Maltese Double Trap Shooters William Chetcuti and Nathan Lee Xuereb finished 15th and 16th respectively with a similar score of 136 in yesterday’s pre-Olympic World Cup in London.

For Chetcuti, it was a great test before taking part in the Olympics this summer. Taking part in the event were all the world’s top shooters.

Chetcuti had a disappointing first round of 44. He improved considerably in the second and third rounds where he scored 46 hits on both occasions for the grand total of 136.

Nathan Lee Xuereb was, perhaps, more impressive. The youngster started with a first round score of 46. In the second round, he improved to 47. At that juncture, he was placed fifth, but his inexperience, perhaps, let him down as he hit a 43 in the final round, which dropped him to 16th place.

Russia’s Mikhail Leybo and Italy’s Francesco D’Aniello finished jointly on 142 clays ahead of the barrage. They were followed by William Crawford of the US on 141, Daniele di Spigno of Italy on 140, Walton Eller of the US and Hakan Dahlby of Sweden on 139.

Leybo went on to claim first place after a shoot-off with D’Aniello (4-3). Both hit 46 in the barrage. Daniele di Spigno finished third, also after a shoot-off, on a score of 184.

Most of the world’s top shooters will be in Malta this weekend for the International Grand Prix at Bidnija.