South African Bisley Union 80th SA Open Championship
and
SANDF Closed Championship

The South African Bisley Union (SABU) hosted this annual event 2-9 April 2016 on the Genl. Christiaan de Wet range outside Bloemfontein. In the Target Rifle (TR) class there were 134 participants, in F-Class Target Rifle (F-TR) 55 participants, in F-Open class 30 participants and in the .303 class 12 participants. Participants came from all over the world from the likes of the UK, Australia, USA, Namibia and Kenya.

The event was formally opened on Monday morning as usual with scripture reading and a presentation of our national flag, followed by the raising of the flags of all represented countries and local provinces.

The range staff, under the iron fist off retired General Mac Alexander, were swift and punctual on their tasks and the championship kicked-off in 1st gear. The meeting started off in excellent weather after the warm-up matches over the weekend were shot in red-sand storms as only the Free state can present.

The Tuesday however, it rained so much that the range committee had to call off the day’s shoot in order to preserve the targets from water damage. Shooting commenced on Wednesday with light rain in the afternoon during team matches. The rest of the championships were shot in cold weather without further rain.

On Saturday, the last day of the meeting, the State President 3rd stage were shot in the known, desert-like heat as is every year. This match tests the perseverance of each competitor to the limit after a week’s serious competition and extreme weather conditions.

The meeting ended in a prestigious prize giving, congratulating shooters for their achievements.

SABU are grateful towards the visitors from overseas, especially the Great Britain under 19 team to present our juniors with an opportunity for international competition. A special thanks to the SANDF for allowing us the use of the range and facilities.

MatchTarget RifleF-OpenF-TR.303
State President Cup    
 1. FWA Coetzee1. R Barnard1. JCC Hartmann1. FJ Gorgens
 2. GA Leon2. CS Taljaard2. HMJ Gerber2. AA Lith
 3. PJ v Zyl (jnr)3. AM Hudson3. DCSTG Glyn3. JTB Brink
SA Championship    
 1. JA du Toit1. AM Hudson1. JCC Hartmann1. FJ Gorgens
 2. FWA Coetzee2. R Barnard2. W du Plooy2. JTB Brink
 3. SM Negus3. JC v Tonder3. DCSTG Glyn3. AA Lith

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Photos of some of the winners

State President cup winner - FWA Coetzee
State President cup winner - FWA Coetzee
SA Championship F-Open winner – AM Hudson
SA Championship Target Rifle winner – JA du Toit
SA Championship .303 winner – FJ Gorgens