New Zealand’s top youth shooters compete in Canterbury

Students from around the country have converged on Canterbury for this year’s annual New Zealand Secondary Schools Clay Target Championships.

Three hundred and seventeen shooters from over fifty schools are involved a battle of wits and skills against the speeding orange clay at the Canterbury Clay Target Club in West Melton.

The annual three-day championships (which finishes on Monday October 1) have been viewed as the training ground for generations of New Zealand’s top shooters.

New Zealand has excelled at the shooting sports at Olympic and Commonwealth Games levels with female shooters consistently out shooting the males in the results.

Having an ambassador for shooting like Natalie Rooney means these young shooters can see how far the sport can take them.

The Championship alternates each year between Hamilton and Christchurch. 

Students often spend months fundraising to cover the costs of attending the champs, taking part time jobs to enable them to compete in a sport that can take them to the Olympics. 

Students like Lauryn Bond (pictured) from Hauraki Plains College in the North island, who scooped the Girls High Gun Championship on the first day of the competition. 

Lauryn has worked two part time jobs (on a dairy farm and at Subway) to fund her participation in the sport. 

The hard work has paid off with what many think is the first of many wins. 

To watch a video of Lauryn head to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWkUI9aMoOc