Georgios Achilleos

Just a few months before turning 20, George Achilleos was named a member of Team Cyprus at the 2000 Summer Olympics, held in Sydney. The young Cypriot started the event with the best possible way, shooting 25/25 and 24/25 at the two starting rounds, but then went on to close Day 1 on September 22 with a low 22/25. Despite his efforts in Day 2 where he recorded two sets of 24/25, Achilleos finished in 23rd place with 119/125. Ten shooters tied at 122/125 for the remaining three spots in the final, amongst them fellow Cypriot Antonakis Andreou, who went on to take 8th place.

Four years later, a now experienced Achilleos went to the Greek capital as one of the best young shooters in Skeet. He was the national flag barer at the Opening Ceremony at the OAKA stadium. The Cypriot delegation received a standing ovation by the mostly Greek crowd, due to the islands’ ties to Greece. George then set his eyes on the skeet event, which was held at the Markopoulo Shooting Centre on 21 and 22 August.

After shooting 24, 24 and then 25, Achilleos closed day 1 tied in 8th place with 73/75. Day 2 started with a 23/25 could seriously affect his hopes for the final. He closed the day with a perfect 25/25 to finish up in 9th place, just one disc away from the shoot-off.

Achilleos went into the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China as the favorite for the gold medal, since he was world No1 in ISSF's rankings and the reigning World Champion. Due to his international successes, Achilleos was chosen for a second consecutive Olympiad to carry the flag at the Opening Ceremony, this time in the Bird's Nest of the Chinese capital.

A week later (August 15 and 16) the skeet event was set to take place and all Cypriot eyes were on the Beijing Shooting Range. Then President of the Republic of Cyprus, Mr. Demetris Christofias and former President Tassos Papadopoulos were also in attendance, hoping to witness Cyprus’ first ever Olympic medal.

Day 1 started bad for Achilleos, who shot 23, 24 and 23 for a total of 70/75. But with only nine shooters having better ranking after day 1, including four athletes with 71/75, the road to the final was still open. And George didn't disappoint on day 2. He started with a perfect 25/25 and closed the day with 24/25, which put him on 5th position (119/125). Fellow Cypriot Antonis Nikolaides also finished the qualification round in the top 6, with a score of 120/125, giving Cyprus its first ever double Olympic final participation in any event.

In what was expected to be an historic day for Cyprus, turned out to become one of Cyprus most painful.[6] Achilleos recorded 24/25 in the final, which kept him in 5th position with a total of 143, just one disc shy of the bronze medal shoot off. Nikolaides also had 24/25 in the final, but went on to lose the medal shoot-off against Anthony Terras of France, settling for a 4th position. The 4th and 5th position by Nikolaides and Achilleos respectively is to date (as of 2017) Cyprus’ second and third best placing in the Olympics, following the silver medal of sailor Pavlos Kontides in London four years later.

Achilleos returned for his fourth Olympic appearance -a tied record[7] for the island as of 2017. Although being the top finisher four years earlier, George didn't carry the flag at the Opening Ceremony since the skeet event was scheduled just three days later and he opted not to attend the Opening Ceremony. Tennis star Marcos Baghdatis was chosen to carry the flag.

The competition on day 1 at the Royal Artillery Barracks started negatively for Achilleos, with a 23 and a 22-round keeping him well below the top six. The Cypriot closed the day with a 24/25. On day 2 Achilleos was improved with a total of 49/50, but the 118 mark was two discs below the needed score to qualify for the final, finishing in 11th position.

The most important annual shooting event organized by the ISSF is the World Championships, an event in which George has won four medals as a Senior as of 2017, making him just one of a handful of Cypriot athletes who have won medals in senior world championships. The gold medal in the Nicosia 2007 World Championship is Achilleos’ biggest accomplishment, with three more medals coming in Maribor 2009, Munich 2010 and Moscow 2017.

As of 2017 George Achilleos is the most medaled skeet shooter still active in the world,[8] with a total of 15 podiums in World Cups. He has won six gold all in the span between 2007 and 2012. His first World Cup medal came in 2000 in Lonato, Italy, while his latest (as of 2017) came in the "home court" of Larnaca in 2017.

George has also won three medals in World Cup Finals. A gold in 2007, and bronze in 2005 and 2009.

Including the World Championships, World Cups and World Cup Finals, Achilleos has stepped on the podium in eight different international main events. The Cypriot skeet shooter has won medals in European Championships, Commonwealth Games, Mediterranean Games, European Games and even in the bi-annual Games of the Small States of Europe,[9][10] a multisport event which is attended by European countries of one million population and below.