One goal turned competitive shooter Ash Hawker from reserve team member to men’s world champion.
Key Points:
Ash Hawker won the FITASC Universal Trench Shooting World Championship earlier this monthHe is originally from Kaniva in western Victoria and now lives in Horsham The competitive shooting style involves shooting targets from five “trenches”
The clay target shooter, originally from Kaniva in western Victoria, stormed out of the field during the final round of the FITASC World Snare Championship at Umbriaverde in Italy with an impressive final score of 197 out of 200.
Spanish world champion Mario Fuentes took his turn in the final round, reaching 196, with one goal to go.
If he shot straight, the pair would be tied at 197 each, leading to a tiebreaker.
Fuentes aimed and missed.
“There’s nothing better when you wear the green and gold and you can achieve a dream,” Hawker said.
Unable to watch the contest in person, Hawker had followed it live on an app and said it took a few moments to realize he had won.
“I closed the app thinking, ‘Well, it’s probably time to get ready for a shoot and focus a little,’ and within about 30 seconds I got phone calls saying I was world champion and I really he had missed his last target.” Hawker said.
“I could have gone down there and watched him … but I really didn’t want to go down there and sit and watch him in case I had to prepare for a shootout.
“I thought, ‘I’m better off just resting and staying fresh and hydrated in case it comes down to this.’
“There were a lot of Aussies there … it sounded like a stampede about a minute after I heard when these guys had arrived in my room.”
Ash Hawker hopes his success will help raise the profile of shooting sports.Provided by: Ash Hawker )
FITASC — Fédération Internationale de Tir aux Armes Sportives de Chasse — is an international organization representing sport shooting.
From first reserve to world champion
What made Hawker’s win even more incredible was that he was not initially included in the Australian team.
“I was first reserve. I probably didn’t have the best nationals [competition] when I went to Melbourne to film it,” he said.
“I had a bit of a bad performance but I would come away with a great national over the line,” he said.
“Then one of my teammates had a big vacation planned. He was going to be away at the time of the world championship in Italy, so he pulled out. I took his place.”
Ash Hawker says a good gun fit is crucial to shooting accurately.Provided by: Ash Hawker)
Universal Trench, also known as Five Trap, is an international shooting discipline that involves shooting targets from five traps in a trench in front of the stands.
The targets are released at different angles and speeds, which Hawker said made the sport more challenging.
“You can’t rely on a rhythm or a time when you’re shooting, so it’s a lot of fun, but some days it can be a bit difficult,” he said.
Growing up in Kaniva and now living in Horsham, Hawker’s nearest trench shooting course was three hours away in Melbourne.
Although there were regional shoots, it was a long journey to train and compete.
He said it was the fun of the sport and the camaraderie that brought him to the universal trench.
“You meet absolutely ripper people through the sport,” Hawker said.
“There are guys who have been to the Olympics, but they’re so humble and they’re just another normal person at the end of the day.”
Two Australians also took home the World Junior Championship and the runner-up title.(Provided by: Ash Hawker )
Even Fuentes was gallant in defeat.
“He came right up to me and congratulated me,” Hawkes said.
“The fact that he just missed his last goal, that was a big deal for him.”
Sticking to their guns
A number of Australian juniors also took home medals at the FITASC championships, with Gabe Sensi winning the world junior title and Acacio Mota in second place.
Hawker said this success was good for the sport.
“I think for a small shooting country, I’d say we’ve done pretty well compared to some of the European countries,” he said.
“We’ve had good success and good shooters in Australia for a long time, but probably not the depth that some of these European countries have.”
And he said the news had been particularly well received in Kaniva.
“I’ve had a lot of messages over the last few days from housemates,” Hawker said.
“Everybody was paying a lot of attention, I think, once they knew the position I was in on the last day.”