By Paul Evans
Ben Llewellin will be gunning for Gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, after securing his place with Team Wales in Australia next April.
The 23-year old from Haverfordwest is the number one Olympic skeet shooter (one of the shotgun categories) in the UK and ranked sixth in the world. He recently won ‘Olympic Shooter of the Year 2017’ at the British Shooting Awards.
After a magnificent season, Llewellin’s place in the Team Wales team was never really in doubt, and he’s finally been confirmed to represent his country alongside fellow shooters Craig Auden, Mike Bamsey, Sian Corish, Coral Kennerley, Gareth Morris, David Phelps, Chris Watson, Mike Wixey and Sarah Wixey.
Having missed out on his place at the 2014 Commonwealth Games by just one target, Ben has gone from strength to strength – winning his second International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup Final Silver medal in India earlier this year. It was here that he also equalled the world record by shooting 59 out of 60 in the Final. That’s no mean feat, as the final 60 title-deciding clays of Olympic skeet shooting competition are so difficult to hit, they are designed to be impossible to score a full house!
Ben then travelled to Australia’s famous Belmont Shooting Complex in Brisbane, where he won Gold at the Commonwealth Games test event.
“2017 was a great season for me. I did a few small tweaks to my gun at the start of the season, which made a huge difference, and I have gone from strength to strength,” says Ben.
“Starting off by setting a new personal best on my first competition of the season gave me huge confidence moving forward, and my highlight mid-season was shooting all the targets in qualification, 125 out of 125.
“Going into the World Cup Final, my preparation was great and to make the Final was great, but then to go head-to-head with the Italian until the last target and make a new World Record with him was amazing. I was over the moon with my performance in India, so going down to Brisbane I was very confident but drained from the effort in India. Qualification was tough and I just scrapped into the Final, but once I made it there I had a second wind and was gunning for the Gold. The feeling I had winning the Gold was amazing and to be on the top step of the podium with the Welsh anthem playing was incredible.
“Winning the Gold medal in the test event has given me huge confidence for the Commonwealth Games. The experience and occasion down on the Gold Coast in April will be huge – it’s one of the very few events where I can represent Wales, which means a lot.”
The husband and wife team of Mike and Sarah Wixey will clock up eight Commonwealth Games appearance between them when they head to the Gold Coast to take part in the Olympic Trap events. It will be a fifth Games for Mike, who won bronze on debut in 2002, while it will be a third Games for 2004 Olympian Sarah, who won gold at the World Cup in Australia in 2003.
Penarth-based Sian Corish will be competing at her fourth Games, while Phelps will be heading to his fifth. His debut came in 2002 and he won gold and bronze in Melbourne in 2006 in the rifle prone event.
TEAM WALES SHOOTING
Craig Auden (10m Air Pistol)
Mike Bamsey (10m Air Pistol / 50m Rifle 3×40 Small Bore)
Sian Corish (50m Rifle prone / 50m Rifle 3×20) 4th Games
Coral Kennerley (10m Air Pistol / 25m Pistol)
Ben Llewellin (Skeet)
Gareth Morris (Queen’s Prize / Pairs)
David Phelps (50m Rifle Prone Small Bore)
Chris Watson (Queen’s Prize / Pairs)
Mike Wixey (Men’s Olympic Trap – Shotgun)
Sarah Wixey (Women’s Olympic Trap – Shotgun)