Guyana vs Great Britain Rifle Shooting Championship...Lennox Braithwaite cops top individual prize but British shooters cart off Lion’s share

Guyana vs Great Britain Rifle Shooting Championship…Lennox Braithwaite cops top individual prize but British shooters cart off Lion’s share

May 04, 2013 Sports

The British has a rich history of laudable achievements on the rifle ranges and a group of marksmen (and women) from that country kept the tradition alive and shot their way to the lion’s share of the loot when the Guyana National Rifle Association (GNRA) hosted a 4 days Goodwill Full-bore Shooting Championship at the Timehri Ranges that concluded Thursday afternoon last.
Hours after packing up their weapons the marksmen convened at the Georgetown Club, Camp Street Georgetown to receive the fruits of their labour at the prize giving ceremony and reception and the skill of British marksmen David Calvert and Thomas Rylands stood out when they were called on several occasions to collect

From right Thomas Rylands, Jonathan Hull, Chloe Evans, Matt Charlton, David Calvert, Jonathan Underwood, Lennox Brathwaite and Ransford Goodluck.

prizes for various feats.
Calvert was the man of the moment after dominating several events from the very first day when he won the individual competition on the 300 yards range and followed up with a sterling performance on the 900 yards range to clinch the day’s aggregate. He continued his good showing on the second day with another top performance on the 500 and 600 yards ranges. The prolific rifle shooter also demonstrated a remarkable propensity for the sport over the remaining days with remarkable achievements on the 600 yards, while he was outstanding in the 5 man team competition.
Other notable performances came from Thomas Rylands, who dominated the 300 yards range and Jonathan Hall, who clinched the honours on the 1000 yards range to finish with 50 points and 5 V Bulls, while local shooter, Lennox Braithwaite, amassed 245 points with 24 V Bulls to clinch the prize for the top individual score.
Meanwhile, Charles Brook performed the duties of Captain of the British team in the absence of Nigel Penn. He explained that the letter individual was constrained with personal duties which precluded him from making the trip. Mr. Brook said that he was deeply touched by the hospitality rendered to his team as well as the camaraderie exhibited on the ranges. He also said that he will nurture fond memories of Guyana even as he lauded the press coverage given to the tournament.
Captain of the Guyanese Full-bore squad, Mahendra Persaud assured the English team that the local shooters were delighted to have accommodated them. The foreigners were scheduled to tour the Orinduik and Kaieteur Falls yesterday morning and Mr. Persaud urged them to enjoy the visit. “I hope that when you would have left Guyana you could attest to our rich diversity and eco tourism,” concluded Mr. Persaud. Consequently, the Full-bore Captain said that plans are in train to host the 150th anniversary of the GNRA in October 2017 where most of the rifle shooting nations will be invited. The English team leaves today for Trinidad and Tobago where they will compete against those shooters.
Secretary of the GNRA, Ryan Sampson, delivered the vote of thanks and expressed gratitude to the many corporations and individuals that contributed to the success of the tournament. The local team is scheduled to visit Barbados soon on a similar assignment and Mr. Sampson thanked those individuals that offset the expenses or supported in any other way. He also reinforced the English captain’s view that the press coverage was efficient and above par.
Other notable individuals at the ceremony included President of the GOA, K A Juman Yassin, businessman, John Carpenter and Manager of Citizen’s Bank Denise Thompson among others. Rtd Assistant Commissioner of Police, Paul Slowe also performed master of ceremonies duty.