Achilleos becomes most successful sports shooter in Cyprus history

Last year was extremely fruitful for Cypriot sports shooter Giorgos Achilleos, who was crowned skeet champion for the third year running and 14th time overall, making him the most successful sports shooter in Cyprus history.

Achilleos has proven his longevity in a sport as competitive as skeet shooting by winning championships across three different decades and claiming his first double title back in 1999 and winning the championship in both the senior and youth divisions. This was followed by two more consecutive titles in 2000 and 2001, while he added an astonishing eight straight championships between 2006 and 2013.

In 2020, Achilleos was the only skeet shooter who won two out of the six events comprising the Cypriot championship. The title is awarded by taking into account each shooter’s five best performances.

Moreover, Achilleos ranked fifth in the World Cup which took place in Nicosia back in March of 2020. This was the only International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) sanctioned event which took place that year. In terms of his international ranking, the former world number one finished the year in 11th place in both the world and European skeet rankings. This is higher than any other Cypriot skeet shooter.

“2020 was a very unique year with no international competitions after March and with a lot of restrictions hindering our preparation, with training centres being shut down and reopened depending on how the pandemic evolved”, said Achilleos.

“I am very satisfied with my competitive performance and my third consecutive domestic championship, as well as my performance which brought me all the way to the World Cup final”, he added added.

The 40-year-old, who was Cyprus’ flag bearer at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics, is now firmly focused on this year’s Games in Tokyo as well as the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

“With the Olympics being postponed for one year, the Olympic cycle was reduced to three years rather than four which at present means that I will also be involved in the next games as well. My goal is to compete both in Tokyo next summer as well as in Paris in 2024”, explained Achilleos.

Achilleos’ training schedule was designed around the European Championships which would have taken place in May of 2020 in France, where the last qualifying cards for the Olympics would have been given. Now this has been pushed one year forward and planned around the European Championships in Croatia. The tournament is currently scheduled for May of 2021 and will allow two athletes to qualify for the Olympics. In the event where that tournament in cancelled, the cards will be allocated based on the European rankings at the time.

There are three additional Olympic qualifying cards available, two of which are wildcards allocated by the ISSF and one to be allocated according to the global rankings before the Olympics spots are finalized.

“At the moment I am preparing intensely so that by the time the European Championships in Croatia begins I am in a position to win one of the two qualifying cards”, said Achilleos.

Achilleos has participated in four Olympics so far, with his debut at Sydney 2000 and the last one being the 2012 Games in London.