Better than anybody else in the history of Trap Men shooting, Italy's Pellielo won his fourth World Championship title in Lima, today. But it's not over yet. “I won't retire.” Said the 43-year old shooter , who's already planning for the match to come.
Giovanni “Johnny” Pellielo won the Trap Men event at the 2013 ISSF Shotgun World Championship, securing the world title for the fourth time in his career.
Pellielo, 43, beat Croatia's Anton Glasnovic, 32, in the Gold medal match by 13 to 11 hits. The Italian shooter had previously qualified in the lead with 121 his, and led the semi-final with 13 hits out of 15 targets.
The Italian world record holder secured the title at the last three shots, hitting two targets while Glasnovic only hit one.
Somebody said that this medal came unexpected. Pellielo had won his last international Gold medal in 2009, at the European Championship, and his last world title back in 1998, 15 years ago. But Albano Pera, Italy's coach, had no doubts about him: “He's the best in the world!”
“It feels great to win my fourth world champ at my age. I has been a while since my last Gold...” Pellielo said.
“Every year there's somebody telling me that I should stop. But every time I come back.”
“I bought my first shotgun in 1988, when I was a kid. I had to get a loan to buy it. I could not imagine I was going to win 4 World Championship!” The Italian shooter said.
“I have to thank my mother, who supported me when I started to shoot. And the companies, my sponsors, who believed in me throughout all the good and the bad moments.”
At the age of 43, Pellielo has been shooting for 25 years, winning four world championship, three Europeans, seven ISSF World Cup Finals and three Olympic medals. By winning his fourth world title here in Lima, Pellielo moved atop of the historical medal standings of the Trap Men event, overtaking Australia's Michael Diamond and the historical leader, Michel Carrega of France, who had won four championships in the 70s'. Nobody has ever done better than Pellielo, in the history of the Trap Men event. Enough to be called a legend, one would say.
But that's not what Johnny wants. “I am not planning to retire. I have never felt so good. I have never been so relaxed while shooting. When I was younger I felt a lot of pressure. Nowadays, I take every match with ease. I love what I am doing, and I don't want to stop now. It's not time to be a legend yet.”
Next appointment: the 2013 ISSF World Cup Final in Abu Dhabi. Pellielo has no records to break there. With 7 titles and 13 world cup final medals, nobody can reach him atop of the record-board. He will shoot for the legend.
Podium placements
Croatia's Anton Glasnovic placed in second securing the Silver medal with 11 hits in the Gold medal match, after scoring 12 hits in the semi-final and winning a shoot-off against Spain's Alberto Fernandez.
Fernandez met the Russian Olympic multi-medallist Alexey Alipov, who eventually secured the Bronze by 13 hits to Fernandez's 12.
Fernandez's Spain won the teams Gold medal (Alberto Fernandez, Jesus Serrano and Antonio Bailon) with an overall score of 357 targets. Portugal followed in second (Jose Manuel Bruno Faria, Ricardo Colaco, Joao Azevedo) with 353 hits, while the teams Bronze went to Croatia (Anton Glasnovic, Giovanni Cernogoraz, Sasa Sedmak) with 353 targets.