Gibraltar Pistol Association SmallBore Team were at Bisley

The Gibraltar Pistol Association SmallBore Team were once again at Bisley last weekend for the 2026 British Open Air Gun Championships.

Day one started with the junior ladies, with Josie Yome and Scarlett Cumming shooting thier first match of the weekend. Considering our range has been closed due to the recent storms and these athletes have hardly been able to set foot at the range since before christmas, they have been able not only to maintain their standard, but as in the case of Scarlett, to achieve her personal best. Josie finished her match with a 473 and Scarlett with her PB434.

The second match of the day was the turn of the Junior men. Again, Louis Fenske, Sebastian Collins Knock and Jack Skillicorn represented Gibraltar. Another Pb achieved by Sebastian with his 463, a 468 by Jack and a 454 by Louis.

Saturday saw the men seniors on the shooting line. Anthony De Soto, Joseph Yome and Eddie Yome taking up an early morning lineup with an 830am call to the line. An uneventful shoot, with the men achieving scores well within their averages, with 501 for Anthony, 504 for Joseph and 463 for Eddie.

If the men's match was uneventful, the same could certainly not be said for the ladies match. Heloise Mañasco battled it out for the final 8th place for a placement in the finals with 4 other ladies, jostling point for point between the four of them through out the 60 shot, 1 hour 15min match! Unfortunately, Heloise was pushed out of the finals by 2 points. But every cloud has a silver lining, and this intense battle pushed Heloise's score to break the Gibraltar Ladies Air Pistol record with a 533! A well deserved score and an exciting match to follow.

And just when one thought the past days' shooting performances could not be bettered, two of the junior men shooters take to their firing points for their second weekend match and not only do they set individual personal bests, but also set a new Junior Men's National Air Pistol Record!! Sebastian broke his pb and set himself a new one with a 465, and Jack Skillicorn not only set his pb, but also set a new Gibraltar Juniors National record at 503, the first Gibraltar junior to break the 500 barrier. How true that hard work pays off in the end.

The rest of the team managed to keep their scores within their averages, with a highly respectable performance by Scarlett who, after having to deal with two different electronic target malfunctions and being changed from firing point to firing point, finished her match with two of her best series, shooting alone and in front of the whole shooting hall in the extra time allocated to her. A testament to this young athlete's nerves of steel under pressure.

A great shooting weekend with great performances from all shooters, junior and seniors.