Pinoy shooters gun for honors

A 16-man team will represent the Philippines at the 16th International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC) World Championships in Rhodes, Greece, on Oct. 3-9 and there are high hopes of Filipinos bringing back gold medals from the 66-nation competition that is held every three years.

The first World Shoot was held in Switzerland in 1975 with marksmen from all over the globe gathering to test their skills in obstacle-laden target courses. Since the inaugural event, South Africa has hosted it thrice and the US twice. Cebu was the site for the World Shoot in 1999 when the Philippines won the team event and Jethro (The Jet) Dionisio took third place in the individual category.

At the 15th World Shoot in Bali in 2008, two Filipinos bagged gold medals. Ma. Inez Feria Jorge struck paydirt in the ladies group of the production division while Wilfredo Anglo captured the gold in the 42-man seniors bracket of the production division. The competition has several divisions – open (described as “the handgun equivalent of top fuel dragsters”), standard (.40 caliber or bigger), modified (open guns with optics and muzzle brakes), production (double-action pistols) and revolver. The types of firearms are handguns, rifles and shotguns. Accuracy, power and speed are the factors that produce a winning formula for a maximum score.

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As usual, the Philippines will be a contender in the coming shootfest with a star-studded cast of gunners. Dionisio, 39, leads the lineup. The UST graduate is a three-time World Speed Shooting and World Shoot-off champion who competed in trap shooting at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He’ll display his wares in the standard division with Capt. Ed Martin of the Philippine Army, Eduardo Rivera and Michael Lontoc.

The modified division entries are Iloilo businessman Nelson Uygongco and World Shoot veterans Christopher Panganiban, Jerome Morales and Rico Papa. The open division team is made up of Bacolod’s Stephen Hinojales, pre-law student and former junior champion Kenneth Agustin, Adrian Francisco and Agustin Rivera III. Former world champion Jag Lejano is in the production division lineup with holster-maker Jun Gino, Dio Mari Tayag and Bernardo Alejandro.

The Philippine Practical Shooting Association (PPSA) is the local IPSC affiliate. Its founding president is Rep. Jack Ponce Enrile with Rommel Cabungcal as secretary-general. Acting as national team manager is DILG assistant secretary Myro Lopez who works directly with Undersecretary Rico Puno. Lopez is a practical shooting aficionado and a walking encyclopaedia of the sport.  

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Sponsoring the Philippine team is Smart Communications. “Clearly, along with boxing and billiards, the Philippines and the Filipino shooting athlete are well-respected in the international shooting community,” said Smart sports marketing executive Epoch Quimpo. “This is the reason why Smart Communications fully supports the PPSA’s quest for honors in the coming World Shoot.”

Quimpo said while shooting does not enjoy the same popularity as boxing, billiards and basketball, the sport has given pride and glory to the country. “Despite the lack of resources to properly train our shooting athletes, it has brought honor to the Philippines,” he said. “Similar to boxing, the Filipino marksman is well-respected in the international sport shooting community as one of the best. In shooting, you don’t need height or strength to dominate other competitors, just nerves of steel and great hand-eye coordination.  And the Filipino seems to have a natural talent for the game.”

Dionisio was only a teenager when he began to make his mark as a speed shooter. He topped the World Steel Challenge thrice, shooting at steel targets in the fastest possible time. Dionisio became known as the “Fastest Gun in the World” as he outdrew prominent US shooters like Michael Voigt and Jerry Barnhart. Then, Dionisio turned his attention to practical and trap shooting in his persistent quest for more honors to bring to the country. Now, he’s got another chance to deliver with the World Shoot set early next month in Rhodes.

DDB Philippines group managing consultant Ramon Cruz said the Filipino shooters could use a boost in morale with more public encouragement and awareness. He’s spearheading a campaign to publicize the team’s coming trip to Rhodes. “Hopefully, once again, we’ll raise our national pride should we take home a medal just like how Manny Pacquiao has uplifted our spirits and to some extent, our very own Azkals,” said Cruz.