Shooting: Team GB's Peter Wilson holds nerve to win gold medal in double trap

 

Andy Sims
Thursday 02 August 2012 12:07 EDT
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Shooting star Peter Wilson claimed Britain's fourth gold medal of London 2012 in the men's double trap.

The 25-year-old farmer's son from Dorset led from start to finish at the Royal Artillery Barracks.

Wilson, the world record holder and world number two in the event, was three points ahead going into this afternoon's final after three qualifying rounds in the morning.

And in a tense final shoot-out Wilson missed five shots, including a double as he closed in on gold.

But his opponents could not take advantage and the Briton eventually finished two clear of Sweden's Hakan Dahlby with a total score of 188 out of 200 shots fired.

Wilson only took up competitive trap shooting in 2006 after a shoulder injury suffered while snowboarding prevented him from playing squash and cricket.

He smashed the world record in Arizona in March, scoring an incredible 198, and is now Britain's first shooting medallist since Richard Faulds won gold in the same event in Sydney 12 years ago.

Wilson needed one hit from the final two targets but nailed both before falling to his knees in tears.

A capacity crowd gave the new Olympic champion a standing ovation before he climbed into the first row of seats to greet his mother and tearful girlfriend Michelle.

As he was surrounded by photographers he simply said: "It's awesome, fantastic."

Dahlby took silver while, behind the celebrations, Russian Vasily Mosin won bronze after a shoot-off with Kuwaiti Fehaid Aldeehani.

Wilson is coached by none other than Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum, the Olympic gold medallist in the same event at Athens in 2004 and a member of Dubai's Royal Family.

Wilson thought his mentor would not be able to be present due to health problems but he made the journey to London.

"He was confident today," said Sheikh Ahmed. "He wasn't confident a week ago, he was worried about the fans, shooting at home and that he had to win it.

"I told him if you are planning to win it you are not going to win it, he had a job to do, and the job is about technique. We had to focus on that, it was hard."

PA

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