About Me

I started shooting at school and was lucky enough to be introduced to the Great Britain Junior Squad in the late 1980’s. I trained and competed domestically and internationally with them until my last year as a Junior. Shortly after that, I paused my shooting to concentrate on my university studies and subsequently, my career and young family.

I returned to shooting later in life, training with the South East Regional Pistol Squad, Team England National Squad and Great Britain. I competed internationally at major and minor internationals but in the run-up to the London 2012 Olympics developed an injury that, over the course of the following years, led to my retirement from shooting.

Fortuitously, as I was walking off the range from my last ever competitive shoot in 2017, I bumped into the GB Head Pistol Coach at the time who asked if I would like to work with British Shooting. I coached the British Shooting Emerging Potential (South) squad in 2018 alongside Paul Taylor and I am continuing to work with him, along with Margaret Thomas and Rob Stubbs in 2020 as part of the England Academy Squad coaching team.

As well as working with the National Governing Body, Target Pistol Coaching is Affiliated to the National Smallbore Rifle Association (NSRA) and works within their framework on child safeguarding and insurance as well as benefiting from the general support given to Affiliates, e.g. discounted use of the Lord Roberts Centre ranges at Bisley Camp.

I am the personal coach to the 2019 ISSF Masters World Champion and 2020 British Champion, Waldek Mickiewicz, as well as a range of talented and committed athletes at all performance levels and ages.

When not working with these groups and individuals, I can often be found in a draughty barn coaching the Crawley & Horsham Pony Club Tetrathletes and dodging the pigeons…

I have an extended DBS check, NSRA Range Officer qualification, my own coaching insurance and ISSF Class D & C Coaching Licenses.

Jim Newsome, February 2020