DESPITE suffering serious distractions from some of shooting’s leading names, Jersey air rifle marksman David Turner still managed to record a qualifying score for the Commonwealth Games this weekend.
Firing at Bisley in the Surrey Open, Island Games star Turner finished a tremendous seventh, recording his qualifying score of 577 in the second competition. It is the second time that Turner has managed a qualifying score in this band and needs another four such scores to be in line for the 2010 Commonwealths in Delhi.
Turner (pictured) was bang in form in the second competition, registering three 98s (maximum 100) in a row, before numbness and muscle stiffness, from holding steady for so long, forced a break. He said: ‘I’d decided to push on as I was going so well, but in the end I had to break and stretch out. I felt better, but the final string of ten was well down (93). Whether that was the result of the break, I can’t really say, though I’d much rather have carried on through.’
Turner’s final position of seventh was all the more admirable as it was achieved with some unwanted distractions from high-profile shooters standing only a matter of feet away from his position. In competition I, in which Turner finished 14th, the current British champion James Huckle questioned the accuracy of the electronic targets (scores are registered by acoustics, not the traditional cards) and an overlong discussion with a range officer followed. Turner took a break for a few minutes and after returning and putting in some mediocre scores, finished strongly for a 569. Huckle finished second with 588, with Chris Hector winning on 592.
Placed next to the British women’s champion, Louise Minett, in the second competition, Turner faced much the same problem, having to battle to maintain concentration as Minett became increasingly agitated, with a range officer again being involved. Turner finished seventh, just one point behind Minett, with Hector winning again (592). Turner’s combined score of 1,146 placed him seventh overall.
