Solo shooter Sarah is a Falklands first

By Fiona Fitton and Rebecca Hind

Sarah Bonner came into the 2023 Island Games with a few superlatives to her name. In addition to being the first and only air rifle shooter the Falkland Islands has sent to the Games, her team has also travelled the furthest to compete at this year’s Games, 7,734 miles from home.

Sarah says, “It is very different here in Guernsey compared with back home. We are used to shooting in a container that is very, very cold. We have gas heaters, and there are no electronic systems, so everything is slightly different here.”

Used to training alone, Sarah has also had to get used to being surrounded by other shooters. Despite these challenges, she competed in the team event alone but still managed to come seventh out of nine.

Even in her first overseas competition, she hopes to “inspire more people to take up air rifle shooting, especially in the Falkland Islands,” as this would allow her to compete to her best in a team setting.

Other athletes mentioned the overhead lighting – commenting that the well-lit Aztech Centre was a change from the dimly lit training spaces they are used to. The shooting is on all week, so head down to the Aztech Centre and give Sarah some support as she competes on her own, in her first Games, on the other side of the world.