Xuereb first, Chetcuti third in Italy shoot

Double Trap shooters Nathan Lee Xuereb and William Chetcuti left their mark in the Italian international Grand Prix, which was held yesterday, after finishing first and third in their respective categories.

Xuereb, 14, won the Grand Prix for juniors at the Umbriaverde range and Chetcuti did well to finish third in the Open competition that attracted the interest of the world’s top Double Trap shooters.

Xuereb had scores of 48, 43 and 39 to reach the final where he targeted another round of 42 to finish first on 172 clays.

Chetcuti, fresh from his gold medal in Beijing’s ISSF World Cup, was faced with the challenge of seasoned campaigners, the likes of Francesco d’Aniello and Daniele di Spigno (both Italy), Singh Rathore (India) and Vasely Mosin (Russia).

He qualified fourth for the barrage on a score of 139/150 (46-47-46) before hitting another 46 to improve his position to third place overall.

Both Maltese shooters are under the supervision of experienced coach Jimmy Bugeja.

They will represent the country again tomorrow in another prestigious Grand Prix competition at Umbriaverde, organised by the Italian federation.