Countryside Alliance Ireland - love the countryside

Alderman Jim Shannon, DUP MLA for Strangford, has endorsed the aims of the National Shooting Week, accompanied by the Minister for Culture, Ards and Leisure Edwin Poots. The Northern Ireland launch took place at Hollow Farm Shooting Grounds that have been used for Provincial and European Championships clay shooting events.  The shooting week is to provide opportunities to try Olympic and Paralympic disciplines all over the UK and in particular here in Northern Ireland.

NI has excelled in target sports with our own David Beattie winning a Silver medal at the commonwealth games and with David Calvert and Martin Millar winning Gold at both Commonwealth and World events. There is a wealth of talent in our own Ards area as well as a further across the Province. That the Government is backing these events is an indication of the importance that they feel this sport will have for the Olympics in 2012, the Government charter calls for respect and understanding of legal firearms and airguns and this is then backed up by both of the major shooting organisations Countryside Alliance Ireland and BASC. 

We have a rich history of shooting and in particular target sports in Northern Ireland and the contribution to the economy is truly significant,  in the UK £45 million to the economy, 70 000 jobs, with shooters spending £2 Billion on goods and services. It provides the NI economy close to some £10 million. Shoots and shooters spend over £250 million per year on conservation and over 2.7 million workdays on conservation. Truly the impact for good on the economy brought about by shooting in Northern Ireland cannot be ignored. The Minister Edwin Poots has recognised that importance and is today present to give his full support. Gordon Newell of Hollow Farm Shooting Club has indicated that he is part of the application along with Comber Shooting Club that has asked to be considered as part of the strategic planning that is now in place for the 2012 Olympics. The improvements to the ground will mean that the bank will be moved back 40 yards to accommodate Olympic Trench Clay Pigeon Shooting. These improvements will ensure that practise sessions for the Olympic games will be the same right across the UK for all teams.

The Police and Fire Rescue Service World Games will be coming to NI in 2013 and the improvements in places will further accommodate them for this discipline. Hollow Farm has been used in the past as a venue for Clay-pigeon sports, now it will go further, a world-class venue for 2012 and beyond.

As one who has been shooting from an early age, introduced back in the 1960’s by my cousin Kenneth Smyth to my first shotgun license as an 11year old. It is a wonderful sport and I would encourage and call for our youth to experience shooting sports and to get involved, the London Olympics are only 5 yrs away and who knows, today could be the making of a new champion for NI at Clay pigeon shooting or rifle and pistol shooting. Lets harness and use that talent to be Gold Medal Winners for us for the future.

Picture by kind permission of The Newtownards Chronicle