It's day three of the 2013 World Field Target Championship and the final chance for the
world's elites marksmen and women to stake their claim to the crown. England's Simon
Ayers leads John Costello and Greg Sauve by two shots, but the weather has taken a turn
for the worst and the wind has finally arrived. With Costello and Ayers on the yellow course
and Sauve, McFlynn and Rushton on the black course the conditions will almost certainly
differ. Over the previous two days the yellow course has been hailed as the most difficult
of the three, but with it having more cover down in a small valley and the black course
being exposed on top of the hill, the odds look to be pretty even.
Okay day three. The top of the table's really, really tight. We got Simon Ayers, the guy
I travelled with, an absolute nightmare if he wins two ahead. I'm joint second with Greg
Sauve and there's loads of people underneath that. So today is going to be really more
of a mental challenge, just because you've been on it for so long. So it's going to be
fill yourself full of sugar, loads of water and hope for the best.
Third day has probably been the most hungry I've ever been to hit targets. It's quite
a hard thing to explain but I just had a song going through my head and, I didn't feel like
missing, I went out to clear the course because I knew that's what had to be done to close
the door.
Simon Ayers double dinks his very first lane of the day meaning that his two shot advantage
is all but wiped out. It certainly seems like the nerves have gotten the better of him.
John hits target after target as he digs in for a long day on the course.
I double missed a lane on target ten, eleven and twelve. Both just had more wind than I
had thought to give. So with that I was a bit disheartened but you just have to get
back on it and clear the last thirty-eight.
John's double miss means he slips back to two shots behind Simon Ayers once again. Simon
quietly retreats into his bubble and goes about his day knowing that double dink on
his first lane could prove costly. Neither shooter wants to drop anymore shots.
On the black course Spain's Jose Redondo drops several shots quite early, and falls back
out of contention.
Conor McFlynn, Greg Sauve and Harold Rushton have all dropped 3 shots by the half way point
and it looks very difficult for them to get back into contention. Especially with the
wind swirling on the black course.
Did you get that?
[off-camera] Yeah.
John Costello continues to shoot magnificently and hasn't dropped another shot since his
double dink. He digs in and soaks up the pressure.
Reigning world champion Andy Gillott hasn't dropped a single shot so far, but comes unstuck
just after the half way stage. Costello hasn't dropped another single shot as he approaches
the final few lanes of the course.
However, news comes through that Andy Gillott has dropped more shots and Simon Ayers has
dropped another. John keeps himself away from the whispers and concentrates on his own shooting,
unaware that it's so close at the top of the leader board.
John approaches his final lane none the wiser that he is one shot behind his good friend
and travel companion Simon Ayers. As John settles into his final lane Simon Ayers misses
another shot and they are now tied. John needs to hit both of these targets.
The first one was a 48 yard full sized kill and to be honest it was a little bit windy
but I thought I'm going to let fate decide.
John's last but one target falls. One more to go.
John hits his very last target and is tied with Simon Ayers.
[off camera] Want to know how Simon's got on?
Yeah go ahead.
We'll you've dropped two, he's two ahead of you. He's dropped four, he's got two lanes
left. If he drops a shot, you're the world champion. If he doesn't, you're in a shoot
off.
Sound. I'll get ready.
I just went back to the car park, just expecting to do a shoot off. I tried to find out other
people's scores as well. From what I heard Greg could have overtook us but he had a bit
of a bad day on the last one. So, it was that realisation that I'm either in a shoot off
or I've won it.
Simon Ayers prepares for his final lane and hits both of his targets. However, he shoots
them out of numerical order and automatically loses the points.
Yeah, generally thought that he would have missed them. I did say to Dan, that he's the
type of guy I could imagine missing his last lane. Whether I put a jinx on him or something,
I didn't mean too, but he's the type of person as well that does a phenomenal standing, kneeling
shot so in a shoot off he would have been really tough to beat. Generally thought we
were going to have to shoot off, I thought it would have made a beautiful end to it,
the competition. You travel all this way then you have a shoot off first and second between
the two mates but yeah, he shot his last lane out of order which is a bit unlucky but I
suppose having that mental edge towards the very end, you never know. So it was weird
being in limbo just waiting to see what happened. So yeah, that was pretty much me just sat
there waiting in anticipation until Dan told me the result at the end.
You're joking?
Just been there, he said to me and Bertie that he's just missed the two of them he just said.
So what's that put him on?
That puts him six. So you've finished on two.
If that's not true I'm going to punch you in the jaw.
I've just been down there, and he said to Bertie that: I've just missed the two of them.
Disbelief really, it's just one of those things—it's hard to explain. It's one of those things,
you've worked eleven years towards with me and my dad, all the hours we've put in and
the traveling
That's pretty cool.
So is that John Costello, the 2013 WFTF world champion?
Yeah, I think so.
And then when you finally get something like that, there's not really word that can describe
it asides euphoria. It was just—yeah, it was pretty cool.
John Costello is the 2013 World Field Target Federation World Champion and the youngest
by around ten years. Simon Ayers finishes runner up after beating Russia's Sergey Zubenko
in a shoot off.
And this is how the other categories finished the final day. America's Greg Sauve secured
another Mens PCP Veterans Championship.
South Africa's young talent was out on show, taking all three categories in the PCP Junior
Competition with JP de Jager taking the title.
Natali Terblanche, also of South Africa, was crowned champion some nine shots ahead of
2010's World Champion Ana Pereira.
Lithuania's Linas Burvys won the Springer Championship, ahead of England's Brian Samson.
Tune in tomorrow to see how life has changed for John Costello and what's next after he's
lifted the World Championship.