

SSAA competitor Richard Siebert said the range presentation was the best he has seen in his 14 years of attending the championships. The Green Valley Rifle & Pistol Club and the NRA are to be commended on hosting such a prestigious event, which just seems to get better each year.