Focus on the CISM French Shooter Jean Quiquampoix, 19-years old and already Olympic Medalist!

DOHA (QAT) – It may be his first participation in a CISM WMC Shooting ever, OR-1 (Voluntary Deputy Gendarme) Jean Quiquampoix (FRA) knows more than anyone else the meaning of the word “Pressure”. Indeed, the member of TS Antibes Shooting Club, born in 1995, was selected for the first time in the French National Shooting Team for the Dortmund Grand Prix in 2011 in Germany.

“I started shooting in 2008 by chance, thanks to a friend of mine who involved me. Since then, I practice a lot because I'm determinate to win every competition”, Quiquampoix said.

Quiquampoix became Junior European Champion in 2002 and Junior World Champion in 2014, won the World Cup Final in 2015 in Munich and on the top of that, he won the silver medal at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in the Shooting 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men.

Before the vital deadlines, he’s training 5 times a week at the CTPN Shooting stand in Allauch and 3 Lucs in Marseille under the guidance of his two competent coaches Laurent Sasso & Hervé Carratu. “After the Olympic Games, I took a two-month well-deserved break to decompress. I’m now ready to train hard with a view to perform well at the 2017 European Championships in July”, declared the French Shooter, who is currently studying physiotherapy in Marseille. “It’s not always easy to manage my trainings, my studies and my responsibilities in the gendarmerie. As I’m a semi-professional shooter, I need to finish my studies in order to have a job at the end of my sport career”. 

Thanks to the help of the French Gendarmerie, Jean Quiquampoix is able to train in optimal conditions: “I really need to thank the Gendarmerie as I’m allowed to train as much as I want and to participate to approximately 9 competitions each year. In counterpart of these facilities, I have the honor to represent the Gendarmerie on the international CISM events like the World Military Shooting Championships and the CISM World Summer Games. I also have to attend some representations days with the Gendarmerie”.

For his first CISM Competition, Jean Quiquampoix is impressed by the level of the competition. Even though he can’t compare this event to the Olympic Games as some military disciplines are different from the Olympic disciplines, he stated that this event was a high standard competition with the presence of international shooters. “I heard previously from my colleagues that the CISM events were a great competition and I can only confirm it: the atmosphere is great, the shooting venues are wonderful. The conditions are optimal for good performances. Even if the disciplines are different from what I’m used to, participating to this CISM Championship will help me getting more experience. Moreover, it makes me develop other aspects of my shooting”, concluded an obviously delighted Jean Quiquampoix.

(Source: CISM Media & Communication Department)
(Pictures: Maxime Morlet, CISM Media Assistant)