Wimbledon Cup

The Wimbledon Cup is a marksmanship trophy that was established in the 1870s.[2]

For other cups with the same name, see Wimbledon Cup (disambiguation).
Wimbledon Cup
The Wimbledon Cup for rifle shooting marksmanship
SportFullbore target rifle
CompetitionNational Rifle & Pistol Matches
Awarded forWinner of the 1000 yard match
LocationCamp Perry
CountryUnited States of America
Presented byNational Rifle Association of America
History
First award1875
First winner Major Henry Fulton (USA)
Most wins Michelle Gallagher (USA):5 times
Most recent Larry Sollars (USA)[1]

It is awarded annually during the National Rifle & Pistol Matches which are held at Camp Perry, Ohio and has become the most prestigious prize in US long-range rifle shooting.[3]

Each year the high-power phase of these matches traditionally takes place during the first two weeks of August. The Wimbledon Cup is awarded for the winner of a 1000-yard shooting match — in which the rules permit use of "any sight", including telescopes.

Concurrent with the Wimbledon, service rifle shooters compete for the Farr Trophy, and Palma rifle shooters vie for the "Doc" Aiken Trophy.

History

The Wimbledon Cup is a silver tankard wrought by British silversmiths of the Victorian period.

The British National Rifle Association inaugurated the prize in 1866. The Illustrated London News reported on July 26, 1866, that the Wimbledon Cup was a new prize for the Wimbledon Rifle Meeting of that year.[4]

In 1875, the trophy was presented to the American rifle team attending the British matches at Wimbledon by Princess Louise, on behalf of the riflemen of Great Britain. Members of the American team competed among themselves for the trophy at Wimbledon; this match was won by Major Henry Fulton. The Wimbledon Cup was taken to the United States and placed in annual competition at Creedmoor Rifle Range as the trophy for a long range match open to any rifle. Michelle Gallagher has won the most cups with five. Her family have won it seven times. Her mother Nancy H. Tompkins-Gallagher won once and her step-father Middleton W. Tompkins won once.[5]

The 1965 trophy was awarded to CPL Carlos N. Hathcock, USMC.

References
  • "NRA National High Power Rifle Long Range Championships". Competitive Shooting Programs. National Rifle Association. Retrieved 2006-12-14.

Inline citations
  1. "MATCH 537 —— WIMBLEDON CUP MATCH" (PDF). NRA. July 26, 2023. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  2. "Tubb is NRA 2004 Long Range Champion". National Rifle Association of America. Archived from the original on August 31, 2004. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
  3. Nordquist, Paul (24 March 2016). "The Wimbledon Cup". Shooting Sports USA. National Rifle Association of America. Archived from the original on 31 August 2022. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  4. "New Prizes at The Wimbledon Volunteer Rifle Meeting". The Illustrated London News. July 26, 1866.
  5. "Wimbledon Cup" (PDF). National Rifle Association of America. National Rifle Association of America. 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 April 2022. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
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