Tokyo Olympics: James Willett selected in shooting team with NSW’s Dan Repacholi, Thomas Grice
Most people want a pool or some nice landscaping in their backyard but not this athlete. He’s got an impressive - and expensive - concrete bunker.
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It’s made of concrete, spans 20m and is the backyard edge Australian Jamie Willett hopes will deliver him gold at the Tokyo Olympics.
An impressive bunker, which is actually a world-class facility for shooting, has been built on his family’s sheep and cropping farmland at Mulwala on the Murray River.
Inside the 2m high bunker are 15 clay target machines.
“They throw the target, an 11cm round target, at 100km/h,” Willett said.
“The go roughly 76m. We shoot at them within half a second when they have travelled 15m.”
It’s an expensive field of dreams, one Willett estimates has cost between $300,000 to $400,000.
“It’s an expensive sport,” said the 24-year-old gunning for gold.
“Each trap is worth between four and five grand. The range would be between $300,000 to $400,000. I’ve had help with that and sponsorship.
“Clay targets, they are worth between 12 and 15 cents and we regularly shoot 75-150 and ai shoot up to 500 on any training day. They are also bio degradable.
“So it’s about a dollar for each shot with includes ammo and the clay target.”
At the Rio Olympics in 2016, Willett finished fifth but just one target from the medal podium.
“It’s unfinished business. I really want to improve on that result,” he said.
Willett now has the chance to do just that in Tokyo next year after being named on Friday as a member of the Australian shooting team to compete at the next Olympics.
Willett, along with Penny Smith, Laetisha Scanlan, Laura Coles, Thomas Grice and Paul Adams will contest the shotgun events in Tokyo.
Dane Sampson, Alex Hoberg, Jack Rossiter, Elise Collier and Katarina Kowplos will compete in rifle and Dan Repacholi, heading to his fourth Games, Dina Aspandiyarova, Elena Galiabovitch and Sergei Evglevski will compete in pistol events.
The 15-strong team was named after four nomination trial events between January and March.
To date 71 athletes have been named in the Australian Olympic team for the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics.