Regal prize slips from Jane's aim
HAILSHAM'S Jane Messer was inches away from becoming only the third woman to win the Sovereign's Prize when she so narrowly failed with her last shot to snatch the gold medal from Zainal Abidin Md Zain at Bisley, writes Tony de Launay.
The prize, instituted by Queen Victoria in 1860 when she formally opened the first home of British shooting on Wimbledon Common, is a gold medal, a gold badge and 250 '“ exactly as it was back in the 19th century.
It is shot in three stages, in which the initial entry of more than 1,000 competitors is whittled down to 300 and then to the final 'Queen's 100'. Five Sussex shooters had qualified for the final, which is shot at 900 and 1,000 yards on the Stickledon range. This famous hill slopes down from right to left with its 50 targets and their 24-inch bull's-eyes set in the distance.
For full story and more sport see Sporting Odds, West Sussex Gazette, Aug 6.