Matthew Emmons

Matthew Emmons
Olympic medal record
Men's shooting
Competitor for the  United States
Gold 2004 Athens 50 m rifle prone
Silver 2008 Beijing 50 m rifle prone

Matthew D. Emmons (born April 5, 1981 in Mount Holly Township, New Jersey) is an American sport shooter.

Contents

Careers

Emmons started out as a successful junior and has been a holder of the junior world record in 50 metre rifle three positions. The young shooter won both the 2002 ISSF World Cup Final and the 2004 ISSF World Cup Final in this event.

At the great championships however, his successes have come in another event: that of the prone position. He won both the 2002 ISSF World Shooting Championships and the 2004 Summer Olympics in this event. In Athens, he was very close to winning a historic double, but in the three positions competition, he accidentally cross-fired his last shot and finished eighth.

Emmons's gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in the prone position came while using a borrowed rifle. In April 2004, just prior to the Olympic Team Trials, Emmons discovered his rifle had been severely sabotaged in the supposedly secure locker room at the United States Olympic Training Center.[1] The precisely tuned barrel and action were heavily damaged by what appeared to be a screwdriver.[1] "I unpacked my gun and I noticed that something wasn't right," Emmons said. "Sure enough, somebody had done something to it. I shot it and I couldn't get the shell out. I said, 'Something's wrong here'."[1] Emmons said it could not have been an accident "Oh no, no," Emmons said. "Somebody took a screwdriver and went in." [1] Emmons went onto the 2004 Summer Olympics, and his gold medal in the prone position event, using his former University of Alaska Fairbanks teammate, Amber Darland's, .22 rifle. He never found out who the saboteur was, but said "I'd like to know so I could shake their hand and say thanks." [1]

In the 2008 Summer Olympics, Emmons won the silver medal in the prone competition. In his second event, men's 50 metre rifle three positions, Emmons finished the qualification round in second place, 1 point behind the leader. In the ten shot final, Emmons overtook the leader after just the first shot. Over the next eight shots, Emmons extended his lead to 3.3 points. Then, in a shocking turn of events, his 3.3 point lead vanished when he posted a 4.4 on his final shot. He finished off the podium in 4th place. Emmons called the last shot a "freak of nature." [2] "The way I come into a target is I start above the target and come down from 12 o'clock and get into the bullseye," he told reporters. "And as I get down into the bullseye is when I start to get on the trigger (with my finger) and as I was starting to get on the trigger, the gun just went off. I guess I just set it off. I got on the trigger a little too hard. I didn't feel my trigger finger shaking but I guess it was. It just hit the trigger, the gun went off and I was like 'uh, that's not going to be good - I hope it hit the black'. It hit the black, but a little high," he said.[3]

"It's just not meant to be," said Kateřina Emmons, laughing. "He's definitely the best standing shooter out there. If he can still end up fourth with a 4.4 on the last shot, that's a hell of a shooter." [4] "He smoked everybody else [until the last shot]," Kateřina Emmons said.[4]

"Things happen for a reason," Emmons said. "I said that last time, and it's the truth. Maybe last time, the reason was Katy. This time I don't know yet, but I'm sure something good's going to come from it." [4]

Personal life

Emmons has been a resident of Mount Holly Township, New Jersey.[5] He holds a degree in management and finance from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and is a graduate at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs.[1]

Emmons married Czech sport shooter and Olympic champion Kateřina Kůrková.[6] in Pilsen, Czech Republic on June 30, 2007. They met at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens when Kateřina came to console Matt after his gold medal blunder. They both live and train at the Colorado Springs, Colo. Olympic Training Center.

Current world records held in 50 metre rifle prone
Men Qualification 600  Viatcheslav Botchkarev (URS)
 Stevan Pletikosić (YUG)
 Jean-Pierre Amat (FRA)
 Christian Klees (GER)
 Sergei Martynov (BLR)
 Thomas Tamas (USA)
 Sergei Martynov (BLR)
 Sergei Martynov (BLR)
 Petr Litvinchuk (BLR)
 Wolfram Waibel Jr. (AUT)
 Wolfram Waibel Jr. (AUT)
 Christian Lusch (GER)
 Eric Uptagrafft (USA)
 Valérian Sauveplane (FRA)
 Sergei Martynov (BLR)
 Sergei Martynov (BLR)
 Matthew Emmons (USA)
 Guy Starik (ISR)
July 13, 1989
August 29, 1991
April 27, 1994
July 25, 1996
May 23, 1997
July 28, 1998
September 4, 1998
June 8, 2000
June 11, 2003
July 18, 2003
March 3, 2004
October 27, 2004
May 11, 2005
May 11, 2005
August 26, 2005
March 29, 2006
May 9, 2007
May 18, 2008
Zagreb (YUG)
Munich (GER)
Havana (CUB)
Atlanta (USA)
Munich (GER)
Barcelona (ESP)
Buenos Aires (ARG)
Munich (GER)
Munich (GER)
Plzeň (CZE)
Sydney (AUS)
Bangkok (THA)
Fort Benning (USA)
Fort Benning (USA)
Munich (GER)
Guangzhou (CHN)
Bangkok (THA)
Munich (GER)
edit

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/082204/spo_shooting.shtml
  2. ^ http://www.usashooting.org/viewRelease.php?id=186
  3. ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/feedarticle/7731200
  4. ^ a b c http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g5b__NIChhfAhkRCqoWeff58zqrwD92K1TI81
  5. ^ Staff. "Oh, shoot, it happens again!", Philadelphia Daily News, August 18, 2003. Accessed March 1, 2011. "Matthew Emmons, a 27-year-old native of Mount Holly, N.J., yesterday relived his Athens nightmare. With a 3.4 point lead on the final shot of the final round of the 50-meter rifle/three positions, as he lowered his rifle into shooting position he shot too early and managed only a 4.4."
  6. ^ European Shooting Page

External links


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  • Kateřina Emmons — (born November 17, 1983 in Pilsen; née Kůrková) is a female Czech sport shooter who competed in the 2004 Summer Olympics, where she won a bronze medal, and the 2008 Summer Olympics, where she won her first gold medal in the women s 10 metre air… …   Wikipedia

  • Kateřina Emmons — Kateřina Emmons, geborene Kůrková (* 17. November 1983 in Pilsen) ist eine tschechische Sportschützin. Sie wurde 2008 in Peking Olympiasiegerin im 10 m Luftgewehrschießen. Karriere Kůrková begann ihre sportliche Laufbahn zunächst als Schwimmerin …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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