It’s crunch time for Australia’s elite shooting athletes as they look down the barrel of qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics. From late July the shooting sports will be on display in all their glory alongside the rest of the Olympic and Paralympic agenda, a legitimate test of skill and deserving of its place in the world’s premier sporting showpiece.
This is the first time we’ll have seen target shooting up there in lights since Tokyo 2020, rescheduled to 2021 after Covid-19 disruptions. Normally we’d see target shooting at the Commonwealth Games, yet our sport didn’t figure at Birmingham in 2022 and, with the 2026 event currently in limbo after Victoria withdrew as hosts, who knows when we’ll see it again?
This is a fantastic chance to get behind our sport, spread the good news stories that come with it and push it towards the mainstream attention it deserves. Our preview in this edition gives an update on what to expect, while if you check out Shooting Australia’s social media pages you can catch up on latest progress of the Aussie shooters who’ve dedicated so much time and energy to their dream of reaching Paris 2024.
With what seems to be an ever-growing list of hurdles for grassroots firearm users to continue going to the range, hunting for the table and conducting important conservation activities, this is a golden opportunity to step into the global spotlight and promote shooting to the world. Good luck to all the Aussie hopefuls vying for a spot in Paris – the SSAA is right behind you waving the flag for the shooting sports!