Guyanese shooters National captain Mahendra Persaud and Claude Duguid both won events on day one of individual but Jamaican John Nelson held on to the lead at the West Indies Fullbore Shooting Championships which opened yesterday at the Timehri Rifle Ranges.
On a day of extreme heat and a brief thunderstorm, Persaud won at 600 yards with a possible 35 points and 4 V-bulls and is placed in the top three grand aggregate, while Duguid secured victory in the opening event at 300 yards also with a possible 35 points with 2 V-bulls.
Nelson (50 points six V-bulls) won the second event of the day at 500 yards as three shooters shot possibles of 50 points including Guyanese freshman Peter Persaud (50-4) and national vice-captain Dylan Fields (50-3).
Guyanese –Mahendra Persaud, Lennox Braithwaite and Fields are in the top five of the first day grand aggregate behind Nelson who leads with 116 points with 10 V-bulls and his compatriot David Rickman second with 116 points and nine V-bulls.
The other shooters in the top ten were Mahendra Persaud (115-11), Braithwaite (115-10), Fields (115-7), Peter Anderson of Antigua/Barbuda (115-6), Sigmund Douglas of Guyana (115-4), Ransford Goodluck (114-8), Aubrey Yee-Sang of Jamaica (113-9) and Canute Cole of Jamaica (113-9).
The first event of the day saw Duguid stamping his authority after rain had forced a brief interruption.
Four shooters – Robert Griffith of Barbados, Antiguan Desroy Maile, Nelson and Rickman all ended on 34 points with 2 V-bulls.
Following behind Mahendra Persaud at 600 yards were Rickman and Maile both on 34-3 and Braithwaite, Barbadian Marlon King and Trinidadian Clarion Tang-Choon on 34-2 each.
Patron of the Guyana National Rifle Association (GNRA), Guyana’s President Donald Ramotar was on hand to fire the first shot as 49 shooters began their quest for top honours in the individual competition which runs until tomorrow.
The competition will shoot at 300, 500 and 600 yards today and tomorrow they will compete at 900 and 1000 yards ranges.
Six countries – Antigua/Barbuda, Barbados, Bermuda, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and host Guyana are competition in the championships.
The team matches will take place on Saturday and Sunday.
Starting time today is at 10:00 hours.
The Championships were declared open by His Excellency President Donald Ramotar.
