Australia’s Catherine Skinner has taken gold and team mate Laetisha Scanlan silver after a dramatic sudden-death shoot off in the final of the women’s trap.

New Zealander Jessica Scott finished a distant third. Scanlan held a comfortable three shot lead going into the final, thanks mainly to a near-perfect second round score of 24.

Skinner, who represented Australia at the World Championships last year, used all her experience to mount a late charge and draw level with her teammate in the heat of the final.

The two Australians traded hits, each making their last three shots ensuring that a shoot-off was required to decide who would walk away with the gold.

An emotional Scanlan’s lack of experience showed as she wilted under the intense pressure and missed her first shot.

Showing all the signs of a future stalwart in Australian shooting, Skinner stepped up and shot true to take the gold.

“I was confident going into the final knowing that I already had finals experience and shoot off experience and that I enjoy the challenge of the single barrel,” she said.

Skinner admitted that she was experiencing mixed emotions about her victory considering Scanlan led the field for so much of the competition.

“I’m so happy about winning the gold, but at the same time I took it from a friend, so it’s hard when you think about like that,” she said.

“Then again, look at it another way. Australia has gone one-two. What more could you ask for?”

Scanlan, consoled by friends and teammates, tried her best to remain upbeat about her silver medal.

“I have to take the positives out of this. Sure it came down to nerves, but it was a great experience in having to try and deal with those nerves. It’s a steep learning curve,” she said.

Australian shooting coach Greg Chan believes that the result, while certainly disappointing for the silver medallist, needed to be looked at from a team perspective.

“Sometimes you stop and think the highest qualifier deserves to win, but the nature of a final means that anyone can step up and win. Most importantly it’s just a great result for the girls and for Australia.”

In other action at the Sydney International Shooting Centre today, New Zealander Myles Browne-Cole opened up a six shot lead on the rest of the field after the first three rounds of the men’s trap qualification.

His impressive rounds of 24, 24 and 25 have put him in a strong position looking ahead to tomorrow’s final.

Australians Anthony Rullo and Brendan Burgess, are 15 and 16 shots behind respectively and will have to shoot well tomorrow to make the medals.

Evan Sieff
AYOF