Those “good results” include a third-placing in the 10m Air Rifle final Those “good results” include a third-placing in the 10m Air Rifle final
Image: Australian International Shooting Limited.

Those “good results” include a third-placing in the 10m Air Rifle final at the Australian Youth Olympic Festival in 2009, and a 33rd (out of 96) junior men’s ranking at the ISSF World Championship in Munich in August. “I gained a lot of experience from the World Championships, which I’ve used to prepare myself for the Commonwealth Games,” Gouw tells Inside Sport. “From Munich, I learned how to improve my concentration in front of large audiences and with cameras looking and pointing at me during the competition, which was a new experience for me.”

Quigley, a Commonwealth Games medallist and Sydney 2000 Olympian, says Gouw will eat the confidence game for breakfast at Delhi. “Edwin’s a very determined young man who’s always striving for perfection; he’s not pleased unless he’s worked hard and achieved his goals.” So, nerves, it seems, shouldn’t be a problem when Gouw steps to the line and competes in front of the entire British Empire. “I’ll be trying not to think about the result of the competition, and will try to stay confident and concentrate on my basic shooting action while competing,” says Gouw.

WHO’S HE LIKE?

“Edwin is uniquely Edwin,” says Quigley, but perhaps Gouw uses traits carried by Australia’s Beijing 2008 50m Prone bronze medallist, Warren Potent, and Matthew Emmons, the 50m Prone American star who collected silver at Beijing and a gold medal at Athens in ’04. “I learned a lot from Matthew during the ISSF Sydney World Cup camp in March this year, and from Warren during the Munich World Championships camp in the Czech Republic recently, as I’ve just started shooting 50m Prone.”No doubting it won’t be long till Gouw’s mastering that, too … Pesky teenagers!

– James Smith

What do they say?

“Australia is very lucky to have Edwin representing us. In a country with such a small pool of shooters who develop into elite athletes, it’s exciting to see someone so young with an excellent possibility of becoming world-class.”

– Petr Kurka, rifle head coach, Australian International Shooting

“Edwin is a sensitive, polite and friendly young man. He gets on well with the Aussie team and is always good for a laugh. As well as being so personable, he’s talented, hard working and determined to achieve the goals he sets himself.”

– Carrie Quigley, national development coach