A national rifle team is a traveling competitive
marksman
A marksman is a person who is skilled in precision shooting using projectile weapons (in modern days most commonly an accurized scoped long gun such as designated marksman rifle or a sniper rifle) to shoot at high-value targets at longer-than-u ...
ship team from a country. Several countries field a national rifle team, such as Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. Competitions are often a week long and have international participants.
[Morrow, Shayne]
"A straight shooter (and then some): Local 17-year-old heading to England to compete with the Canada's national rifle team"
''Alberni Valley Times
The ''Alberni Valley Times'' was a Canadian daily newspaper published weekdays in Port Alberni, on Vancouver Island in British Columbia until it was closed in 2015 by the Black Press. The paper is owned by Black Press, which also published the ''N ...
'', Alberni, British Columbia, volume 54, number 97, May 21, 2003, page 1.
The National Rifle Team match was also the name of a competition held in the United States beginning in 1902 and often had international participation.
Canadian National Rifle Team
Oronhyatekha
Oronhyatekha (10 August 1841 – 3 March 1907), ("Burning Sky" or "Burning Cloud" in the Mohawk language, also carried the baptismal name Peter Martin), was a Mohawk physician, scholar, and a unique figure in the history of British colonialism. ...
was on the team in 1871 and
Rufus Carter was on the team in 1897. They participated in international competitions. The Canadian National Rifle Team became a coed team.
[Kelly, Ann]
"Owen Sound native wins shooting medals"
'' The Sun Times'', Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada, April 7, 1979, page 9. The team competed internationally, such as in Mexico City in 1979 and at the
National Shooting Centre
The National Shooting Centre is the UK's largest shooting sports complex, comprising several shooting ranges as well as the large "Bisley Camp" complex of accommodation, clubhouses and support services. The centre is located near the village of ...
in Bisley, England in 2003.
[ The team used the ]C12A1 {{Infobox weapon, is_ranged=yes,
, name=C12A1
, image= File:C12 Canadian Cadet Target Rifle.jpg
, origin=United Kingdom
, type= Target rifle
, manufacturer=Rangemaster Precision Arms
, used_by=Canada, United Kingdom
, feed=Single Shot, Hand ...
rifle with iron sights
Iron sights are a system of physical alignment markers (usually made of metallic material) used as a sighting device to assist the accurate aiming of ranged weapons (such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow or even compound bow), or less commonly ...
in 2003.[
]
Great Britain
At one time, Sir Henry St John Halford was the captain of the British National Rifle Team.
Norway
Kristian Rommen
Kristian Rommen is a Norwegian sport shooter who has won the IPSC Norwegian Rifle Championship 7 times, and was for a longer period coach for the IPSC Norwegian national rifle team A national rifle team is a traveling competitive marksmanship team ...
was previously the captain of the Norwegian National Rifle Team
Trinidad and Tobago
Wilbur Downs was once a member of the National Rifle Team of Trinidad and Tobago.
United States
The newly formed American National Rifle Team practiced at the Creedmoor Rifle Range
Creedmoor Rifle Range was sited on Long Island in what is now Queens Village, Queens, New York.
History
The range was established after the New York Legislature and the newly formed National Rifle Association (NRA) combined in 1872 to acquire 7 ...
, New York in 1875 with Colonel H. A. Gildersleeve as the captain. This was one of the first teams from the United States to participate abroad in international competitions, which took place in Great Britain in the summer of 1875.
Some members of the team participated in the Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
, such as Daniel Durben, who also served as the team's coach from 1997 to 2000. David Johnson also served on the team for several years in the 1980s, and later as a coach preparing the team for the Olympics. David T. Cloft was also on the team while serving in the United States Army.
The National Rifle Team match began in 1902 and consisted of teams of 10 shooting at distances between 200 and 1,000 yards. The New York team won for the third time in the competition held at Sea Girt, New Jersey in 1905. The National Rifle Team match in 1909 was open to all branches of the military and the organized state militias and was held at Camp Perry
Camp Perry is a National Guard training facility located on the shore of Lake Erie in northern Ohio near Port Clinton. In addition to its regular mission as a military training base, Camp Perry also boasts the second largest outdoor rifle range ...
, Ohio. The United States Navy won the National Rifle Team match that year. The United States Marine Corps won the National Rifle Team match in 1919 and the United States Infantry won it in 1920.["Marine Gunmen Win Rifle Match"]
'' The Muncie Morning Star'', Muncie, Indiana, volume 45, number 149, September 24, 1921, page 8. The United States Marine Corps won it again in 1921 in a competition with 87 teams and in 1923 with 80 teams and 800 participants, both events at Camp Perry.["Bay State Wins Class A Honors"]
''The Boston Globe'', Boston, Massachusetts, September 28, 1923, volume CIV, number 90, page 25. The United States Marine Corps won the competition for the 8th time in 1925. The United States Infantry won it in 1929 with 108 teams participating. The United States Marine Corps won the competition in 1930 and 1931."D.C. Marksmen Take Top Honors"
''The Sunday Star'', Washington, DC, number 1,382–number 31,911, September 13, 1931, Part 1, page A-6. [
]
References
{{reflist
Rifle shooting sports