BANK Windhoek has expressed interest in supporting the Clay Target Shooting Association of Namibia’s annual African Grand Prix Shotgun competition.
The event will be held on October 31 and November 1 at the new Olympic Shotgun Range at Luiperdsvallei outside Windhoek.’Bank Windhoek is proud to be associated with different codes of sports, such as the African Grand Prix Shotgun competition. As a proud Namibian bank, we strive to see more Namibian athletes competing on an international level,’ said Riaan van Rooyen, the bank’s head of corporate communication and social investment.The competition will act as a qualifier for Namibian shooters to compete at the African Shooting Championships in Algiers in March 2010. Shooters such as Gaby Ahrens, Sven Ahrens and Gielie van Wyk are Namibia main contenders for titles and stand a good chance of qualifying for the African championships next year. The athletes have to shoot the minimum qualifying scores, which are to 110 / 125 clays for the men and 57/75 clays for the women. ‘We are expecting elite athletes from Angola, South Africa, Austria, Australia and Namibia,’ said Gaby Ahrens, member of the management committee of the Clay Target Shooting Association.A past Olympic medallist from Australia, Diane Reeves, will take part in the women’s division. Reeves has represented her country at the Commonwealth Games where she won a medal, while she also has Olympic Games and World Cup medals.Current Austrian champion Heinrich Strauss, South African champion Richard Thompson and African champion Paulo Silva will compete in the men’s division. In total, there will be four women (two juniors from Namibia) and 30 men who will vie for top honours. The competition starts on Saturday at 09h30 and ends on Sunday with the best six shooters in the final at around 14h00.Members of the public are welcome to go and see the shooters in action. For more information, contact Gaby Ahrens at (061) 23 4601.
