WED | SEPTEMBER 7, 2022

Registration is now open for the Civilian Marksmanship Program’s 13th annual Anniston Dixie Doubles Air Rifle and Air Pistol Competition, set to fire Nov. 3-5, 2022, at the South Competition Center in Alabama.

Trinity Oak’s Thumbtack Ranch, the first Purple Heart ranch in the country, located in Batesville, Texas, will host the 6th Annual Fall Pigeon Shoot. This year’s fundraising festivities will take place on Saturday, October 15th.

Samson Manufacturing has announced their participation as event sponsors of “Kalashtober,” a two-day AK-47 focused training and range competition being held in Pelham NH.

Honored American Veterans Afield hosted their Inaugural Pacific Northwest Range Day at the Tacoma Sportsmen’s Club last weekend. The range day event brought nearly 75 Veterans together for a day of shooting, comradery, and prizes.

The Sisterhood of the Outdoors (Sisterhood Outdoors), in partnership with Beretta USA, will host its debut Shotgun Experience on September 24, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Mayville Gun Club, W2868 Farmersville Road, Mayville, Wisconsin. Olympic shotgun champion Kim Rhode will be at the event.

Nexbelt participated in the Nation’s Best Sports Fall Semi-Annual Market in Fort Worth, Texas recently and would like to thank all the attendees who stopped by their Booth to view their offerings for the 2022-2023 selling season.

DeSantis Gunhide introduces multiple new holster fits for the Springfield Prodigy 4.25” with or without red dot sight.

SIG SAUER Academy announced a partnership with The Light Foundation for its Corporate Training Day 2022. The proceeds raised from the event will directly benefit the programming of The Light Foundation whose mission is to provide leadership tools and training through outdoor experiences to underserved youth.

Iron Valley Supply, a leading shooting sports distributor, announced the hiring of Dan Gilnack to serve as Account Manager. Dan comes to Iron Valley after a successful 15 year career in private security working for companies such as UBS and Johnson Matthey Pharmaceuticals.

Parkwest Arms is still going strong. Since Steve Rabackoff acquired the company, Parkwest Arms has had an impressive 18-month stretch of growth that included an increase in revenue annually as well as continued expansion to its already impressive line of quality firearms and services.

Fiocchi, a leader in defense, target, and hunting ammunition, announced the addition of Thomas F. Gowen & Sons as their Northeast Sales Reps. The company's territory covers the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states, including Ohio, Indiana, and Tennessee.

Ed Small, CEO of Big Rock Sports, LLC and parent company Peak Global Holdings, announced that David McCartney has been named president of Big Rock Sports. McCartney will assume responsibility for the day-to-day management of the outdoor sporting goods distribution company.

AMMO, Inc. announced that Steven Urvan, Chief Strategy Officer, and Susan Lokey, Chief Financial Officer of SpeedLight I, LLC d/b/a GunBroker.com, have been placed on administrative leave with immediate effect.

Attorneys representing the Second Amendment Foundation and its partners in the case of Jones v. Bonta, challenging a California law restricting the rights of young adults to purchase long guns, are asking the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for an “All Writ” enjoining the state from enforcing a new state law that penalizes plaintiffs in cases contesting state gun laws.

FN America, LLC announces the release of the FN 509 CC Edge, a compact compensated pistol and the newest addition to the FN Edge Series of performance-driven products. Featuring a novel quick-detach, self-indexing FN compensator, the pistol includes a 12-round and two 15-round magazines.

Sturm, Ruger & Company announces the latest addition to its modern sporting rifle lineup: the Small-Frame Autoloading Rifle, (SFAR). Chambered in 7.62 NATO / .308 Win., the SFAR combines the ballistic advantages of .308 Winchester with the size of a traditional MSR.

The Loadout™ Range Bag from Elite Survival Systems offers the utmost in modular versatility. From its adjustable, movable mag pouches and accessory pouches, to its removable firearms compartments and lift-out ammo insert, this bag offers unrivalled customization.

HatsanUSA is proud to announce the release of its Vortex Big Bore Supreme ammo, a new line of big bore caliber, PCP air rifle slugs.

Smith & Wesson announced the launch of a new GUNSMARTS campaign. Evolving from the first two series, this new video lineup focuses on intermediate and advanced training topics to further promote skill growth and continue the journey of firearm education and ownership.

Outdoor Sportsman Group has experienced significant increases across its suite of shooting websites. Readers continue to find the latest product reviews and get answers to their “how to” questions from our highly-trusted and influential shooting brands.

Scholastic 3-D Archery has partnered with the Easton Foundations to release what will be known as the S3DA Equipment “Rent to Own” Target Program. S3DA and Easton Foundations staff worked together to create the program to provide S3DA teams the opportunity to ease the initial stress of infrastructure problems.

Liberty Ammo announced participation in the "Ultimate Outdoor Defender" Giveaway. Top brands from key categories have joined together to offer consumers the best prizes this year.

The Armory Life announced the release of the Fall 2022 issue of The Armory Life print magazine. The Fall 2022 issue features a fascinating cover story interview with Colion Noir, respected Second Amendment advocate and firearms enthusiast.

ERGUNS is the first firearm accessory marketplace fo existing merchants. Within the platform, merchants can include their products and get a company on ERGUNS.net to increase their exposure.

Daisy, the iconic American airgun company, is continuing their Whitetails Unlimited national sponsorship. “We’re thrilled that Daisy has resigned as a Whitetails Unlimited national sponsor,” said WTU President Jeff Schinkten.

Shooting USA covers the World Speed Shooting Challenge, which has now expanded to include divisions for Centerfire Handguns, Pistol Caliber Carbines, and both Handguns and Rifles chambered in 22 caliber.
 

FEATURE

Today's feature is from the Civilian Marksmanship Program.

Pistol athlete Henry Leverett, 21, reached an accomplishment only 538 others have earned before him – an International Distinguished Badge.

Distinguished Badges are the highest individual awards authorized by the U. S. Government for excellence in marksmanship competition. Badges are presented by the CMP after an individual receives at least 30 Excellence-In-Competition (EIC) points at qualifying matches. In International shooting, extra credit points are also awarded for setting or equaling World Records or earning an Olympic quota.

The Distinguished International Shooter Badge recognizes athletes who excel in competitions outside the U.S.

The Distinguished International Shooters Badge is perhaps one of the most difficult Distinguished Badges to earn. Those in contention for a badge need to qualify for a U.S. National Team while also producing medal-winning performances in international championships – not only against their domestic peers, but also alongside some of the best athletes in the world.

Originally from Bainbridge, Georgia, Leverett began his marksmanship career through a local 4-H program around nine years old. He went on to compete in CMP’s Monthly Air Gun Matches at the South Competition Center in Anniston, Alabama, as well as at the annual Camp Perry National Matches in 2016. Before entering college, he set four USA Shooting national records in junior men’s rapid fire and junior men’s sport pistol. He has also represented Team USA in a dozen international competitions, including World Cups and World Championships.

Leverett currently competes for The Ohio State University Pistol Team, set to enter his junior year in 2022. He helped lead the team to a National Title in 2022 when he was named first team All-American in Air, Sport and Standard pistol and finished in third overall in Standard pistol at Nationals.

In 2019, he won the United States’ only 25-meter Rapid Fire Pistol quota for the Tokyo Olympics at the World Cup in China but finished second at the Olympic Trials the following year. Luckily, after a few unforeseen circumstances, USA Shooting was able to earn another quota to secure him a spot on the Rapid Fire pistol event next to his brother, Jack, who competed in the same event.

When he’s not competing overseas, Leverett shoots for The Ohio State University Pistol Team.

Leverett’s first International points came in September 2018 during the 25-meter Pistol Men’s Junior event at the World Cup in Changwon, Korea, when he reached second place. After earning the Olympic Quota in 2019 and a gold medal in the same event at the 2021 Junior World Cup in Lima, Peru, he finally achieved International Distinguished Badge #539 in April 2022 – claiming bronze at the World Cup in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

The foundation of the International Badge began at the height of the cold war, when marksmanship athletes from the Soviet Union (USSR) were dominating Olympic and World Championship competitions. President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit in 1956 and gave it a mission of winning international competitions in an attempt to earn wins for the United States and keep athletes competitive on a global level.

Even further, the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice (NBPRP), which operated as a Department of Defense organization, recommended the creation of the International Distinguished Badge to encourage U.S. citizens to train more intensely to win medals in international competitions.

The original requirement for receiving the badge was to win a gold, silver or bronze medal in an Olympic, World Championship or Pan American Games individual or team event, though the requirements now follow the 30-point criteria for medals won in championships governed by the International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF).

The Badge was approved in 1962, and in April 1963, President John F. Kennedy presented the first International Distinguished Badge to Gary Anderson. Anderson had earned several wins overseas, including four gold medals in the 1962 World Championship. After a successful career, Anderson later became the CMP Director of Civilian Marksmanship and now serves as the Director of Civilian Marksmanship Emeritus – remaining hands on in CMP programs to this day.

In 2013, the International Distinguished program was extended to also include World Shooting Para Sport (WSPS) competitions. Now, U.S. athletes who win medals in the Paralympic Games, WSPS World Championships and WSPS World Cups are eligible to win International Distinguished Badges.

The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) currently offers Distinguished Badge programs for Service Rifle, Service Pistol, .22 Rimfire Pistol, International competition, Smallbore Rifle, 60 Shot Air Rifle, 60 Shot Air Pistol, Revolver Pistol, Junior Air Rifle and for impaired adaptive athletes.

Learn more about the Distinguished Badge program by visiting the CMP website at https://thecmp.org/competitions/distinguishedbadges/.

-- By Ashley Dugan, CMP Staff Writer

The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation. It is dedicated to firearm safety and marksmanship training and to the promotion of marksmanship competition for citizens of the United States. For more information about the CMP and its programs, log onto www.TheCMP.org.
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